Type 1 Gym workout and supplements

[fernando306]

Hello friends! I hope you're all doing great.

I'd like to start coaching my wonderful girlfriend at the gym, and I'd like to kindly as your advice. She is 24, weighs 135, about 5' 75 tall.

1 - Supplements: She doesn't eat much at all, so I figured using BCAAs would be great to prevent muscle loss. Is it safe to use? That would be Bulk supplements, it contains L-Valine, L-Leucine and L-Isoleucine.
How about Glutamine and Whey protein?

2 - Kind of exercise: What is best, high intensity or lower intensity and more reps? I am thinking getting her started with elastic bands, so it's gentle on her body. What do you think?

3 - Blood sugar levels: What is the safe window to operate? Say for example, between 80 - 200, if more or less, then we must avoid exercise?

4 - What kind of blood sugar fluctuations during and after exercise should I expect?

Any other advice / experiences to share?

Thank you so much!

 

[Tophat1900]

1. Yeah those are safe, if using whey protein then you probably don't need the rest, BCAA's etc because you are getting the full amino acid profile in whey..
2. What exercise approach you wish to use depends on what she wants to achieve.
3. You want to be above your target range before exercise and figure out how many carbs to use to prevent a blood glucose drop.
4. You haven't stated what type she is.... in some people it causes a spike. In some it doesn't. If there is insulin in the system from a recent meal for example, then that can cause a dramatic drop. When I started on insulin I tested every 10 - 15 mins to see what was going on during weight training, so as to know what to expect. It's trial and error. Easy does it until you know how exercise impacts. The harder the heart pumps the greater the impact on BG. High intensity will certainly get the heart going, low intensity not as much.

 

[Deleted Account]

Adding to the great response from @Tophat1900

Regarding your last question, there are many things which affect whether BG will go up or down: type of exercise, intensity of exercise, how fit your girlfriend is at that exercise, duration of exercise, how long since she last injected insulin...
Most cardio will cause BG to drop unless it is interval training or if she is straining when BG will go up.
Most resistance training will cause BG to rise unless it is high reps and low weights ... but that is effectively cardio.
Exercise makes insulin more effective so, if she has injected recently (within the last 2 - 3 hours), she may see a drop in BG.

For example,
- 30 minutes on the cross trainer (cardio) as fast as I can maintain and my BG will go down if I don't plan for it
- 60 minutes at the climbing wall (resistance and interval) and my BG will go up if I don't plan for it
- 3 hours walking and my BG will barely move

Unfortunately, it is trial and error with plenty of hypo treatment on hand and plenty of BG testing.
If she has a pump this is easier to achieve through temporary basals instead of carb loading before cardio to avoid the BG fall.

Also work remembering that her BG may go down over the next 24 hours so don't stop testing when the exercise stops.
I manage this by reducing my basal insulin for the next day.

 

[fernando306]

Thank you all for your input! It was very helpful. Regarding whey protein, as she already had some kidney pain, I think it would be safer to use BCAAs instead, coupled with a protein rich meal shortly after. My concern is that excess protein can overload her kidneys. What do you think?

 

[Tophat1900]

I think she should see a doctor and get the kidney issue evaluated.

 

[Circuspony]

I don't think you should be supplementing amino acids at all without having her kidneys checked out. BCAAs taste disgusting, the flavoured whey powders are more palatable but obviously the sugar content goes up.

 

[centaur68]

I use BCAA & whey.. taken with water rather than milk the sugar content/ carb amount is much lower