Home
- Eating Well (or at Least Not terribly) at Fast Food Resturants
You can view the current or previous issues of Diabetes Health online, in their entirety, anytime you want.
Click Here To View
See if you qualify for our free healthcare professional magazines. Click here to start your application for Pre-Diabetes Health, Diabetes Health Pharmacist and Diabetes Health Professional.
Latest Diabetes Articles
Popular Diabetes Articles
Highly Recommended Diabetes Articles
Email to a Friend
Send a link to this page to your friends and colleagues.
Diabetes and Exercise
Do you struggle with controlling your sugar levels during exercise? When my doctor changed my exercise regimen after my heart attack, my biggest struggle was keeping my sugar levels stable. We all like to see low numbers, but no one likes the shaking associated with low blood sugar or that feeling we have for the rest of the day after our levels have fluctuated. So how low is too low before working out?
That's a hard question to answer and varies with each individual, but certain steps are important for everyone. Always check your blood sugar before starting a workout. If you have recently had a meal, keep in mind that your sugar level may change during your workout. And always have drinks handy, both with and without carbs, because your levels can go either way during a workout.
The biggest point to remember during a workout is to pay attention to your body. Your body will offer warning signs to let you know when to slow down or stop. If you are starting a new workout regimen, be sure to ask your healthcare professional about what you should look for during your workout. Asking questions when you're not sure will help keep you safe. Know the signs of hypoglycemia, which include feeling jittery or shaky, a rapid heartbeat, mood changes or irritability, dizziness, and fatigue. Finally, if possible, work out with a buddy: If you have become desensitized to the feeling of your sugar levels dropping, working out alone may be dangerous.
Taking care of yourself after a workout is important too. Many of us think that just because we made it through our workout and feel fine, we have nothing to worry about. This is not exactly true, however, because your metabolism can be affected for up to 36 hours after a workout. Always check your blood sugar after your workout. If you start feeling symptoms of hypoglycemia, check again to make sure that your blood sugar is not dropping. If hypoglycemia continues to be a problem during or after your workout, you should bring it to the attention of your healthcare professional, who may need adjust your medications.
Checking our blood sugar throughout the day is something we should do regularly, especially when we are working out. Be sure to talk to your doctor about your increased exercise regimen, and stay healthy!
Categories: Blood Sugar Levels, Diabetes, Diabetes, Exercise, Exercise Regimen, Heart Attack, Hypoglycemia, Medications, Warning Signs, Workout
You May Also Be Interested In...
-
Diabetes Health
Diabetes Health is the essential resource for people living with diabetes- both newly diagnosed and experienced as well as the professionals who care for them. We provide balanced expert news and information on living healthfully with diabetes. Each issue includes cutting-edge editorial coverage of new products, research, treatment options, and meaningful lifestyle issues.
-
Topics
- Diabetic / Diabetes Health
- Type 1 / 1.5 Diabetes
- Type 2 Diabetes
- Blood Glucose / Sugar
- High/Low Blood Sugar / Fast Acting Glucose
- Insulin- Pumps, Pens & Syringes
- Continuous Glucose Monitors, CGM, Infusion Sets
- Type 2 Medications
- Hyperglycemia
- Hypoglycemia
Comments
broadly, this is OK advice... except for the part about talking to your doctor about exercise. Most of them know nothing specific about exercise other than that it is good. If you're type 1 and active (or thinking about it), make sure you get an endocrinologist who works with physically active patients.
Most important, develop your own understanding of "exercise equivalents". By this I mean the following: First, test your blood glucose both before and after exercise. If, for instance, half an hour on the spin bike at a particular pace drops your sugar by the same amount that 3 units of insulin would, then next time you get on the spin bike, drop your insulin by 3 units for the meal or snack you jave just BEFORE you get on. That way you're burning off an amount of glucose equivalent to what the insulin would help you store.
While it's good to "watch for the warning signs", part of the point of exercise is to push yourself a little bit into the "uncomfortable" zone. If you're not used to sweating, well... get used to it. Get a heart rate monitor (Polar has some cheap ones) so you can associate a particular heart rate with various levels of comfort or discomfort. A broad rule of thumb is that for cardio, you're working out hard enough if you're NOT short of breath but you can't carry on a cell phone conversation at the same time.
Second, ease into whatever you're attempting. Pay no attention to those ads that tell you a workout has to be all-out to get results. Sustainable results come from finding the edge of your comfort envelope, stretching it a bit, backing off and stretching it again a few days later. Over time, you'll find that you can go farther, and faster, than you were able to before.
Don M
Type 1 for 40 years, avid runner and endurance athlete
I have Type 2 diabetes with hypoglycemia. Everytime I do any kind of excercise my levels drop and I get to shaking, sweating and feel as if I am going to pass out. Although I have talked to my doctor about this... her advice is still to exercise more and walk at least 30 mins a day. Although I do this, I still am not losing any weight. I am on a low carb high protein diet and I feel sick all the time. I feel extremely tired and weak. I feel there is something missing in my diet.
Add your comments about this article below. You can add comments as a registered user or anonymously. If you choose to post anonymously your comments will be sent to our moderator for approval before they appear on this page. If you choose to post as a registered user your comments will appear instantly.
When voicing your views via the comment feature, please respect the Diabetes Health community by refraining from comments that could be considered offensive to other people. Diabetes Health reserves the right to remove comments when necessary to maintain the cordial voice of the diabetes community.
For your privacy and protection, we ask that you do not include personal details such as address or telephone number in any comments posted.
Don't have your Diabetes Health Username? Register now and add your comments to all our content.
Register...
Register your Diabetes Health Username here.
Have Your Say...