Interview: Living with Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes is a chronic metabolic disease that affects millions of people worldwide. Unlike type 1 diabetes, where the body does not produce insulin, type 2 diabetes develops due to insulin resistance and insufficient insulin production. In this article, we will take a closer look at the causes, symptoms, and prevention strategies for type 2 diabetes. Afterwards, we will speak with an experienced expert on the topic.

Causes of Type 2 Diabetes

The main causes of type 2 diabetes are a combination of genetic predisposition and lifestyle factors. Obesity, especially in the abdominal region, increases the risk of insulin resistance and the development of type 2 diabetes. An unhealthy diet, rich in saturated fats, sugar, and processed foods, also plays a crucial role. Lack of exercise, smoking and chronic stress can further increase the risk.

Symptoms of Type 2 Diabetes

The symptoms of type 2 diabetes can vary and often develop gradually. Common signs include excessive thirst, frequent urination, fatigue, blurred vision, slow wound healing and recurrent infections. However, many people live with type 2 diabetes for years without knowing it, as the symptoms can be subtle or only appear in advanced stages.

Prevention Strategies for Type 2 Diabetes

A healthy lifestyle can significantly reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Here are some recommended prevention strategies:

1. Weight Management: Healthy weight loss for those who are overweight can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes. A balanced diet with plenty of vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, and healthy fats is important.

2. Regular physical activity: At least 150 minutes of moderate to intense physical activity per week can help lower the risk of type 2 diabetes. Active exercise such as walking, running, swimming, or cycling is recommended.

3. Healthy Diet: A balanced diet with an emphasis on fiber-rich foods, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein is important. The consumption of sugary drinks, sugary snacks, and highly processed foods should be avoided.

4. Stress Management: Chronic stress can increase the risk of type 2 diabetes. Stress management strategies such as relaxation techniques, regular exercise, and adequate sleep can help reduce stress.

5. Regular medical check-ups: Regular check-ups with a doctor can help detect type 2 diabetes early or assess the risk. Blood sugar tests, blood pressure measurements, and other examinations are important screening methods.

Type 2 diabetes is a serious illness, but it can be influenced by a healthy lifestyle and prevention strategies. Adopting a balanced diet, regular physical activity, weight management and stress management are important measures for preventing type 2 diabetes. Early detection and appropriate treatment can reduce the risk of complications and achieve well-controlled blood sugar levels. Always consult a doctor or a diabetes specialist for individual advice and treatment.

Interview with Andreas Wartha

Dear Andreas, thank you very much for agreeing to talk to us and doing an interview. Can you tell us about yourself and introduce yourself?

Yes, my name is Andreas Wartha. I am 59 years old now. I'll be sixty this year. I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes five years ago. At that time, I weighed about 35 kilograms more. My HbA1c value was 10% on the day of diagnosis, and I thought: "Okay, what do you do now? Either you change your previous life, rethink everything. You have to put everything to the test, or you continue like this and then you'll be on your side in half a year" and that wasn't for me. So that was the external reason for me to change something in my life.

My symptoms were very non-specific. I didn't have any pain in the classic sense that diabetes hurts somewhere. No, it doesn't. I was constantly drained and tired. I didn't have frequent urination. Why did I go to the doctor then? Because I had a small insect bite on my foot that didn't really heal. Then I thought: "Well, before this gets stupid in any way, go to the doctor." I hadn't been there for ages. I think many men know this, who then think: "No, I don't like going to the doctor." And then the doctor looked at my feet and thought that I probably had diabetes. Then the blood values were checked as a precaution, and then she told me the results on another day. Then she explained to me in ten minutes what I should eat, what I shouldn't eat, what I should avoid. So that was for me the fastest and certainly the most competent nutritional advice I had, because I really got through the weekend well with it. Although I immediately started researching and dealing with it very intensively.

On the day of the diagnosis, I dug my old bicycle out of the cellar and started right away. I cycled 15 km a day. I also have to say that the weather was very nice. So we had sunshine. There was hardly any rain, and so you could always combine that very well, and lo and behold: So over the weekend, it was already the case that I had morning values of just under 400 before, and if I had a value of 400 on Monday morning after the weekend, the doctor would have immediately taken me to the hospital. And I thought: "Well, now you should do something." But then I was already at 300 when I saw her on Monday, and that's how it went. Then she immediately sent me to a diabetologist. Which is very important with an HbA1c of 10, because many family doctors, for example, mess around with this high HbA1c at first, and then it is necessary for a specialist to take a look first. I don't go to an internist with any surgical complaints and then have him operate. I was perfectly cared for by her for five or six weeks. Then she kicked me out again because my HbA1c was below 7, and I also started losing weight. I also stuck to it very consistently. I didn't pay attention to calories. I completely cut out sweets. So I banned sugar from my diet. If you see how much sugar is in some foods, then that's usually enough. At first, it was very time-consuming to check all the labels. Muesli is not the same as muesli, and if you see how much sugar is in some muesli, you get dizzy. I then found an organic basic muesli from Rewe. It had 1.9 grams of sugar, and that helped me a lot. In addition, Skyr and a few berries in the morning. So blueberries, whatever was in season at the moment. Just by cutting out household sugar, half the battle was won. I only used whole grain quality. My beloved ciabatta fell victim to the cutbacks. I replaced it with whole grain rolls. I also baked rye rolls or whole grain rolls myself, for example. I am someone who doesn't demonize carbohydrates. For God's sake. But what no one needs is simple sugar or saccharides, such as household sugar, because that is empty. Those are empty calories and they also hinder weight loss. During the weight loss phase, I also completely abstained from red wine and white wine. I don't drink schnapps, and I also cut out beer. That helped me a lot. I lost 15.5 kilos within 7 or 8 weeks. I was diagnosed on October 5th, and on November 28th, the scale showed 99.5 kg. That was a very nice feeling. That was already good, and then I just kept going. I only cycled for the first five weeks, and then I joined a gym. One day I did about 35 to 60 minutes of cardio training, and then on the other day I did strength training. That also takes about an hour with warm-up, and that helped me a lot. I quickly built up muscle mass through targeted body training. I built up back muscles. I built up biceps and triceps muscles and leg and gluteal muscles and my abdominal muscles again. So I certainly won't get a six-pack anymore, but that's not what it's about. It's about recognizing what many people who want to lose weight do wrong. It's very simple. They lose muscle mass. It's not just the fat cells that go.

The body is designed and equipped for famine and of course tries to keep everything, and then it can happen that muscle mass is broken down first. You need fat burning, and it's not important to perform at your best in the cardio area or to start throwing weights around and putting on too much. No, it's about really having this continuous movement. I recommend training with a heart rate between 130 and 140. You can also let loose sometimes, but only if you are really well trained, and you should definitely have a doctor check everything before you start exercising, especially for heart problems. Exercise is good, no question, but the intensity must of course be reduced and adjusted. This is an immense experience that I have also had. I then also trained as a nutritionist and as a personal trainer, and I would say that I now do a lot in the field of nutrition and exercise. These principles can be used for diabetes, for obesity, and actually by anyone who wants a healthy diet or who simply wants to lose a few kilos, who wants to do a little something for their bikini or swimming trunks figure on the beach. So a lot is possible. What I always recommend is a permanent change in diet. So no crash diets or mono diets. These are completely doomed to failure from the outset. The moment you eat differently again, you've put everything back on, and probably 5 kilos more. That's the so-called yo-yo effect. I'll be in Berlin next week at the DDG spring conference and I'm really looking forward to it. It's nice that we have the opportunity to participate as part of a program by the DDG Voices. This is still a developing country in Germany, because many don't understand why affected people are suddenly taking part in this congress. The motto of the DDG Voices is: "Nothing about us, without us." Because we want to discuss it, and that can only really be done by talking to those affected, and I think that can be done much better at such congresses than if you are sitting in your doctor's office and then examining the affected person. And the terrible thing is that we have figures that are absolutely frightening. So we have a total of, if I see it correctly, currently 8.7 million people with diabetes, of which about 350,000 have type 1 diabetes and the rest, a dark figure of about two million, are all type 2. I already said earlier that

diabetes doesn't hurt. The complications hurt. Such as strokes, heart attacks. Then we have the notorious eye diseases, then kidney diseases, then neuropathies in the foot area or also wounds, especially in the foot area, which then start to open up and where feet are sometimes still amputated piece by piece, and here, of course, medicine has developed very far, and I would always recommend getting a second opinion if such diagnoses should ever be in question, because you only have two feet. If one is gone, that's of course annoying. So always consult another specialist. Such amputations should also only be performed in special treatment centers, because they sometimes have completely different possibilities than, for example, at the district hospital here. I think you should always insist on this, and I also recommend to all relatives to get a second opinion.

It's good that you draw attention to that. So, basically, for a dietary change, is it enough to simply cut out household sugar at the beginning? Just to look at what you're really eating? To eat consciously and exercise to lose weight sustainably? Because many dismiss dietary changes or healthy eating itself as difficult, complicated, and not suitable for everyday life, and that's where many fail to change their diet.

Yes, for me, as the saying goes, these are a few excuses. For example, banishing classic white flour products, like Type 405 or 550, from your diet and really opting for whole grain flour instead. Of course, with whole grain flour, I always need a bit more water to roll out a dough that is smooth. That’s a challenge. The other is a bit simpler, of course, but it can be done. Carbohydrate intake, which has a significant impact on blood sugar, should be slightly reduced without necessarily needing to eat a ketogenic or low-carb diet. That’s not absolutely necessary. It’s enough to cleverly combine it with protein. For example, the good old quark whole grain sandwich. Just make a herb quark, a little salt, a little garlic, however you like it, and combine it with a whole grain sandwich. Of course, you have to be careful. I love my whole grain sandwich too, but if I eat four, five, or six slices of whole grain bread, my blood sugar will also spike. But if I eat, for example, two slices of whole grain bread, my blood sugar rises slowly, and otherwise, you have to test many things. So every diabetes is unique. Every diabetes is different. Some, for example, have no problem eating bananas. I personally don't eat bananas because my blood sugar tends to shoot up a bit. So I avoid them. I prefer to eat an apple, or especially pome fruit and things like that.

Now is the mecca of healthy eating, meaning it's asparagus season. Meaning it's strawberry season. So that's good, and there's so much you can do. Sometimes I don't have much time to cook, but there are our discount stores where you can easily buy vegetable stir-fries. They're even available in organic quality now, and there's hardly any sugar in them. Not long ago, I had a Mediterranean vegetable stir-fry. It had 2.5 grams of sugar per 100 grams, and you just put it frozen into the pan, and after ten minutes, it's time to eat. I always recommend trying to eat about 500 grams of vegetables per day. For many people, cravings arise in the evening. Then you desperately want something sweet. But even here, with a few small tricks, you can snack without much happening. I always say, the darker the chocolate, the better. Milk chocolate should not necessarily be consumed, and not a whole bar, but only one or two pieces, and that's conscious indulgence. The mistake is often made that sugar addiction comes out, and you can't stop snacking. You then have to realize: "That's enough for me now." There's also a way to effectively counter cravings. Firstly: always drink a large glass of water before eating. The body's feeling of fullness usually sets in after about 20 minutes. Until then, you can eat endlessly, which I used to do, and then you're full, and especially if you're eating sweets, for example, then your blood sugar level will naturally rise rapidly and then drop very quickly again, and bam, you have the next craving. That's why I recommend eating a high-fiber diet. Vegetables, for example, and then also whole grain products. Because many people stand there and say that the only true solution for diabetes is a ketogenic diet or at least a low-carb diet. No, it's not. So you have to say that clearly. It always depends on whether and what medications you receive. If you don't receive any medication, for example, like me. I have successfully, I would say, brought my diabetes into remission and currently don't need any medication. I have everything well under control through diet and exercise. You don't know how long that will be the case, but currently, it's really quite good for me.

So would you say that even with diabetes, one can lead a largely normal life?

Sure! The only thing is, you might have to overcome your inner slacker first. A few simple changes are enough. For example, I have a fitness tracker that counts my steps. It's rare for me to get less than 10,000 steps a day. Maybe if I'm in the car all day, I only get 7,000 or 8,000 steps, but usually I make sure to take a brisk walk first thing in the morning. If I know I've eaten a potato salad and my blood sugar will go up (I don't even need to measure it right away, because it rises slowly, but it does rise), then I immediately put on my shoes and walk 3,000 to 5,000 steps. So, brisk and quick walking. That's about 20 to 25 minutes. You can easily integrate that into your lunch break, and your blood sugar is usually back around 100. Otherwise, it can easily go up to 200 / 210, which is why it's simply important to know exactly what and how many carbohydrates you've eaten. Of course, those who have to inject insulin calculate it and have their carbohydrate units or bread units. They also know exactly how much short-acting insulin they need to inject. In Type 2 diabetes, there are also many who have intensified insulin therapy. This means they receive a long-acting insulin, which is usually injected once daily in the evening, and then short-acting insulin with meals, which must be calculated as needed. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease, where the body's immune system attacks and destroys the beta cells of the pancreas, leading to an absolute insulin deficiency. This means that affected individuals absolutely must inject insulin, otherwise they would eventually die. Nothing works without insulin. Fortunately, insulin was discovered. Before that, people tried everything with patients, but they died. And as I said, then came insulin. It was initially obtained from the pancreas of dogs, and later from pigs. Nowadays, it's all produced synthetically. This invention was phenomenal and truly saved so many lives. Insulin was first tested on a boy. It was injected into him, and he really blossomed after receiving the insulin. He also lived to be over 90 years old, all with the possibilities and means available at the time. Today, especially in Type 1 treatment, we also have insulin pumps and CGM systems, meaning we have continuous glucose monitoring, and some of these devices even calculate the necessary insulin delivery. Of course, they also have flaws, as technology always does, and it can always happen that, for example, the catheter needs to be changed. Unfortunately, there are still the individual characteristics of the patient. So you can't make it completely automatic, but so much has happened, and I am very sure that further significant improvements for patients can be achieved in the coming years. Digital progress has definitely contributed to saving many lives and enabling a life with diabetes.

So, there is also the widespread opinion that diabetes patients, people who develop diabetes, are largely to blame for it due to their unhealthy lifestyle. What is your opinion on this?

No, no, absolutely not. That's probably why many people with type 2 diabetes don't dare to talk about it much, because they are put in a bad light. But it is true that lifestyle factors play a role in triggering diabetes. Of course, being overweight and a lack of exercise are factors that can influence it, but you also need a genetic component, a genetic predisposition. This means I can be slim and eat healthily and still develop type 2 diabetes at some point, simply because I have this genetic makeup. Likewise, a person with obesity who does not have this genetic predisposition will not get diabetes. I think it is absolutely misplaced to talk about blame and guilt. While diet is discussed, and much is said, what are you actually offered? It starts in childhood, where children are inundated with chocolate, fruit gums, etc., and everyone who goes to a birthday party first gives a large bar of chocolate or a large bag of gummy bears, and it's even worse during holidays. There's plenty of sweets then, and as a child, I always looked forward to the colorful plate at Christmas, but that was a one-time experience. And over time, of course, with further development, food is available everywhere for us nowadays, and no matter when, where, how, I can always get food somewhere. On the one hand, you say: "Well, it's always available." On the other hand, it's both a curse and a blessing, and if you saw the whole thing in a balanced perspective and understood it, much would already be achieved, and for me, that starts with schools, for example. Children who are taught about healthy eating. So, what is recommended? What does our body need? How much? They are always amazed when I explain it to them. Or when you go shopping, for example, what's in those old cornflakes. There are tons of snacks that are eaten. It's sugar without end. It's pre-programmed. Our children move far too little. Unfortunately, this has been the case for the past few years. We used to have perhaps one to a maximum of two overweight children in a class. Look at classes today: it's simply the case that we are already struggling with obesity in childhood and adolescence, and that is, of course, incredibly difficult, because on the one hand, children can sometimes be cruel. They could tease their peers. But nowadays, it's sometimes the other way around, that they say: "Look how thin he is." We need to start there, that education is already being done in schools. Why healthy eating is important. Of course, as a child, you don't perceive all that so much. And if you give a child some money for a burger and they then constantly hang out at McDonald's and eat fries. So if you want fast food, then go to the Turk around the corner and get a kebab, because it still has a lot of salad in it. I would build it a bit differently, because it's not whole grain. But you can do that, and then it's a really successful meal, and with the sauces, you could perhaps put a little less sugar in it. But I still consider that acceptable.

So you also offer individual diabetes coaching? 

Yes, so if you've booked such a program, you'll naturally have my meal plan included, which really takes everything into account. You have fish once a week. If you don't like fish, you can skip it and replace it with a dish you do like. Most of the time, people tell me: "Andreas, what you're doing is always so much and so rich. I can't do it all at once." Well, I don't do it all every day either, but I say, you want an appealing program from me. Otherwise, the rest of what you don't eat, you put in the fridge and eat it the next day, or I get the idea to freeze it. So you can do a lot and you don't have to do it all in one day. Everyone can decide for themselves and pick their favorites. Those who participated have all lowered their Hb1Ac. Significantly. That's what it should be about, in my opinion. I'm also not so focused on saying you absolutely have to lose weight immediately. No, that's a very pleasant side product. For me, the main thing is that we can change our diet and that we can integrate exercise into our daily routine. Usually, because you move more, if you consume the same amount of calories as before and you've only incorporated exercise into your day, you can assume that you're already in a calorie deficit and then you'll gradually lose weight, and not everyone has to do it with a crash course, like I did. Instead, you can do it gradually and start with a change in diet. I'm already happy if someone comes to me and says: "Andreas, I'm not so good with exercise. I might walk a thousand steps a day. I might be able to manage that." Then I try to motivate them in that direction. Then I say: "Okay, then try to walk a little more today. Try to consciously do about 250 to 500 more steps today than yesterday." And usually, within two to four weeks, a significantly higher number is reached and significantly more exercise is achieved than before the person came to me for coaching. It has a lot to do with overcoming your inner slacker. I always say we have to walk into the pain. So you really have to overcome yourself. Exercise is very important! The body is a creature of habit. For me, it's now the case that my body craves exercise if I don't move for a day. I would then feel very uncomfortable. It was the same before, when I was in my comfort zone, exercise was stupid. And there are many excuses for that: "Well, I have a stressful office job, I'm in my home office or I'm in the office," and I always say: "Yes, you can also move in the office, you can also easily do 10,000 steps a day in the office." How? You just stand up. You get out of your desk chair, you stand at your desk and march in place. The Fitbit will definitely recognize that, or any other fitness tracker will also recognize that, and it will count your steps. This means that if the weather is really bad, I stand in place and march quickly. It might look a bit silly, but it's very effective, and it's also the case that you start sweating after ten minutes. You do that for half an hour and you're moderately well trained.

Yes, I agree with you 100 percent. I also find it very remarkable how you dealt with the diagnosis, how you simply turned your life around, and yes, had such an easy start to a new life, and now you really want to help other affected people. I think that as a coach by their side, you are the best person to talk to and you can definitely motivate them and really help them lead a normal life with diabetes. To come back to the fact that much still needs to be done in terms of nutritional education. What needs to change in the future in the treatment of type 2 diabetes patients?

First of all, everyone should take this disease very seriously. Diabetes is a chronic disease of the pancreas. Even if some doctors stand up and say that diabetes is curable. No, diabetes is not curable. You will have it for the rest of your life, because even if, for example, my blood values and sugar values are currently normal, they can still worsen. I also notice that if I were to eat a normal piece of cake, for example, my blood sugar would go up. At Easter, we were in Saxony and I had a piece of Dresdner Eierschecke (a local cake). Afterwards, my blood sugar was at 270. In metabolically healthy people, blood sugar should not exceed 140 milligrams per deciliter, approximately one hour after eating. So, it's quite simple, we have to assume that you have this disease, you just have to do the right thing and then you can deal with it well. Then you can live with it. I always say that, whether you have to take medication or not. So don't view medication as your enemies, but really as friends. For many with type 2 diabetes, metformin is the drug of choice. There are also various other medications, but your diabetologist or family doctor will discuss that with you, and I don't interfere with that or start tinkering with the medication. I can't do that. No, I'm not allowed to. But I can, of course, do the following: if someone comes to me who has been to their family doctor for years, with an HbA1c of 10, I always say: "Make sure you get an emergency appointment with a diabetologist!" Because you shouldn't mess around with that anymore, and usually you can get it under control relatively quickly. Many family doctors try to treat it themselves, and that's not good. I was incredibly lucky that my family doctor immediately sent me to a diabetologist.

In older patients, vision often decreases, balance disorders occur, and the risk of falling increases. How important do you think it is for seniors to wear an emergency wristband if they fall, or how is it with diabetes, do people also pass out?

It all depends. So, in patients who are on medication, for example, receiving metformin, hypoglycemia is rather unlikely. In people who need insulin, i.e., who have this intensive insulin therapy, one has to be extremely careful, because they can go into hypoglycemia. This is called hypoglycemia, and it can then also lead to them collapsing, to them losing consciousness. I personally think these emergency systems are very good and well-designed. I know my father had one. An emergency system where a control center was informed at the touch of a button, and my mother couldn't manage it any other way, because if my father was on the floor, she couldn't get him up. It's a very good thing, because help arrives very quickly, and especially with diabetes, every minute counts.

I wanted to ask you what you think we, as a society, can do to combat the progression of diabetes? In any case, education from childhood onwards, where you really focus on nutrition. Are there any other factors or points?

Yes, of course. Well, first of all, look at today's food prices. Especially for healthy foods. I would wish that the VAT on fruit and vegetables would be reduced to 0. That would help a lot. In return, the VAT on sugary drinks and unhealthy things should be increased. Like the tobacco tax, which has also contributed to fewer smokers now. With new things, people always complain first and say it won't work. For example, making restaurants smoke-free. That's an absolute blessing, because otherwise it was always like this: they smoked after dinner, and you sat with children in the restaurant, for example, and they were, of course, exposed to all that passive smoke. So, a lot is possible, and I think that in this regard, a lot can be done. But it has to be affordable. Of course, I buy vegetables on offer, for example. Although they have become very expensive anyway. You should use seasonal products. You should use regional products. So that already accomplishes a lot. For example, cabbage season. Cabbage is always relatively inexpensive, and you can conjure up so many things with cabbage. You usually always have some offers. Of course, I wouldn't come along and buy a cauliflower that costs almost €3. That's not necessary. There are alternatives. And when it comes to exercise, it's quite simple that those who come to me, whom I also train as a personal trainer in Düsseldorf, enjoy it. I am currently thinking about setting up up to three groups from August onwards, in which several seniors can participate, where we then go outside. Some want to do Nordic Walking, some just want to walk. All of this can be perfectly combined, and you always wait for the weakest participant in the group, or you put the groups together in such a way that you are a bit faster with advanced participants and a bit more careful with slower ones. I want to work with a retirement home. Possibly also a nursing home. Clear physiotherapy is important, but just as important is exercise therapy. Just a little gymnastics, without overwhelming people. When I hear someone suggest "head rolling," I always shake my head and say no. That is completely outdated, because the nerve pathways and blood vessels are partly pinched off. We don't do that. Nowadays, we take the head to the right side, then to the left side, then back and forth. Much better! Or shoulder circles can be done without problems, and I do a lot of that with people. I myself can be found at Holmes Place in Düsseldorf. That's my home club there, at Provinzialplatz, and I'll be available there again from August. For example, someone had problems with their neck; it was unstable. We got that so well under control through head training, and they're doing really well again. But gradually. Many young trainers follow a fixed scheme; they look at you briefly and say: "You have to lift so and so many kilos." No, where is that written? Rome wasn't built in a day. We start so that the weights can be managed without problems. So, we do it so that you can manage 10 repetitions in a set, and that three times. With the last four or five repetitions, the arms or muscles should be allowed to burn. And we take a break of perhaps one to a maximum of one and a half minutes. That way you can achieve a lot.

That sounds very interesting. We will also display your contact details in the description and hope that many people will contact you, whom you can then help, and really help individually and not according to this "one size fits all" scheme. Finally, I would like to know if you have any advice for affected people who are currently at the beginning of their diagnosis?

Definitely. So, staying persistent is important, always staying persistent. I always say, what is success? Success is getting up one more time than falling on your face, and of course you will experience setbacks. No question about it. That can happen, but keep at it. Motivate yourselves or seek appropriate help. That it will be discussed. For example, there are very good self-help groups that I also work with, where you can, of course, learn a lot.

So either motivate yourselves for strength training or for exercise, or sign up at a gym somewhere and go train, because today we have it so that you don't pay per visit, but I pay once a month for all-inclusive. Then just imagine: it's like "all you can eat", only all you can train, and you go to the gym every day. Although with strength training there should always be a 24-hour break, as the muscles want to regenerate. So one day cardio training and one day you do strength training, and you can do that seven days a week. That's how I do it. Above all, you can maintain your weight. So that's already a good thing. So persistence is important. Motivation! Motivation! If things don't go so well, then as they say? Adjust your crown, wipe your mouth, and keep going. As I said, the beautiful and also the insidious thing about diabetes. It accompanies you for the rest of your life, so you can never start too late. You can always start again.

Yes, you said that very well. Thank you. Thank you very much for the interview and for taking the time. I was really pleased to talk about this topic.

 

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In this interview, he tells us more about his experiences and gives valuable tips for all those affected. If you prefer to watch the video, you can now switch to YouTube with a click!