Losing fat if you are a type 2 diabetic can be difficult. By definition, you have impaired glucose handling (harder time using carbohydrates) and you have increased insulin as the body tries to get glucose out of the blood. Remember that high levels of glucose in the blood is actually toxic.

1. How Can I Lose Fat If I Am A Type 2 Diabetic?
Losing fat if you are a type 2 diabetic can be difficult. By definition, you have impaired glucose
handling (harder time using carbohydrates) and you have increased insulin as the body tries to
get glucose out of the blood. Remember that high levels of glucose in the blood is actually
toxic.
Over time as the tissue (muscle and fat) becomes more insulin resistant, your body needs to put
out more insulin in an attempt to get more glucose out, otherwise you will die.
The long term bugger is that as insulin goes up, it impairs fat oxidation (burning that stubborn fat
from your love handles). Oh crap! This is the opposite direction if you are looking to lose fat and
get leaner.
Think of insulin as the "fuel selector switch." (Kelley 2002).
Low insulin = use fat.
High insulin = use carbs.
Unfortunately, people with type 2 diabetes get the short end of the stick. As the disease
progresses they tend to have higher levels of glucose andfats in their blood (triglycerides), and
as a result they are very metabolically inflexible (Galgani, J. et al. 2008).
Their bodies are unable to effectively switch from using fat as a fuel to using carbs as a fuel due
to the rising baseline levels of insulin. Remember, higher insulin makes it much harder for the
body to burn fats.
Tips For Fat Loss
If you are someone who is a type 2 diabetic and trying to lose fat, talk to your doctor about your
blood work, especially your triglycerides (TGs), fasting glucose, and HbA1C levels (a marker of
3 month glucose levels). This will give you a pretty darn good snapshot of metabolic
health. Better metabolic health equates to being more metabolically flexible so your body can
more effectively use fat as a fuel.
There you have a bit of theory and some practical markers to track over time. This will get you
back on track to losing fat and improving your health at the same time.
For more simple Fat Loss tips, tactics, articles and free exercise videos to re-charge your body, re-
activate sore muscles and joint, and condition your mind for extreme health, visit us at
www.MikeTNelson.com.

2. Mike T Nelson
References
Galgani, Jose E. Moro, Cedric, and Ravussin, Eric, Metabolic flexibility and insulin
resistance.Am J PhysiolEndocrinolMetab November 2008 295:E1009-E1017
Kelley, David E, An Aspect of Regional Adiposity and Insulin Resistance. Annals of the New
York Academy of Sciences.Volume 967, LIPIDS AND INSULIN RESISTANCE: THE ROLE OF
FATTY ACID METABOLISM AND FUEL PARTITIONING pages 135–145, June 2002