Exercise and hypos

sd29 said:

Today I climbed Snowdon (3 weeks after diagnosis, and 2 weeks after being put on insulin) in the freezing rain, raising £185 for Headway, and am very proud of myself! But I was wondering if anyone else has experienced rapid blood sugar changes (I went from 18.1 to 3.1 within a few hours) whilst using insulin after very strenuous exercise? I have spoken to a nurse tonight, and adjusted my insulin accordingly and duly eaten even more food!

I have been reading on carbs and insulin adjustment through runsweet.com (brilliant advice and great to know I can still enjoy all my old favourite sports) but feeling a little weird with the rapid changes, and as a new insulin user, would be interested to know other people's experiences of exercise like fell walking etc. whilst using insulin? I am discussing with my diabetes nurse, but she has said it's just a case of seeing how I react to things. Feel quite frustrated at myself for it!

Click to expand...

Congratulations that's quite a feat with yor recent diagnosis, it's good to see our not letting it get in your way!

There's no textbook way of how people will react to exercise, strenuous or mild.

Personally i've had many hypo's in the past from walking or swimming, or even tidying my room.

It's just about practice and learning your own body, eventually you'll get there so dont beat yourself up about it!

Aslong as you test frquently before during and after you'll be fine.

Remember exercise can effect you long after you've stopped as your body is working hard to recover what it's spent you fuel you so keep a close eye after

good luck, and well done

hey
I am also recently diagnosed with type 1 in february this year, and for me working out exercise and insulin ratios has been the biggest challenge really.
I am still in the 'honey moon' period so need very little insulin anyway but even less after i have exericised. In the first few weeks i found i went low quite often after just wandering round the shops or walking a couple of miles etc but since i have done a carb counting course things have improved
so what i currently do at the mo is take half the amount of insulin i would norm need for breakfast in the morning as i cycle to work (about a 25 min cycle quite strenous) and then 3/4 of what i need for my lunch.
The other week i was helping with a d of e walk and so spent the day wandering around kinder scout, so in the morning i did the same halved my insulin intake and also ate a banana just before i set off. but after about an hour i felt myself go low so after that i made sure i had a snack - apple or cereal bar about every 90 mins and i didnt take any insulin with my lunch and my blood sugars stayed between 5 - 6.5 .
But what i have found so far is that it is really just trial and error. and i am no where near sorted with it yet lol

dylan has had hypos frequently from exercise but hes also had rises from exercise too something to with adrenalin being released. what worries me is u said u were 18 did u test for ketones before setting off with a blood sugar so high u shoud not really be exercising even tho u came down u could of had a rise and if ketones were present u could of been at risk of ketoacidosis on top of the mountain putting urself at great risk.

i am glad u did well and that this didnt happen and well done on not letting diabetes stop u doing something just bear in mind the ketones if u are that high

anna marie

ams162 said:

what worries me is u said u were 18 did u test for ketones before setting off with a blood sugar so high u shoud not really be exercising

Click to expand...

For a long time this confused me - that above a certain level you should not exercise - finally understood it after a discussion with a diabetes nurse. She explained that it's about whether you have insulin in your system. So if you were that high because your insulin was all used up (eg last meal and injection was several hours ago) , then your body can't access the blood glucose, because it needs insulin to do it. You exercise, your body says it needs energy, but without insulin it can't use the sugar in your blood, so your liver releases its sugar stores because as far as it is concerned, you don't have enough sugar. So then you get a double load of extra sugar in your blood, none of which you can use since you ran out of insulin. And that's when you start getting ketones.
But if you have jabbed only a short while ago, or are about to jab, and perhaps have high bg because you ate extra carbs to cover your exercise, it's fine. The insulin can get to work on that high blood sugar as you exercise, and use it to fuel your muscles.
So it's not about the level of bg so much as the amount of insulin you have in you.
I don't know if that explanation has helped or made it more complicated. But I found it really helpful when the DSN explained it to me so I hope it has been helpful to try and repeat it here.

oh i dont know about that snodger we were told not to exercise and that u need more insulin if u have ketones to get rid of them.

like i say glad it went ok just worried with u being newly diagnosed u might not have had all the info u needed glad to see u do tho

Take a read of the following which gives some good advice on exercise and adjusting insulin:

http://medweb.bham.ac.uk/easdec/prevent ... ercise.htm

Nigel

Wow, we might have rubbed shoulders up Snowdon!
I walked up the Llanberis path the same rainy day with my wife and a few friends. Apart from diabeties i also have fibromyalgia and I'm recovering from spinal surgery.
Yes I'm a fool attemping the climb (thats what my Dr said).
I thought I did quite well but at the summit my speech became slurred and my wife got a bit worried, my blood test kit had stopped working despite being in a waterproof bag. A £1.75 hot cuppa from the cafe cleared the fog from my eyes and cleared my speech.
My sandwiches were a bit wet but I still scoffed them down, My wife opened her chocolate bar and even water had soaked through the wrapper.
The walk down we planned our next mission but next time I'll double wrap all food and test kit.