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Putting on weight by working out!!

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pennyjane

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5
Hi,
Does anyone else have this problem?
I have been going to the gym for a month now and as advised I test my levels before and if less than 10 I eat a snack (usually a banana or apple) as I am new I do a relatively gentle hour split between treadmill, rower and bike. I have found that by the end my level has fallen to about 2.5 - 3 and I need to have another snack before driving home. The problem with this is that I am eating more than I would have if I wasn't going to the gym and have put on 3 pounds instead of making inroads into the 10 pounds that I wanted to lose :-(
I work full time and go to the gym after my evening meal, at about 7 or 7.30ish as this is the only time I can realistically fit it in around the family. I am 48, 5ft 1" and currently 9st 10.
I would be grateful if anyone has any tips for me because at the moment I am getting very frustrated.
 
You could try reducing insuling with your evening meal ? This should negate need for a snack prior to workout ? It's trial and error, however, even putting a couple of pound on, the benefits of regular exercise are huge. Hope you can find a solution.
Mo


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Had the exact same problem on mdi. Kept plummeting from excercise. I didn't have the problem of weight though as trying to gain. Seems like your insulin levels are too high when exercising. Either basal, or bolus if injecting and eating within 4 hours of going to gym. Tricky one for you as if.like me you cut back on insulin end up too high prior to working out.
easiest way, try to get a pump. That way you can put basal on stop approx 30~60 mins prior and on again after. Thats what works for me.
Or sip on lucozade whilst working out, pure glucose will keep your levels up rather than eating. 10 does seem a bit high at any time of day for any activity, and having the lucozade, your body won't need to digest the food beforehand.
Or mid way through workout go absolutely flat out for a short periods of time. Seen that on runsweet.com. This promotes a response from the liver to dump some glucose. I know some type 1s do this after their workout to stop going low afterwards.

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Good advice from both Mo and Brett. When you exercise you increase the insulin sensitivity and if you have too much on board, it shunts the blood glucose into the muscles more rapidly than you can replace it from other sources. A functioning pancreas would cut back it's insulin production and increase the counter regualtory hormones to compensate. If you've just bolused after eating you don't have that opportunity so you are burning sugars not fats, and won't be losing weight.

So you have two options really, either exercise before eating, or modify your bolus dose. The ADA in Handbook of exercise in diabetes give a guide of up to 50%, Think Like a Pancreas gives a table with a few ranges based on duration and effort, with a starting point for 40-60 minutes of moderate intensity giving a 0.67 multiplier i.e. reduce by 1/3.

You will need to experiment yourself to find what works for you. I've now found for example, that if I go for a long run after breakfast, if I reduce basal by 50% and bolus to 1 unit that morning, I can run happily with about 45g carbs per hour and I'll be testing about every 45 minutes just to keep an eye on things.

For shorter stuff, I tend to do that pre-meal, and have a 10-15g snack beforehand if I'm lower than 5.5, adn maybe reduce my post meal bolus as well.

Basically, if you want to avoid post-exercise hypos and the need to eat extra carbs you WILL need to reduce your mealtime bolus if you exercise after meal. You'll need to determine how much by trial and error, but it should stop you needing to go so high after dinner to manage the exercise.
 
Thanks chaps,

So good to hear from people that actually KNOW what I am talking about!
I was worried about altering my insulin dose, but have tried reducing by 1/3 as suggested and did a relatively gentle hour workout on the treadmill (fast walking with varied inclines) and finished with a blood test of 4.2 :-) I feel confident enough to try a bit of a jog next time.
I find that my healthcare 'experts' won't give me much advice, I have been a well controlled insulin controlled diabetic for over 40 years and have had no complications or weight issues up to now and they tend to assume that I know it all. I am determined to exercise without upsetting my control. I am so grateful for your advice and support.
Penny
 
Well, jogging/running was harder work than I had imagined! I will try to increase a bit with each visit, did use the cross trainer and managed to burn 400 calories and blood test was 4.6 after an hour, did half my usual dose of humalog with my dinner. I expect to need less insulin as I increase the workout, but am happy to have found a system for dealing with the diabetes and increased exercise. Thank you for your help, hopefully I will be fitter and a bit lighter by the new year :-)
 
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