Gym and Football

[Matthew1990]

Just a question I am hoping you'll be able to help me on.

When going to the gym/football I've been told to take my sugar level before gym/football, straight after the gym/football and then an hour after it.

I've been told that straight away after the activity my sugar level should be high and then an hour late it should have dropped alot? Also i've been told not to inject insulin the meal I have before the gym session.

I was hoping you could tell me/advice me on what food to eat just before the activity/during the session and after.

I've been told to eat a banana before, drink water throughout and then depending on what it is after/hour later, a sandwich or something similar.

Hope you can clear this up for me! Thanks

 

[cugila]

Here is a link to a useful site where there is information about the subject.

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

Basically it is about getting the all important balance with Insulin and carbs, type of exercise and the effect it has on you.

I exercise and if low to start with would have a light carby snack or drink, test half way through as well, not just before and after and see what is happening.

If too low then you might need to 'fuel' up a bit more, if high then you could up the intensity and see if it drops. Your Insulin dose might need to be adjusted to cover this activity.

The problem is that exercise can not only raise BG it can also lower it........so, test before, during and after exercise so that you can see what each individual element is doing to you, which is the best way to lower the levels.

 

[copepod]

www.runsweet.com is a good source of information about exercise physiology for people with type 1 diabetes, with specific information about many sports, not just running / athletics.

 

[franimal]

Hi, I found I had to test alot to see what effect different types of exercise have on my bg levels. For example swimming always brings my levels down immediately, so I eat around 20g carbs before swimming (something like a banana). Rock climbing and anaerobic sports on the other hand generally make my levels rise for a while, due to the adrenaline I think, and then drop over the next few hours.

I think it's always best to test before, after an hour or so depending on the sport, after and then an hour or so after. Over time you'll know which sports will affect your levels in which way and you can test less perhaps. Different times of day may also effect your levels when exercising, I find running in the mornings makes me go higher than other times of the day.

I personally wouldn't have a meal with insulin before any sports, i'm fairly insulin sensitive and wouldn't want it in my system in case I went low while exercising. I tend to have a snack before exercising if I need to, e.g swimming, and then eat a proper meal with insulin after.

You'll find out what works best for you over time, everyone's different. The runsweet website's pretty good for sepecific sports info I agree.