Since her interview, Donna has seen further improvements. Her latest A1c is 5.8%! Congratulations, Donna!
Meet Donna. Before she discovered Mastering Diabetes, simply getting up to empty the dishwasher could leave her so exhausted that she needed to lie back down.
She knew something was wrong. Her energy had disappeared, everyday activities were becoming difficult, and she no longer felt like herself. When she finally went to her doctor for lab work, the results confirmed that her health had taken a serious turn.
Her A1c was 11.0%, and her fasting blood glucose reached 325 mg/dL.
The numbers frightened her. Donna had family members with diabetes, so she knew some of the complications that could develop over time. As a later-in-life mother with a 26-year-old son, her thoughts immediately went to her family and the years she wanted to spend with them.
She knew she needed to act.
Donna began researching and eventually found Mastering Diabetes. Within weeks of changing the way she ate and receiving support through the Mastering Diabetes Coaching Program, her energy began returning and her glucose started trending downward.
Over time, Donna lowered her A1c from 11.0% to 6.1%, reduced her fasting glucose from 325 to 107 mg/dL, and lost more than 20 pounds, all without taking diabetes medication.
But perhaps the biggest transformation was how she felt.
Donna went from struggling to empty the dishwasher to waking up excited to face the day.
Plant-Based, But Not Yet Eating for Insulin Sensitivity
Mastering Diabetes wasn't Donna's introduction to plant-based nutrition.
She had already been eating plant-based for some time, but looking back, she realized that didn't necessarily mean she was eating in a way that supported insulin sensitivity.
Her diet included significant amounts of avocado, coconut oil, and other high-fat plant foods. It wasn't until she began learning about insulin resistance that she started to understand how the overall composition of her diet could affect her glucose metabolism.
Her research initially led her to the Mastering Diabetes book.
Donna appreciated that the recommendations weren't simply presented as another diet to follow. She found detailed explanations and scientific research that helped her understand why the program emphasized low-fat, whole-food, plant-based nutrition.
She then found the Mastering Diabetes YouTube channel and began watching other people's success stories.
Seeing people make meaningful changes to their own health made the possibility feel real.
Donna decided to join the Mastering Diabetes Coaching Program.
Within Weeks, Donna Could Feel Something Changing
Changing her diet initially came as a bit of a shock. But that feeling didn't last long.
Once Donna understood why she was choosing particular foods and how those foods supported her goals, the new way of eating became easier, satisfying, and eventually something she could imagine maintaining for life.
Within approximately two to three weeks, she noticed a major change. Her energy was coming back.
She wanted to get up and do things again. She wanted to see people. At the same time, her fasting glucose readings were gradually moving downward and her weight began to drop.
“The energy was going up. The numbers were going down.”
For Donna, that was the moment the pieces started coming together. She could see and feel that what she was doing was working.
Donna's Before and After Results
As Donna applied what she was learning, the changes became measurable.
Header | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
A1c (%) | 11.0 | 5.8 |
Weight (pounds) | 173 | 149–152 |
Energy | Extremely lethargic | Active and energized |
Fasting Blood Glucose (mg/dL) | 325 | 107 |
Blood Pressure (mmHg) | 173/52 | 125-135/70 |
GFR (mL/min) | 80 | 93 |
Donna's A1c dropped by nearly five percentage points, while her fasting glucose decreased by more than 200 mg/dL. Her weight fell from 173 pounds to approximately 149–152 pounds at the time of her interview, and she said it was continuing to trend downward.
What makes those results particularly meaningful to Donna is that she achieved them without diabetes medication.
She had been afraid that her diagnosis might lead to a future of increasing medications or insulin, but instead she was able to make substantial improvements by changing her lifestyle while continuing to work with her healthcare team.
From Lying Down After Chores to Walking and Exercising Again
The laboratory results tell only part of Donna's story.
Before Mastering Diabetes, her lethargy affected even basic activities. Standing in the kitchen or completing household chores could feel exhausting.
Today, she doesn't even think about those activities.
Donna wakes up with energy and excitement about the day ahead. She can walk much farther than she used to and regularly exercises on a rebounder. The combination of increased energy and weight loss has made movement easier, and being able to move more has become another way to support her health.
She also reported that the heart palpitations she had previously experienced seemed to settle down.
Most importantly, Donna feels hopeful again.
“I just feel good about life now.”
For someone who had initially been frightened about what diabetes could mean for her future, that emotional transformation has been just as significant as watching her glucose numbers fall.
Eating Potatoes, Beans, Quinoa, and Fruit While Improving Her Blood Sugar
Donna's experience also changed her understanding of what eating for diabetes could look like.
Instead of feeling restricted, she discovered that she could eat an abundance of satisfying whole plant foods while working toward better insulin sensitivity.
Some of her favorite Mastering Diabetes meals came directly from the meal plans, including Bombay potatoes and beans, Moroccan squash soup, and a quinoa berry breakfast bowl with greens.
The recipes made the transition easier because Donna didn't have to constantly calculate or guess what to prepare. She could follow the meal plans, use the nutrition information provided, and gradually become comfortable building meals around the principles she was learning.
That was particularly helpful because the rest of her family eats very differently.
Initially, Donna worried that maintaining a plant-based lifestyle while living with family members who eat animal foods would be difficult. Instead, she found the recipes flavorful, filling, and practical enough that she no longer misses meat or other animal products.
She can see herself eating this way for the rest of her life. And she doesn't expect perfection.
If a family gathering takes her slightly off course, she knows how to return to the habits that make her feel good rather than treating one imperfect meal as a reason to give up.
Coaching Turned Information Into a Community
Donna credits her coach and coaching group with helping make the experience sustainable.
Her coach provided information, encouragement, and guidance, but Donna also discovered how valuable it was to be surrounded by people facing similar challenges.
Her Coaching group became extremely close.
Donna jokingly describes the connection as being like “war buddies.” Everyone understood the symptoms, frustrations, victories, and struggles that can come with trying to improve metabolic health.
That sense of community extended beyond her individual Coaching group.
Through the Mastering Diabetes community, Donna found coaches and members who could answer questions, share recipes, discuss sleep and other lifestyle habits, and offer support based on their own experiences.
Instead of trying to figure everything out by herself, she had people she could turn to.
Donna believes so strongly in the value of that support that she plans to remain involved with the Mastering Diabetes Coaching Program. For her, investing in that education and community has been an investment in her future.
What Donna Wants Others to Know
Throughout Donna's Coaching experience, she repeatedly returned to one question: Why?
Why make these changes? Why keep going when changing lifelong habits becomes difficult? For Donna, the answer is quality of life.
When she first saw her lab results, she thought about the complications she had seen diabetes cause and about the possibility of losing precious years with her husband and son.
Today, the future feels different.
She has lowered her A1c from 11.0% to 6.1%. Her fasting glucose has fallen from 325 to 107 mg/dL. She has lost more than 20 pounds, regained the energy to exercise and enjoy everyday life, and accomplished those changes without diabetes medication.
But the numbers represent something larger. Donna feels like she has gained more time and more possibilities for how she can spend it.
“This program has meant so much to me. Not only improved my health, my quality of life, I've made some friends for life.”
Her advice to someone considering Mastering Diabetes is simple: don't wait.
For Donna, learning how to improve insulin sensitivity gave her something she didn't have when she first received those frightening lab results.
A clear path forward.
Ready to See Results Like Donna?
If you're struggling with high blood sugar, insulin resistance, low energy, or the fear that diabetes will continue progressing, you don't have to figure out your next steps alone.
Book a free discovery call with one of our advisors and learn how to begin your own transformation.
Lower Your A1c and Fasting Blood Sugar... Guaranteed
Your results are guaranteed. Join more than 10,000 ecstatic members today
Personalized coaching puts you in immediate control of your diabetes health, helps you gain energy, improves your quality of life, and reduces or eliminates your meds.
