Checking Your Sugar Around Exercise
Reviewed by CDE Mehandi Sharma · Updated
Activity lowers blood sugar, which is mostly the point. If you take insulin or a medicine that pushes your pancreas to release insulin, that effect needs planning for.
The practical advice is to check your blood glucose before, during and after activity — particularly when you are starting something new, going for longer than usual, or exercising at a different time of day. You are looking for a pattern, and after a week or two you will know roughly what a given activity does to you.
It is also worth asking your doctor whether you should take less insulin, or eat some carbohydrate, before or after being active. That is a medication question, and the answer depends on which medicines you are on.
Carry something that treats a low: glucose tablets, a small packet of juice, or plain sugar — see the 15-15 rule. Not chocolate or biscuits, which act too slowly when you need something now.
If your medicines do not cause lows — metformin alone, for example — this is much simpler, and you mainly need to stay hydrated and pay attention to your feet.
Two other things. Drink water, which matters in Indian heat more than most guidance allows for. And wear proper shoes rather than chappals, especially if you have any numbness in your feet.