In this inspiring Paleo success story, Nick shares how he regained control of his health and life by ditching the pasta.

1. Tell us your Paleo story.

I’m a type one diabetic of 6 years. I followed the standard diet advice for most of them, lots of carbs at each meal, eat what you want to eat & cover it with more insulin etc.

Potatoes, bread, pasta! You know, the usual food pyramid stuff.  As a result of following this ‘brilliant advice’, my condition was never really under control, and I was always on a roller-coaster of highs & lows.

I began to believe that it was a normal side effect of T1 Diabetes to feel awful/tired 24/7, and have high blood glucose.  I hated it, and something had to change.

My fitness was never really a big focus point growing up, as I never felt like i had the energy.  Also, as a child, I had a big interest in history, but that faded as i grew up. Again, I hated this, and something had to change.

As I grew up and learned more, i realized i had to take control, and began studying diet & fitness online.

I had a few trial and error moments along the way, but eventually I discovered the Paleo lifestyle/way of eating.This is when my life really began to change.

I finally began to understand which foods impacted my blood glucose levels positively, and negatively.  Reducing my carbohydrates, cutting out pretty much all grains/pasta/noodles, replacing normal potatoes with sweet potatoes, and eating more meat, veg, fruit, nuts and seeds had a dramatic effect.

My levels started to improve with the changes I made.  The gigantic swings which made me feel so awful for years gradually stopped.  As of recently, I’ve started to gain weight and grow that bit taller! (Both were targets of mine).

My **HBA1C** levels have decreased from around 8, to 5.6!

I’m now extremely passionate about fitness & nutrition. Last year, I hated running, working out, and disliked pretty much all vegetables. Now I can’t get enough of all three.

The social aspects of my life have improved too. Through Paleo, I have discovered Crossfit. As you’re probably aware, there’s a fantastic community there!

Finally, it’s renewed my passion for history. I very much enjoy studying evolution, how our ancestors lived, communicated, moved, and ate. I plan on purchasing The Paleo Manifesto tomorrow.  To be honest, I’ve never been much of a reader, but this is a topic which I look forward to learning more about!

It took awhile to get things up and running, and i’m still learning.

But with the help of my family, and the valuable advice/knowledge i have gained through the fantastic Paleo/Primal community, i’m well on the road to getting my health back.

2. How long have you been Paleo?

3. Why did you start? What did you want to change?

I started because the whole idea of Paleo made sense to me. I wanted to change my control over my condition, and my overall health/fitness.

4. Was it hard to incorporate into your lifestyle?

No, not really. I was tired of eating the way i was, feeling the way i did, and a bit disgusted at the lack of physical exercise in my life.

I really embraced the change.

5. Give us an example of a typical day.

Breakfast at home is usually fruit with mixed nuts, though it varies.  I’m a college student, so I usually make up a salad with a lot of vegetables, some fruit, nuts, and good meats for lunch. This is to avoid the poor quality food they provide there… chips, pasta, pizza. You know the usual rubbish that lacks in everything healthy.

Dinner is always home cooked, as I’m lucky enough to have parents who firmly believe in healthy home cooking! It varies majorly, but always features a large selection of fresh vegetables, fish, steak, chicken, or eggs also.

Snacks are mostly natural foods. I also enjoy dark chocolate and dairy.

As for drinks, I kicked the diet coke a long time ago, and drink only water, green/other herbal tea’s, and milk sometimes!

Workouts will vary, due to my recent venture in to Crossfit.  Aside from that though, I pretty much follow Mark Sisson’s Primal Blueprint Fitness pyramid. I try to get outside and explore nature as much as possible too.

6. What are the biggest changes you’ve experienced?

Well, for starters I no longer have tiredness throughout the day. Headache’s have gone, and my once irritated skin now has a healthy glow to it.

My energy is almost always at a good level. I feel like I could run and workout at any time during the day now, compared to previously when I was always too fatigued etc

7. How has this changed your outlook on life?

Before, I was pessimistic and never felt too great.

However, this change has really given me a renewed, positive outlook on life!

8. What words of encouragement do you have for the Paleo community?

It may be tough at first, but stick with it, you’ll be really glad you did!

 (Read This Next: James Drops 61lbs with Paleo and CrossFit)