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Does anyone else have high bg readings after exercise?

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Posted 6/4/2008 2:10 PM (GMT 0)
Good morning everyone.

I just got back from my morning walk and my bg was 176, I've noticed my readings being high other days after exercise as well. I am surprised that exercise makes my sugar go up, I would have thought the opposite would be true. I googled it to see if this happens to others and evidently it does. Has anyone here had this happen?

Bear

Posted 6/4/2008 6:20 PM (GMT 0)
Yup! There's a name for it but I can't remember it now... (fibro fog!) When you use up your available glucose in the muscles they send out for reinforcements so the liver converts glycogen to glucose to get you up to speed. Your liver doesn't know that you are gonna walk for 30 minutes, you may be on the beginning of a three day marathon, so it's just being prepared... In the mean time you quit exercising so the body has all this extra glucose hanging around. Happily, the exercise also works to enhance insulin's transport of glucose across the cell membranes so it gets into the cells where it is needed. Oftentimes you will see a big drop in bg one to several hours after exercise.

This temporary up and down is just the body adjusting the glucose levels. If it stays high for several hours there may be something else going on and you should talk to your doctor about it. Also, if you eat before exercise you will benefit better and might not see the big spike. Everybody is different.
Posted 6/4/2008 6:59 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you Jeannie for the quick reply! I was wondering if it would be better if I ate first, but it's getting SOOOoo hot and I like to go early. Would something quick like yogurt be ok to have before exercise? If not, what would be best.

Thanks,
Bear
Posted 6/4/2008 11:26 PM (GMT 0)
Bear,
Yogurt would be good because it has available carbs to use up right away. Then when you get home you could have your egg and cheese or whatever you normally eat for breakfast. Can you see with it being high after exercise that would be the wrong time to eat and add more carbs to the mix? Is there any way that you can eat your yogurt and a fruit that you would normally consume in your food plan every morning that you exercise? This way you don't short yourself on nutrition and you are using up those available carbs right away, preventing your body from turning them into fat. Also, the whole vitamin/mineral thing going on with yogurt and an orange or banana is a great start for the day. I would not eat this combo on a non-exercise day, though.
Posted 6/5/2008 4:28 PM (GMT 0)
That's a great idea Jeannie... I will try that starting tomorrow! What's really great is that "pre-breakfast" combo would be something I would normally only have when I'm having low sugar, so it will be a treat! I'll let you know...
Posted 6/6/2008 2:23 PM (GMT 0)
I envy you being able to walk. I have degenerative joint disease in my ankles (actually in my whole body) and walking is something I no longer can do. Enjoy your time outdoors and take it all in! I"m jealous eyes ~Jeannie
Posted 6/6/2008 4:38 PM (GMT 0)
Hi..
Well, I'm trying it. I bought yogurt (fat free blueberry 1 cup, 0 fat, 13g carbs, 10g sugars). I had it and went right out the door to walk, 1-1/2 miles. Results: 135. Yesterday: 143 with no food. My fasting blood sugar was HIGH both days also (160 today, 197 yesterday), so maybe that's part of it. I'll keep trying.
Bear
Posted 6/6/2008 4:39 PM (GMT 0)
Nighttime snack?
Posted 6/6/2008 10:54 PM (GMT 0)
I knew you were going to ask me that hehe
night before last I had half a banana with peanut butter,
and my morning reading was really high so last night I just had peanut butter on a spoon without the banana (not as fun) and it was a LittLe lower... I have no clue what to try tonight... any ideas?
Posted 6/7/2008 2:25 PM (GMT 0)
What meds are you on, Bear?
Posted 6/7/2008 4:03 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Jeannie,
I'm on metformin 500 once a day. This has been for about a month and a half or so... I was on Avandamet 2/500 once a day since my diagnosis a year ago April. When my bp started getting high and doc put me on bp meds, I started having bad LOWS, so she cut the bp med (enalapril) in half and cut out the Avandia part of my med. Now she is wanting me to go back on it because my sugars have been so high this week and I called because I was worried. I haven't started back with it yet because I had suddenly gained 10+ pounds, and she thought it might be due to the Avandia. I can't shed this weight even with the exercise and diet. I don't really know what to do.... sad Sorry long answer
bear
Posted 6/8/2008 12:08 AM (GMT 0)
Avandia is something I stopped because A) I couldn't afford it any longer and B) the water retention was getting ridiculous. I actually do better without it because now I can't eat as many carbs and I'm paying better attention to my numbers.
If it were me I'd ask her to up the metformin to twice a day or else maybe just take it in the evening? You can exercise away carbs while you're awake but not much you can do with those foods in your bloodstream while you're asleep.
The other possibililty is that your diabetes may be progressing so you will need more meds or a food plan change. I wish I could offer more...
Posted 6/8/2008 5:33 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks for your input Jeannie. You have helped me a lot! I just took a metformin with a snack of 2 slices of apple with peanut butter before bed. Hopefully my numbers will be lower in the morning. My doc had suggested taking the avandamet 2x a day, and I took it with breakfast this morning. Tomorrow I'll try taking just the metformin, which I feel more comfortable with than the avandia component. Maybe 2x a day will help me get my numbers down, and hopefully I can just get back to once a day soon.
P.S. My morning reading was pretty high today, so I didn't even have my yogurt... the numbers came down from the exercise alone.
Bear
Posted 6/8/2008 2:45 PM (GMT 0)
Hi, I haven't exercised yet, but my fasting bg was 141 today. Less than it has been, but still not what I had hoped. I'm going to keep up the nighttime dose of metformin for a while to see what happens.
bear smile
Posted 6/8/2008 8:41 PM (GMT 0)
bear,

I find that eating a snack before I go to sleep makes my numbers higher in the morning and I have DP. My numbers are great during the day, so what I've done is take my metformin before bed with a glass of unsweetened soy milk (3 carbs). that's just enough stuff to keep the metformin from killing my stomach, but not so much as to make my bg high in the AM.

I'm usually in the low 90's when I wake up. If I eat the fruit/peanut butter snack that helps Jeannie so much, it makes me wake up around 125- I've tried all sorts of combos and every one of them causes trouble for me. On days when I have to take the metformin on an empty stomach for labs- I do get a bit of a stomach ache but my morning numbers are always in the mid-high 80's. I am usually right around 90 when I go to bed- so I don't worry if it's mid 90's in the AM.

sandy

Posted 6/9/2008 4:35 AM (GMT 0)
Good idea, Sandy.. We are all so darn different in the way we handle the sugars and carbs... It's confusing at times. Bear, I can tell you I got excellent numbers with Avandia but it was way too expensive for this lady without insurance and it has too many health warnings attached to it. I just have to eat gooder so my numbers are gooder. tongue
Posted 6/9/2008 10:24 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Sandy,
I wish I had those kind of numbers when I wake up. No such luck... this morning I was at 138 after having taken my metformin before bed. Snack or no snack seems to make little difference. I've been reducing my carbs since last week's disasterous readings, and I suppose I'm better, but not great.

Hi Jeannie,
I'm trying to eat gooder too so far not a lot of progress. I sure hate to go back on the Avandia... I've been eating better and eating less and exercising every day and I still can't lose any of that weight I put on, and doc thought it was caused by the Avandia . I'm going to hang in there with just the metformin for now..

Thank you both for your responses

Bear
Posted 6/14/2008 3:07 PM (GMT 0)
Bear,
If you are consuming less calories and doing more exercise you may not be losing weight because you may be adding muscle. Muscle tissue weighs a lot more than fatty tissue. I'd suggest that you start measuring your upper arm or thigh once a week to check for inches lost. I'll bet you're losing inches. Hang in there. You're doing lots of good things for your body and even though you can't see all the results you want, I'll bet your cholesterol numbers and other numbers are doing better inside.
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