Reversing Insulin Resistance

Reversing insulin resistance, in my opinion, has been an experience near and dear to my heart because I have been struggling with insulin resistance for longer years than I even knew. Insulin is an amazing hormone in the body, and we need it in order to live. It’s not always the bad guy. Insulin does it’s thing to protect us by storing glucose in our fat cells instead of our organs. When I learned this, it sort of made more sense as to why my body was gaining weight so easily and why I had such an issue to even lose five pounds!

If you’re anything like me, you may be suffering from various issues. Check out my blog post on Blood Sugar, insulin, and Insulin Resistance here, where I share more of these issues. In my experience and as Dr. Ben Bikman says, the only way to become insulin sensitive again is to first remove all the sugars you are eating. This includes carbohydrates. Understanding that carbohydrates are long-chained sugars, and our body only sees it as sugar.

All cells have an insulin receptor, and all cells listen to insulin. This means, in order to have our cells listen to insulin the way we want it to, we must be mindful of what we’re eating.

There are two fuels that the body uses for energy; glucose or sugar and carbs, and ketones or fats. We know our body burns sugar for fuel. Fats are also a fuel source that body uses. When the body continues to burn sugar at very high levels, it will eventually burn out and this is where insulin resistance begins. However, in a healthy person, we should be able to metabolically switch between these two fuels.

Dr. Bikman explains this process in the following analogy.

“Let's pretend that our bodies are like this big fuel truck. doesn't matter which country you're in. You can find some kind of truck like this. It's rumbling down the road and it's hauling fuel. Now, this truck actually has two fuel sources or two areas of fuel. One is very big and obvious, and one is not. Now, when this truck is driving down the road and it starts to run out of fuel, it has to stop and fill up, but of course, it is only getting its fuel from that small little tank underneath the cab of the truck; the main part of the truck. Can you see the problem? It's relying on that small little fuel tank, but it has all of that fuel that it's carrying around, yet the truck can never access it. It can't use that fuel even though it's hauling it around.

This is just like our bodies. We have a little bit of fuel in our bodies stored as carbohydrate. Not too much. Just enough to get through about a day but we have, even in a person who's lean and is not overweight, we have about 100 times more energy in our body stored as fat. All that stuff that we can jiggle and pinch. We are carrying this fuel around, but we never use it just like this truck. He can't use that big tank of fuel. He can only use the fuel that's in that small tank at the front. So what would happen here is we need to put some new connections in this truck so that he could not just use the fuel from the small tank but start to use the big fuel. Insulin is the key.

If insulin is low, that means this truck can stop only ever burning the fuel from the small tank and it can start using all of the fuel that it's hauling around. This is just like our bodies. Lower insulin means that we can use the big source of fuel.”

Biohacks that may reverse Insulin Resistance (IR)

·         Apple Cider Vinegar

·         Food order

·         Fasting

·         Grounding

·         Soleus pushups

·         Movement after eating

·         Including healthy fats and fiber with carbs

·         Savory breakfast

·         Sugar swaps

·         Carb swaps

·         Resistant starches

Foods that may reverse Insulin Resistance (IR)

·         Carbs swaps

·         Sugar swaps

·         Healthy fats

Low Carb Food Swaps

Using carb swaps has been so helpful in helping me to be able to enjoy eating again without making myself feel any sicker. These are some of my favorite low carb swaps to keep insulin down.

Mashed cauliflower for mashed potatoes

Chopped radishes for cubed potatoes

Egglife wraps for flour or corn wraps

Monk Fruit sweetener, organic Stevia, and Swerve sweeteners are my favorite sugar swaps

Zucchini chips for potato chips

Keto bread for regular white bread

Riced cauliflower for rice

Chia seed pudding for oatmeal

Lettuce wraps for wraps or breads

Zucchini noodles for pasta noodles

Bottled mineral water (bubble water) for soda pop

Spaghetti squash for lasagna

Plain yogurt with blueberries for flavored yogurts

Cauliflower pizza crust for wheat/flour pizza crust

Sliced nuts for croutons

Parmesan, grated with nuts and/or almond flour for bread crumbs

Zucchini fries for potato French fries

Zucchini chips for potato chips

Cucumber slices or pickle slices for crackers

Cauliflower noodles for mac and cheese noodles

Almond flour for white flour

*Important tip to note – As we start to bring down our carbs, many people will experience what’s called the carb flu or the keto flu. This is completely normal. It’s a symptom of feeling the withdrawal from this macronutrient. I assure you, it will not last long, about a week tops. I find it very helpful to begin raising your levels of healthy fats at the same time you’re bringing down your carb intake.

Sugar Swaps

Swap cane sugar granules for Swerve, Organic Stevia, or Monk Fruit Sweetener. These sugar substitutes do not raise insulin levels. Swap sugary fruit juices and drinks, energy drinks, Gatorades, and sodas for tea (can be hot or cold) or lemon water, sweetened with one of these health sweeteners. Swap fruits such as berries and seasonal fruits, and whole-fat yogurts for sugary desserts and treats. Fruits are high in fructose and our liver does not like fructose. Fruits are not what they used to be and are literally bred by food scientists to be much sweeter, so be mindful of fruit that you’re eating. It will make you fat. (Again, this is in my opinion and my experience.) Swap candies for choices like Lily’s chocolate bars that is sweetened with Stevia. Swap out sugar-filled cakes and pasties with healthy fat, keto bombs, and treats.

*A very important reminder here is to keep in mind that sugar was meant to be for our pleasure, not a food group. The point of using sugar swaps is to help ween off and remain off of the heavy sugar roller coaster for good! It can be thought of as a life-long strategy to use if this is what is needed to remain mindful.

Tip – I found that when I began replacing sugar and sweeteners in my drinks with salt, I liked this much better and so did my body! My insulin resistance and blood pressure normalized very quickly. I use a couple shakes of Redmond Real salt daily in my water and apple cider vinegar drinks, as well as on my foods. This led me to purchasing Redmonds Re-Lyte (salty) hydration drinks. They’re amazing! As we stop sugar and carbs, our body dumps sodium so taking salt like this is a great way to prevent dehydration.

Healthy Fats

When we start removing unhealthy carbs and sugar, our body will go through a certain amount of withdrawal. I recommend adding in healthy fats to your meals to fill in this gap, so-to-speak. Healthy fats do not raise our insulin levels. Healthy fats keep you feeling satiated and full without raising insulin levels. We need these healthy fat sources to help maintain healthy body functions! They support our fat-based hormone functions and our brain as well. Healthy fats include organic coconut oil, organic extra virgin olive oil, real butter (especially grass-fed), heavy whipping cream, half and half cream, organic cream cheese, organic cheeses especially hard cheeses, avocado, nuts like walnuts, macadamia, and seeds like hemp, pumpkin, sunflower, chia, and flaxseeds. These healthy fats have been a lifesaver for me as far as helping me to get over the hump of cravings and temptations!

No need to overdo it here. Fats are typically higher in calories. Always be mindful of what you’re eating. Put the power back on your plate and regain your health to become insulin sensitive once again!

It’s well known that, unfortunately, doctors are not taught very much at all concerning healthy nutrition. They are trained by Big Pharma (and probably also Big Food). This means they are taught about medicines, not foods. This is where health coaches come in. We deep dive into nutrition every single day. We know the ins and outs of nutrition that doctors just do not. Reversing is a long, slow, almost painful process to reverse, but it can be done! Some can reverse insulin resistance much faster than others. This just means others are not as sick. Problems with insulin begin decades before resistance is noticed. Again, take a look at my blog post on Blood Sugar, insulin, and Insulin Resistance here, where I list some of these signs. If you are needing help, I can help.

Start with signing up here to get my FREE 7-Day Sugar Detox to get you started. If you’re ready now, sign up here for my health coaching and let’s get you started on a healthier path today!

HONEY HILL NATURALS, LLC DISCLAIMER:

I am not a doctor, a chemist, nor a dermatologist and this is not medical advice. I am a certified Holistic Nutritionist and Health Coach, sharing my opinion of life experiences and what I was taught in the AFPA certification program, who wants to provide a more natural and healthy lifestyle for my family and others. The information contained on the Honey Hill Naturals, LLC, or blog websites, including but not limited to all workout plans, nutritional advice, and healthy lifestyle tips, is provided for informational purposes only, and is not meant to substitute for the advice provided by your doctor or other qualified health care practitioner. The information available on or through the Honey Hill Naturals newsletters, or (including, but not limited to, information that may be provided by writers, editors, healthcare and/or nutrition professionals employed by, or contracting with, Honey Hill Naturals, LLC, and / or their associates), is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease or prescribe medication. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements or ailments on any of the above sites or newsletters, may not have been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States of America.