When you get hit with type 2 diabetes, it’s a wake up call. It’s a great wake up call. This is because although diabetes isn’t a death sentence, it does carry the promise steadily declining health – unless you take control. It’s counter-productive to blame the diabetic for their condition, but the majority of type 2 cases today are caused in large part by sedentary lifestyles and poor diets (and the obesity that results).

Many people use a life-threatening event or illness to reevaluate their lives, and I might just be one of them. Skip this post if you’re not in the mood for mawkish, self-affirming drivel.*

I like to think that I took the diagnosis seriously last September, and I’m beginning to see the results. The back story: for more than five years, I’ve weighed about 185lbs. I was content here, my BMI was only a point or so past the “normal range,” and it was a good 20lbs(!) under what I had weighed at one point in High School (before becoming vegetarian). In a nation of fatties, I wasn’t that bad. Relativism at its finest.

However, in the past two or three months, I’ve lost an additional 15lbs, putting me at 170lbs dry (or wet for that matter) – an awesome weight for my 5′11″ frame. Since my diagnosis I’ve concentrated on getting more exercise. I bought a bicycle and was up to 30 mile day trips before I had to stop for the winter. Since then, I’ve been preoccupied with the daily rituals involved when you heat with wood. Hauling, stacking, splitting. It’s great anaerobic activity.

But most important has been the dietary changes. I’ve eliminated refined sugar, and greatly reduced my intake of starches and carbohydrates. Whenever possible, I choose lower carb, higher fiber options. I’ve also discovered that regardless of what you eat, portion control is key. All of this is remedial, but there’s a difference between understanding something on an intellectual level, and experiencing it.

All of these lifestyle changes have been paying dividends. I haven’t adopted any particular diet, but rather whatever makes sense from both the low carb and low glycemic index camps. And this has been very easy to do while sticking with the vegetarian thing.

The weight loss and better blood glucose control is tangible, the improvement in mood and general well-being is more difficult to appreciate. But it’s not a coincidence that we’re also one of the most doped up nations, and the links between mood and fitness are firmly established. The difficulty in changing the situation comes from the fact that the two are in a feedback loop, either positive or negative. Improving the health of the nation will require systemic changes, but on a personal level, I think I’ve got it nailed.

*That’s the first time I’ve ever used the word “mawkish.”