Q: Hello Mike. I am a 14 year-old boy required to do exercise due to Type 1 Diabetes. My family is in a financial squeeze so I don't get to visit the doctor as often as I should. Considering that I have Diabetes, I am in a reasonably good condition at 5' 3" and at 102 pounds. I need to know a good exercise planned with cardio workouts, and weight training to keep me strong. I am also trying to lose a bit of excess fat on my belly. I have a small exercise machine that lets me exercise my biceps, my pectoral muscles, and thigh muscles. I do crunches and tricep workouts on the side. However its hard to find a diet that will satisfy my diabetes and keep me healthy. Because its hard to get the money to see a professional, I was wondering if you could fix me a 3-day, fat-burning, diet and excercise routine. Thanks.

A: First of all, you definitely should NOT be trying to lose weight. Your weight is perfectly appropriate for your height. Losing weight may cause your body to stop growing which means you'll never reach your height potential. Over time good nutrition and being active/exercising, combined with your continuing natural growth will take care of whatever extra fat you might have. This is a very important point. I realize that the most obvious thing for you now seems like trying to lose weight and the extra belly fat, but it is almost certainly a bad idea. Your natural growth is your best friend in trying to lose extra fat and in order to grow you need to eat well and certainly not try to lose weight. Focus on eating good foods and stay active and I promise you will be in great shape in a year if not sooner.

Make to read my Nutrition article -- almost everything written there will apply to you. The one big difference will be in the amounts of carbohydrate-rich foods you should be eating. As a diabetic you need to limit such foods. You can and should always eat plenty of raw or lightly cooked non-starchy veggies such lettuce, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, onions, peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, and so on -- virtually every kind of veggies except potatoes and corn. Potatoes and corn are rich in carbohydrates (carbs) and you need to limit them but all other veggies are great great sources of carbs for you and for anyone else -- eat them as much as you can. But you need to limit other carb-rich foods: breads, pastas, rice, other grains, daity, and even fruits. And you certainly should try to eliminate all sweets and junk food like chips or burgers or pizza. Only your doctor can tell you exactly how much carbs you can or can't eat, but as a rough idea here could be your daily diet:

Breakfast:

Fat-free cottage cheese with strawberries

Plain old-fashioned oatmeal

Lunch:

Chicken caesar salad with olive oil dressing

Dinner:

Salmon with steamed broccoli and green beans

Supper:

Grilled chicken breast with carrots and green peas

This is just an idea of a good meal plan for you -- you don't need to follow this exact plan daily (and variety is important anyway so don't get stuck eating exact same thing every day). Use whatever herbs and spices you like for taste (just go easy on commercial salad dressings -- these are rarely good for you). In between the meals you can snack on baby carrots, celery sticks, sweet peppers, broccoli or cauliflower crowns, some dry-roasted nuts and seeds, occasional piece of string cheese or fruit. Drink plenty of plain water or unsweetened tea throughout the day, but limit other beverages (even diet ones).

Notice that I did not put the portion sizes down -- these are really not very important for you. You are in the middle of your growth spurt and your body needs calories to grow, as long as these calories come from the right kinds of foods. If you are physically active and exercise hard then don't be afraid to eat a lot, just make sure you are eating good stuff and not junk.

As far as training, start with either of these programs (depending on whether you have dumbbels): dumbbell program or bodyweight resistance program. Both of these will give you a good base hitting all the major muscle groups. You can do either program as often as daily if your muscles are not sore, certainly three times/week is fine. If you find this program too easy you can throw in additional work on your exercise machine. Also be active in your everyday life, play sports if possible and try to run or bike or swim or whatever is appropriate for the season and available. A lot of housework, like mowing lawns or shoveling snow, is also great for you physically. And don't forget to eat well, especially if you are very physically active.

Hope this helps and feel free to post back with any other questions you might have. Good luck!