Running With Diabetes

[Malcolm.Smith]

so I have type1 and I’ve been doing the couch to 5K program which is fantastic by the way, I highly recommend it.

I’m about to start week 8 which will be a 28 min run.

My problem and confusion is the weirdness going on with my blood sugar. The weirdness being that my blood sugar goes up after each run!.

Tonight for example I got home from work and got ready for my thrice weekly run. I tested myself and the reading was bang on 6.5. I’m on a strict low carb diet as I’m trying to loose 7lbs and I managed the whole day only having to inject 7 units of novo rapid .

After my 5 min warm up walk followed by a 25 min run I got home and tested myself before dinner and it was 13.5!. That’s more than doubled in 30 mins on an empty stomach and a 25 min run!. I have had to inject the same amount of insulin as I would after a normal meal before my diet! And that’s before I’ve had dinner.

So this has been happening throughout the 7 weeks I’ve been doing this and I’m starting to think if I have a hypo all I need to do is go for a run !. Never mind the jelly babies!.

If I’m having to inject that amount of insulin after excessive then my chances of loosing weight is ni on impossible

 

[Jenny15]

so I have type1 and I’ve been doing the couch to 5K program which is fantastic by the way, I highly recommend it.

I’m about to start week 8 which will be a 28 min run.

My problem and confusion is the weirdness going on with my blood sugar. The weirdness being that my blood sugar goes up after each run!.

Tonight for example I got home from work and got ready for my thrice weekly run. I tested myself and the reading was bang on 6.5. I’m on a strict low carb diet as I’m trying to loose 7lbs and I managed the whole day only having to inject 7 units of novo rapid .

After my 5 min warm up walk followed by a 25 min run I got home and tested myself before dinner and it was 13.5!. That’s more than doubled in 30 mins on an empty stomach and a 25 min run!. I have had to inject the same amount of insulin as I would after a normal meal before my diet! And that’s before I’ve had dinner.

So this has been happening throughout the 7 weeks I’ve been doing this and I’m starting to think if I have a hypo all I need to do is go for a run !. Never mind the jelly babies!.

If I’m having to inject that amount of insulin after excessive then my chances of loosing weight is ni on impossible

Hi Malcolm, exercise isn't an area of diabetes management I know much about, but hopefully others will read your post and respond. Exercise certainly can increase BG but I'm sure there are ways to tweak things so that you can lose weight while achieving your other goals at the same time. Can I ask what your BMI will be when you reach your weight target? It seems to me that when trying to keep multiple things in balance, as long as weight is fairly well controlled, then things like BG stability are more important, IMO. Also, insulin doesn't necessarily work against weight loss, it depends on many factors. I am an overweight T2 and steadily losing weight while using insulin, which some believe is impossible. The devil is in the detail.

 

[Malcolm.Smith]

According to the NHS website i will have a BMI of 24.2 once I reach my target weight off 11 stone. I have 7 more lbs to loose.

 

[Smallbrit]

Congrats on getting to week 8! I am on my third attempt of Couch to 5k. First attempt I got to week 5. Second, week 9 run 2 (!). Now I am on week 4 run 3....

I’m type 2 on low-carb, no meds, so my experience is based on that and probably is not applicable to you, but just wanted to say well done for getting so far! For me, I don’t think the run has much effect on my individual BS readings, although exercise as opposed to no exercise has had the effect of pushing base readings into low 5s from mid-6s.

 

[KK123]

so I have type1 and I’ve been doing the couch to 5K program which is fantastic by the way, I highly recommend it.

I’m about to start week 8 which will be a 28 min run.

My problem and confusion is the weirdness going on with my blood sugar. The weirdness being that my blood sugar goes up after each run!.

Tonight for example I got home from work and got ready for my thrice weekly run. I tested myself and the reading was bang on 6.5. I’m on a strict low carb diet as I’m trying to loose 7lbs and I managed the whole day only having to inject 7 units of novo rapid .

After my 5 min warm up walk followed by a 25 min run I got home and tested myself before dinner and it was 13.5!. That’s more than doubled in 30 mins on an empty stomach and a 25 min run!. I have had to inject the same amount of insulin as I would after a normal meal before my diet! And that’s before I’ve had dinner.

So this has been happening throughout the 7 weeks I’ve been doing this and I’m starting to think if I have a hypo all I need to do is go for a run !. Never mind the jelly babies!.

If I’m having to inject that amount of insulin after excessive then my chances of loosing weight is ni on impossible

Hi Malcolm, I have been running for years but did have to adjust when I got diagnosed. I too found my glucose levels rising after a run (of normally an hour). Now I actually eat a 10 carb snack before a run (even if I am in the 6s) and find that this keeps it from rising afterwards. I think it is to do with the body recognising you are running and needs a burst of energy, if there is none in your system (ie because you have run on an empty stomach) it will rely on your liver to produce that energy by releasing saved glucose and hence your glucose levels rise. The snack (I think) offsets that so your body uses the energy from your pre run snack and leaves your liver out of it! Now as you can see, I am no medical expert but try it and let us know if it changed anything.