Duragrouch

I started metformin I think 3-4 years ago. First needed to use at half dose for a long time, full dose and I could not be far from the bathroom. In recent years I have adapted well to full dose which is good because my glucose ballooned as I have gained weight. Trying to lose that weight now but is so hard, exercise is not enough, need to greatly restrict diet. At one point metformin was not enough, doctor put me on Ozempic, and has worked well, even at low dose. Was not too expensive at first, but then I fell into the "donut hole", after a certain amount of money spent with insurance (I think $4000?), then I would have had to pay full amount until over ($7000?) and then it was covered again. Thankfully, my income is so low that I am well below the max that qualifies to get it FREE from the manufacturer, they send it direct to my doctor and I pick it up.

About the exercise: You can get results even before much weight loss. I have a theory about this: The fat on the outside is not the most harmful, it's after the fat begins to invade the space between your organs or the organs themselves where it impedes function, that part is known. My theory is that the latter happens, well, later in your weight gain. My theory is that fat "stacks", like a stack of plates or a mathematical stack; Last fat gained is the first fat lost. After I was first diagnosed with type II, I exercised like mad, didn't lose much weight at all, but got retested for A1C 3 months later and it had dropped a ton, and doctor was like, "What did you do?!" And I told him my theory, and he thought there may be something to that. Anyway, my point is, don't be thinking you need to get full weight loss before getting results. Just start exercising, that alone will help metabolic syndrome(?), and even a little fat loss may help a lot. And, restrict your diet. Those diets like Atkins(?) that became a fad a couple decades ago, IMO, are wrong; They replaced starches with protein, but any protein, even fatty burgers. Reducing starch is good (and by the way, cook a starch like potatoes or pasta, refrigerate it, then reheat it, and the glycemic index drops, it digests slower). But you don't need a ton of protein, too much taxes the kidneys and can contribute to gout. Replace those starches with *more vegetables*, preferably fresh, or frozen, not canned. My most frequent thing is get fresh veg frying in the bottom of pan (in a bit of olive oil, good), place fish fillet on top, cover, fish steams while veg cooks (turn over fillet at halfway), or slice chicken off bone (thighs, cheap) and add closer to end. Right at end, a dash of soy sauce and a dash of oyster sauce, stir, serve. If not those sauces, put rosemary and any other seasoning in bottom of pan and veg on top, the rosemary needs to fry in the oil to release flavors and soften. On thighs, I remove skin, cut away the fat (sharp paring knife to scrape/cut off), and on underside on one side of bone, there is always a pocket of fat that I scrape out with the tip of the paring knife. Then cut off meat, don't need to get every bit off bone, just throw it in the pan too then just eat off the bone. If you love crispy skin, you can put on baking sheet in 350F oven, turn frequently so it doesn't stick, and it will render all fat, perfect crispness, this is called crackle, drain on paper towel like bacon, season with a bit of season salt or other, nectar of the gods. If a small amount of skin, I will cut smaller and do same in small pot on stove. Pics follow: