• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

How do you control your blood glucose?

As your question is not posed in the T2 sub-forum, I assume it is addressed to everyone.

I manage (not "control" as it has a mind of its own at times) my blood glucose through lots of testing, carb counting and taking insulin.
I also exercise a lot but any affect this has on my BG is secondary as I exercised before I have diabetes and continue to do so because it makes me feel mentally better.
 
I found running didnt really do much for my blood sugars it was cycling for about 30 to 60+ and just pottering (until u get to hills lol)and my blood sugars would plummet for 12/13 to 5.6/6mmol
Weight trainning also helps.
I would have my carbs in morning and protein the rest of the day and i would eat first then take my medication
 
Low carb diet of 50-70g per day and self testing between 4-7 times per day. Exercise is difficult normally due to arthritis but I try and walk more, park the car further from the supermarket entrance, take the stairs not the lift, all those small things that add to my step count. Exercise at the mo is impossible as I’m three weeks through six weeks on crutches :oops:
 
Low carb and short walks when I'm able. Normally if I want to do any walking and other exercise I double up on my Pyridostigmine (Mestinon) dosage that helps.

Edit to add having lost a fair bit of weight has also helped in BG management.
 
Last edited:
As I'm on an insulin pump with dexcom G4 I manage by accurate carb counting, appropriate pe-bolusing and "sugar surfing" working well so far :-)
 
  • I eat to my meter and have done for almost 4 years. I eat very few carbs and do not restrict my protein. I do eat very small portions of potatoes and am addicted to Lidl HP rolls. I never snack.
  • I started eating in a 6 to 7 hour window 12 months ago, skipping breakfast.
  • I lost all my excess weight in the first 10 months and have maintained ever since. (33% of body weight)
  • I have never taken any diabetes medication.
  • I did not really increase my exercise. All I do is walk the dog, which I have always done, plus normal daily activity such as housework, which I have always done. I don't do anything else.
  • I still test several times a day and keep all my records on a spread sheet, with graphs.
  • I have been a part time user of the Libre Freestyle. I've had 9 sensors in total so far but none since last May.
  • I still keep a very basic food diary and make notes of anything out of the ordinary, such as holidays, illness etc.
  • I do not deprive myself on special occasions
 
Intermittent fasting and very low carb, and I please myself when and if I eat!

Simplest!
 
I use diet and walking. Initially I lost 2 1/2 stone but needed to put a bit back on so now I am trying to keep my weight at a sensible level. For diet I eat to my meter and that does include some carbs but carefully checked, I walk mostly between 8 and 10 miles a day.
 
I don't need to - I avoid eating the carb dense foods the supermarkets want us to buy and the so called expert dieticians and HCPs advise are essential for good health and I get BG levels under 6 mmol/l after meals.
I have a freezer full of meat and fish and low carb veges, and berry mixtures, and two fridges stuffed with salad and veges, cream eggs cheese coleslaw - and the odd bar of high cocoa chocolate.
If the food wasn't so nice I could try to feel hard done by, but I just have to go with very very lucky.
 
Resurgam said:
I don't need to
Click to expand...

I really don't wish to rain on your parade but I believe we all have to control our blood glucose. We all have different ways of doing it, but we all do it even subconsciously. You control yours by eating low carb I assume ... what happens (or would happen) if you ate a large jacket potato covered with a tin full of baked beans, or a large portion of rice pudding? If you can manage this with the same post meal results as after a low carb salad meal, then I agree, you don't need to. :)
 
Bluetit1802 said:
I really don't wish to rain on your parade but I believe we all have to control our blood glucose. We all have different ways of doing it, but we all do it even subconsciously. You control yours by eating low carb I assume ... what happens (or would happen) if you ate a large jacket potato covered with a tin full of baked beans, or a large portion of rice pudding? If you can manage this with the same post meal results as after a low carb salad meal, then I agree, you don't need to. :)
Click to expand...
But I don't need to - there isn't any 'what happens' option - I know that I can increase my carb intake a bit once in a while and still get low readings like 5.6 after Christmas dinner - but I am not going to start doing destructive testing on my body - it being the only one I have got and if I break it then more fool me.
 
Have to be honest, obviously I watch what I eat but I am not a carb counter (never have been) and I am fairly liberal with my insulin.

Experience comes into it granted (36 years) but now I tend to give as much insulin as I need for what ever it is I am about to eat.

If I fancy a treat every now and and then I have one and just bolus for it.

HbA1c have never been higher than 7.5 in the last ten years. Best has been 5.8 (old readings)

I do keep very active and this helps a lot.
 
Last edited:
Low carb/ketogeic diet (generally keeping below 50g carbs a day). I definitely test but also found it far less hassle from the word go (and well before I got my meter) to simply cut out all high carb foods, so I had very little worry initially about what to eat once I understood it was all high carbs and not just sugar to avoid. Cutting these out was more or less secod nature as I'd always suffered from chronic migraines - some food related so I knew very well not to eat what makes me ill... even though I sometimes resented having to do this. But I'll also include low carb "treats" in my diet to make up for this.

I don't do any exercise other than "normal" day to day activity, and my biggest control issues are actually stress and non diabetic health related issues (e.g. medication) - which I can't always do very much about... HbA1c has been high end of normal/low pre-diabetic range for over 3 an a half years now. I stopped metformin nearly a year ago, but low carb diet does much more for me that taking this.

Robbity

PS I sometimes do what I consider "erratic" fasting, in that I'll cut out or delay meals when I'm not hungry.
 
Back
Top