Exercise increases my BS levels!

[sue1959]

I go salsa dancing 1-2 times a week and find that when I take my BS readings when I'm home they are high (14.7 last night after 3 hrs dancing) what can I do to reduce them.

 

[andcol]

Have you tried retesting about an hour later? It sounds like your liver has released for you because your muscles needed it. However if you aren't producing enough insulin or are very resistant you get a build up. You may be able to get a lower BG level by eating prior and during but I have never experienced that level of rise as mine only seems to go up a little and comes straight back down

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[sue1959]

I'll try that the next time I go dancing. Would peanuts be a good thing to snack on during. I'll try retesting too, mind you I sometimes get in a bit late!

 

[andcol]

I'm not sure, peanuts do have some carbs - you will need to try and test. I think @Andy12345 runs a lot so he may have advice for you. There have also been several other threads on this topic and I read someone had a small banana before the exercise and that seems to work. You could try something less starchy like a small apple and see if that helps. I think you will just have to test and do different things via trial and error to find out what works for you

 

[andy williams]

Your BS levels will rise during and after your exercise period. Initially your body will use what's floating round in your blood for fuel, then will start converting the stuff in your liver to prevent you going hypo. It always over does it but it's not a problem - it's actually helping your liver to get rid of stored glycol so it's a bit of a swings and roundabouts thing and overall being fitter - especially aerobically fitter, is better for you abd reduces the risks of strokes, heart attacks, narrowing arteries, (and thus gangrene) etc

 

[Spiker]

It's quite common for blood sugar to rise during exercise and sometimes shortly after. This trend will then go into reverse as glycogen, used up during exercise, is replaced. So it's normal, just watch out for hypos later after exercise if you are on insulin. And don't stop exercising, it's good.

 

[Yorksman]

It's a process called gluconeogenesis, literally glucose new creation, and is a homeostatic process that prevents hypoglycaemia. Medication however can interfere with this process.

When your blood gets low on glucose, your body creates new glucose to fuel you but, unlike eating carbs or glucose directly, it creates it from your body's own stores:

"the generation of glucose from non-carbohydrate carbon substrates such as pyruvate, lactate, glycerol, glucogenic amino acids, and fatty acids (both even-chain and odd-chain)."

What is happening is that you are losing weight. Not much, maybe only a couple of hundred grammes, but some of it is in your liver and pancreas, which is where you do want to lose it. To begin with, you get concerned about the extra glucose released, because you've been watching what you eat to avoid it. Consequently, you might think of it as a bad thing but it isn't. A beneficial side effect once you get fitter is that the exercise also makes you more sensitive to the insulin that you do produce and that, in turn, should help lower your BG levels.

But, these things take time. Don't give up. In fact, daily exercise is the best of all, even if less intense, because it constantly tops your blood chemistry up with various hormones and digestive enzymes.

 

[Spiker]

I'm not sure gluconeogenesis is responsible for blood sugar rises during exercise. It doesn't work that fast. During exercise the rise is caused by the release of glycogen, which is a sugar stored mostly in the liver but also in muscle tissue. This is triggered by glucagon and adrenalin (which is why paramedics give glucagon to T1s having severe hypos). Using up the glycogen reserve could then trigger gluconeogenesis I guess, if no dietary carbohydrate was available? But I don't believe gluconeogenesis is the primary mechanism for blood sugar rise during exercise.

 

[Bebo321]

Hi there,
Fantastic that you do salsa! What a great way to keep fit!
There is a lot of great technical advice here from the forum replies, but I suspect that won't really help you solve your BS issues.
Regardless of what process causes your high blood sugar levels, the root of it stems from your heart rate rising (and to be honest it could also be linked to the excitement/adrenaline etc of your dancing)
Exercise and diabetes is fairly straightforward if you just remember that:
1) High intensity exercise raises your BG levels
2) Moderate or lower intensity exercise lowers your BG levels.

So, a couple of things you might like to consider:
1) For the last half an hour of the salsa class, try to slow down a little - use it as a bit of a 'cool down' and perhaps sit out a few of the dances.
2) Another suggestion would be to walk home from your class (I don't know how feasible that would be) basically all you are trying to do is calm your body back down to a more 'moderate' activity level. By doing this, your muscles will still be actively taking glucose out of your bloodstream, but your liver should start slowing down it's release of glucose.
3) Something else you might try if that doesn't work, is on the morning of your dance class do some other form of exercise - a gentle swim, a good brisk walk etc, really something to get your muscles stimulated. This should improve your insulin sensitivity for the rest of the day so that when you go dancing your muscles are already 'primed' to take glucose out of your blood more effectively.

Fingers crossed something there should help. What I have assumed here is that you have a pretty healthy diet, and are not super low carb.
Peanuts are a great source of fuel (basically zero effect on your BG), so munch away!

 

[Bebo321]

I'm not sure gluconeogenesis is responsible for blood sugar rises during exercise. It doesn't work that fast. During exercise the rise is caused by the release of glycogen, which is a sugar stored mostly in the liver but also in muscle tissue. This is triggered by glucagon and adrenalin (which is why paramedics give glucagon to T1s having severe hypos). Using up the glycogen reserve could then trigger gluconeogenesis I guess, if no dietary carbohydrate was available? But I don't believe gluconeogenesis is the primary mechanism for blood sugar rise during exercise.

Hi there Spiker,
I did some reading around this topic, and thought you might be interested in what I found: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2995531/
I didn't realise that gluconeogenesis had such a profound effect on BGs for PWD, but it evidently does (the research above relates to T1D, but is nevertheless interesting)

 

[Spiker]

Thanks @Bebo321, very interesting article. It does suggest that Glycogenolysis is impaired in T1s due to reduced glucagon function, and that T1s make up for the deficit by increasing gluconeogenesis during exercise, which non-diabetics don't do at all.

Some caveats I have about this study though:

- 5 T1 subjects only and all quite young

- subjects in a low insulin state, which will upregulate gluconeogenesis

- (also subjects all on NPH basal insulin which is rather ancient)

- [Edit: continuous constant infusion of (isotopic tracer) glucose - insignificant quantities, <5mg/min]

- internal contradiction in the paper as to whether plasma glucagon did or didn't change in the T1 subjects

- uncertainties in the range of 5% - 10% in the measurements used to estimate glycogen usage, when glycogen usage was said to be less than 1% of total reserves

- the results are seriously inconsistent with the previous studies (though the argument is the measurement was better in this study)

Despite all this the likelihood is that this study is right and T1s respond to exercise very differently from non diabetics in where they mobilise the extra glucose from. That because our ability to upregulate Glycogenolysis via glucagon is impaired (by around two thirds in the study group), we compensate by upregulating gluconeogenesis, apparently via norepinephrine.

It slightly doesn't match with my life experience though. It doesn't explain the reality of post exercise hypos very well, if glycogen depletion is only one third of the excess glucose supply. Doesn't it suggest you would have a raging protein hunger after exercise? Or actually lose muscle mass after exercising?

I guess I'm not totally convinced but it's still a really useful and helpful article, thank you.

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[FurryCub]

I've started not eating before a rugby match or training. I was finding I was going high and it was reducing my energy levels. Starting a match a bit low allows my levels to rise without a big change in energy. I'm on metformin so I'm not concerned about going too low.
I'd certainly not advocate doing that for anyone else but it seems to work for me as I'm not able to snack during a game.

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[Spiker]

I've started not eating before a rugby match or training. I was finding I was going high and it was reducing my energy levels. Starting a match a bit low allows my levels to rise without a big change in energy. I'm on metformin so I'm not concerned about going too low.
I'd certainly not advocate doing that for anyone else but it seems to work for me as I'm not able to snack during a game.

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I found the same thing playing contact sport. I would eat a mars bar before the game and at half time, but my blood sugar would go ridiculously high. So from experience now, I only have carbs after the exercise is over. I carry hypo stuff with me of course, but I don't take anything unless I'm actually feeling hypo.

This is contrary (I just read) to the ADA advice who say take some carbs as you start exercise if your BG is under about 5.6 mmol/L. Well, maybe, but that doesn't work for me.

 

[FurryCub]

Doesn't help with injuries though, just back from hospital with another broken finger

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[Spiker]

Ouch! I wish you and your finger a speedy recovery.

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[KellyMedical]

Hi Guys

For specific exercise advice feel free to contact me directly at [email protected]
http://www.shell-livewire.org/awards/grand-ideas-awards

 

[Adelle0607]

Your BS levels will rise during and after your exercise period. Initially your body will use what's floating round in your blood for fuel, then will start converting the stuff in your liver to prevent you going hypo. It always over does it but it's not a problem - it's actually helping your liver to get rid of stored glycol so it's a bit of a swings and roundabouts thing and overall being fitter - especially aerobically fitter, is better for you abd reduces the risks of strokes, heart attacks, narrowing arteries, (and thus gangrene) etc

I had a blood sugar of 5.2 in the morning then didn't have anything to eat prior my morning workout of weight/strength training. Sugars went up 6.2 right after?...Usually after exercise it goes low (that's the trend) but for the first time I noticed it going high...is that okay of a jump for the type2s? Although I did eat pizza the night before


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[andcol]

I had a blood sugar of 5.2 in the morning then didn't have anything to eat prior my morning workout of weight/strength training. Sugars went up 6.2 right after?...Usually after exercise it goes low (that's the trend) but for the first time I noticed it going high...is that okay of a jump for the type2s? Although I did eat pizza the night before


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I find mine goes naturally up and then down as I exercise. I will go from about 4.3 up to 5.2 and then down again like a pendulum and this is what I find my fasting levels between nowadays. You may just have been on a different point of your natural cycle.

 

[Adelle0607]

Thanks for the feedback, yes that may have been the case maybe best to cool down a bit after exercise before checking w the meter...thanks!


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