Today at a Glance
- Insulin resistance was quietly running the show
- Turn muscle into your sugar sink
- Sugar, labels, and Mediterranean sweetness
- A nervous system reset you wouldn’t expect
It started in my teens, and then later in my early twenties, hunched over a desk during exam season.
A brioche here. A chocolate bar there. Then another. And another.
I told myself it was just stress. Everyone eats like this when they’re studying, right?
But the pattern didn’t stop when exams ended.
It followed me into my first job. Late nights at the office. Vending machine runs. Sweet snacks as little rewards for getting through the day.
Binge–eat. Feel heavy. Promise to stop. Repeat.
Then came the PCOS diagnosis.
If you’ve ever been told “your hormones are out of balance,” you know the mix of shame and confusion. What nobody really explained back then was this:
Insulin resistance was quietly pulling the strings.
My cells had become bad listeners. Sugar stayed longer in my blood.
Cravings got louder. My cycle went wild. My mood followed.
At the time, I thought the only problem was that I was chubby. I had no idea sugar was doing anything deeper. I didn’t connect the dots between the snacks, the diagnosis, and my future health. Had no clue.
One evening I was sitting on the edge of my bed, stomach tight, head buzzing after another binge. I looked at the crumpled wrappers and had a calm, clear thought:
“If I keep going like this, I’m walking toward something I can’t come back from.”
Quitting refined sugar was not a “discipline challenge” for me.
It became an act of self-protection.
An act of self-respect.
A quiet promise: “I want to stay in my own body for a long time and feel comfortable in it.”
Later on I realized many of us look at their own relationship with food, like they are in a fight. Something you need to resist. Something you need to get disciplined from.
But the magic happens when we start to see it as a nourishing relationship.
One sometimes we need to heal from.
How does your relationship with food look like? How does it feel?
"Every time you eat is an opportunity to nourish your future, not just your mood in the next ten minutes."
Turn muscle into your sugar sink
If you are flirting with prediabetes, muscle is not “nice to have”. It is your biggest ally. Skeletal muscle is where a lot of your blood sugar gets stored.
When you train it, two good things happen:
- Your muscle pulls in more glucose, even without much insulin.
- Your cells become more sensitive to insulin for the next 24–48 hours.
Less sugar floating around. Less chaos. More stable energy. You don’t even need a gym to start. Gravity, your body, and a bit of consistency are enough.
Here are 5 beginner-friendly compound bodyweight moves:
- Squat to chair
- Hip bridge
- Incline push-up
- Bodyweight row (towel)
- Split squat (supported)
Aim: 2–3 sets of 8–12 reps, last 2 reps feel hard but safe. Train these 2–3 times per week. Move slowly, breathe, and take 1–2 minutes rest between sets.
This is not just about blood sugar. It is about seeing yourself as someone who builds strength on purpose, even in a busy life.
What is the real barrier between you and two 20-minute strength sessions per week: time, knowledge, or courage?
Next, let’s talk about the sugar on your plate.
Eat Well
Sugar, labels, and Mediterranean sweetness
One of the most radical things you can do for your future health is also one of the most boring:
Learn to read ingredient lists. The tiny words on the back.
Sugar has more than a hundred names. Glucose syrup. Maltodextrin. Barley malt. Agave nectar. Rice syrup. If you don’t know them, you will not see them. And if you do not see them, they run your day.
A simple principle I use with clients:
- Avoid added sugar whenever you reasonably can.
- Reduce ultra-processed foods to “sometimes.”
- Satisfy sweet desires with whole fruit.
Example from a Mediterranean-style day:
Instead of a mid-afternoon cookie + coffee, you have:
- A handful of nuts (almonds, wallnuts, pekan, etc) and a fruit
- A handful of berries with two spoons of Greek yogurt
- Two eggs, with a sprinkle of great quality EVOO
- A drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil if you want to get fancy
You get sweetness, fiber, healthy fats, and something that actually keeps you full. Blood sugar climbs, but it does not spike and crash. No food is “good” or “bad”. The question is: “Does this bring me closer to the life I say I want?”
How many times this week did you eat something simply because it was there, not because you chose it?
If you want, hit reply and write: “Label check”, and tell me one product in your kitchen you are not sure about. I can help you decode it.
Next, let’s work on the cravings and stress signals underneath.
A nervous system reset you wouldn’t expect
I often talk about time under tension and sitting in positions that our modern lives have abandoned.
They might feel hard, but they are a conversation with your own body.
Here is a simple practice inspired by that idea that you can use as a craving check-in and a stress reset.
The 90-second grounded squat (or chair sit) scan
If a full deep squat is not available, use a chair.
- Place your feet flat, about hip-width.
- Either:
→ Sit in a chair, lean slightly forward, or
→ Hold onto a table or doorframe and drop into your best version of a squat, heels down if possible. - Set a timer for 90 seconds.
- Close your eyes or soften your gaze.
- Breathe in through your nose for 4 counts, out for 8.
- Scan: soles of the feet, ankles, knees, hips, belly, chest, jaw.
- Notice: Where do you feel tightness, heat, tingling, or the urge to escape?
We don’t want to try to “relax perfectly”.
We’re training our nervous system to stay with mild discomfort without panicking.
Often, by the time the 90 seconds are over, the sharp edge of a craving has softened.
Or at least you feel like you have a choice. That’s the win.
People who can listen to their body under mild stress make clearer decisions under big stress. Food, work, relationships. Same nervous system.
Question for you:
How does your body first tell you “I’m not ok” – tight jaw, shallow breath, restless scrolling, sudden hunger?
Wrap up
Blood sugar is not just a number on a lab test. It is a daily story of how you move, eat, and respond to stress. And it’s not about a perfect diet, a gym membership, or monk-level discipline.
What you might need are a few honest habits that match the life you actually live. More muscle. Less hidden sugar. A calmer nervous system. That is how you turn “I’m scared of diabetes” into “I’m actually steering this ship.”
If you want more structure and support with this, Markus and I coach people through exactly these changes in our 1:1 work and programs.
And if someone came to mind while reading this, forward it to them.
Most people do not need more fear. They need one person reminding them that change is still possible.
That’s it for today.
Hope you enjoyed it (and learned something new).
As always, stay fit, stay active, and enjoy your life.
Ketty & Markus
