going the gym/exercise

young

Member
Messages
16
im 17 & been diagnosed with type 1 bout a month and half now..
i reli want to start the gym but my biggest fear is having hypos and going low.
Iv heard exercise makes you go low.. so if i do start the gym has anyone got any advice to help me not to go low ? before or after.. ?

xx
 

charlotte

Member
Messages
17
Hello im 22 and newly diagnosed

this is the information i was given
i hope it makes sense and helps

If your blood sugar level is less than 100 mg/dl prior to exercise, take a carbohydrate snack prior to beginning the exercise. A good rule of thumb is to add 15 grams of carbohydrates (1 Carbohydrate Exchange) to your usual diet for each 30 minutes of moderate exercise, or for each 15 minutes of intense exercise.



If your blood sugar level is higher than 100 mg/dl before exercise, it is probably not necessary to take the carbohydrate snack before a light exercise session, but you may need extra carbohydrates 1/2 hour to 2 hours following the exercise. Add 1530 grams of carbohydrate (12 Carbohydrate Exchanges) to the next meal or snack if your blood sugar dips below 70 mg/dl within an hour or more following exercise.


Charlotte x
 

timo2

Well-Known Member
Messages
613
Dislikes
Glycemic excursions
hello young,

here's a quick example of what i tend to do. If I'm going to run 3k on the
treadmill I'll eat 30-40g of carbs first and then after the run I'll cut my
next injection down by 20% (from ten to eight) AND I'll eat 20-30g extra carbs
with the meal. and then cross my fingers :mrgreen:

the trick with exercise is to make sure you take in enough carbohydrate
before you begin so that you can avoid hypo.
you may also want to take some fast acting carbs during any
prolonged exercise. Remember that prolonged exercise will
bring your sugars down for upto 6+ hours afterwards

You'll also need to treat hypos quicker if they happen during
exercise, even chocolate contains fat which slows down the
absorption of sugar. Sort yourself out with some hypo-stop
or just use ordinary table sugar.

You also want to be careful if you exersice too soon before
or after an injection - it can really give the insulin more bite.
If you have a meal soon after exercise then it can be a good
idea to inject after the meal instead of before - to give the
carbs chance to get into your system.

Finally you need to find your own limits. No one else can
know exactly how exercise will effect YOU - It's always going to be
your "best guess" until you get into a routine.

here's how the pro diabetics do it:
http://www.runsweet.com

good luck,
timo.
 

sugar2

Well-Known Member
Messages
833
Hi Young,

Just to help explain the reply above (if you are in the UK). In France and the USA (and loads of other places I am sure) they have a different unit for measuring blood glucose. So, where you see 100 mg/dl, you need to divide number by 18 to get it into mmol/litre...which may be more familiar if you are in the UK.

My advice would be
a. Make sure that you tell the person looking after the gym that you are diabetic
b. Test your blood sugar before hand, and like Charlotte says, as long as it is not low already, you should be OK.
c. Take some glucose tablets/sweets/sugary drink with you. If you do feel a bit hypo, stop, and have something to eat. Don't strat to exercise again until you feel OK.
d. Don't panic. Going to the gym or exercise is a fantastic thing to do...you just need to be prepared. If you are worried that you don't know what a hypo feels like, then test your blood regularly throughout your exercise...it will do now harm to suggest that if it drops to 4, then have a digestive biscuit or something, just to see you right.

Exercise does lower your blood sugar...and for many of us, this can be a good thing! The important thing is to be prepared...but don't panic and have too many extra carbohydrates "just in case".
 

donnamum

Well-Known Member
Messages
170
Good on you for going to the gym. :D If you don't get it right first time don't give up. Also remeber what works for one type of exercise might not for another. My daughter has a carton of pure of fruit juice about 30min before swimmimg and it works fine, however if she does the same for gymnastics after about 20mins she is in hypo :oops: . So we are trying other snacks and amounts.

Keep up the good work. :D
 

LesleyB

Active Member
Messages
44
Advice I have been given is not to exercise if your BG is above 15m/mols as this can cause problems, i generally only exercise if my BG is between 6 and 12. It is a bit of trial and error though (which part of diabetes isn't!)

I would start with an easy regime at the gym then gradually increase it. I started a very easy regime, got bored and doubled it, this made me unwell, I got massive highs after the gym and then massive hypos during the night.

It is also a good idea to take less of your fast acting insulin with your evening meal than you would usually take to avoid hypos during the night.
 

young

Member
Messages
16
thanks 4 the help.. cani just add that im not on meal time injections as i am on my honeymoon period.I am only on 6 units of lantus of a night..
does this mean i shoud b ok ? an not reli suffer with going low ?
 

timo2

Well-Known Member
Messages
613
Dislikes
Glycemic excursions
young,
lantus can still make you hypo, but it's such a slow acting
insulin you shouldn't need too many extra carbs to correct.
 

young

Member
Messages
16
do u no how many extra carbs i would need ?
i am having dinner before i go which is baked potatoe , salad and tuna steak ? lol


x
 

NigelM

Active Member
Messages
41
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Young,

On other thing to add to the excellent advice above is the fact that after a harder workout, the body carries on expending energy repairing and growing tissue so you can suffer low bs quite a time after the actual exercise.

I don't go to the gym very often, but have continued to go skiing, sailing and ountain biking, all of which can have this delayed effect. The other thing that does it is mowing the lawn, of all things. The first few times after being diagnosed I couldn't work out why I was feeling low! I also do quite of lot of singing and doing that properly uses upblood sugar. I have been type 1 for 8 years now and still find that there are things that effect my blood sugar, which I hadn't thought about. Moving house recently was one - carrying boxes around is a prety good workout.

I bought a couple of books which covered diabetes and exercise and worked it out from there. If you do progress on to meal time insulin, you will have to adjust the regime you adopt to cope.

The good news is that, despite being overwhelmed by it all in the first few weeks, I have found that I have been able to continuing doing all the things I enjoy.

Best of luck in sorting it all out!

Nigel