T2D Metabolic Issues, Diet, and Results

Start with some assertions: Human biology needs insulin, as required, to store required and excess energy inputs (a.k.a "food"). File this under "How to avoid starvation.". Human biology suffers from excess energy inputs, causing enduring high insulin levels. That stored excess energy is fat, and that fat, along with continuing insulin exposure, causes a number of other disease states. You want to be a low fat human body, with low insulin levels.

If you cannot wrap your brain around that, you can stop reading.
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So, my list of "things to do", to minimize insulin need and induce body fat loss (lipolysis):

• Avoid carbs
• Consuming carbs increases endogenous insulin levels, or requires exogenous insulin to be shot (to normalize BG levels). More insulin is not the preferred outcome. Fats and proteins are preferred food choices.
• Fast, long and often
• Not eating removes carbs and other macros from your intake. In addition to 'no calories in', fasting also provides a number of other metabolic benefits.
• Fasting doesn't require calorie restriction, but it does make it simpler to accomplish. It also makes overeating (too many calories) simpler as well.
• Lose weight
• If there's any "spare fat" on your body, remove it. BMI near 20, or 10%-15% body fat, is a goal. This also improves insulin sensitivity.
• Do heavy exercise a few times a week
• The metabolic benefits are huge, especially if the weight is heavy. Recovery is mandatory for maximum benefit.
• Manage insulin levels
• Minimizing causes of increased insulin levels is important. The preferred level of exogenous insulin is Zero.

What demonstrates progress, and no progress?

• Avoid carbs: The target is under 25 grams per day. My average seems to be 60 or so, lower many days, with blowups for parties, holidays, Christmas cookie times. 
• Fast, long and often: Usually one 40+ hour fast / week, all in averaging 20.3 hours per day, median 18 hours per day. Basically, no breakfast, late lunch. Be careful not to over eat.
• Lose weight: See https://hobbytreat.blogspot.com/2018/11/fasting-update-and-lack-of-weight-loss.html . myFitnessPal in use to measure and record food and weight. Weight then "plateaued" at 193-196. Weight now 188-194. Roughly a pound a week. Halloween, family parties, friends parties, Thanksgiving, and Christmas are not conducive to weight loss for me. Eating slightly less than 2000 calories per day, higher than target carbs, lower than target fats, way lower than target protein. Getting body composition measured tomorrow.
• Do heavy exercise a few times per week: If you're reading this, you can find my exercise logs. They take a bit longer than 30 minutes, and the amount of weight moved per minute is trending up. I exercise on 2 to 4 days rest, mostly 2.5 to 3 days rest.
• Manage insulin levels: Averaging 33-38 units per day, down from way higher, and down from 80 units flat per day.

Everything I measure has variance around it. Life sucks that way. Everything measured has chart(s) showing progress / non-progress. No demonstrated failures, just slow progress.