Walking and diabetes

Quoted message said:

who'd like to share their strategies for managing food input and
exercise output on the hills, and what's good diabetic-friendly
food for mountain pit-stops?

Investigate the GI glycaemic index diet.

I thnk something like homemade flapjacks would
be good as the oats are slow-release.

Nick

Pat the Chooks said:

I've recently discovered I'm a Type II diabetic, which explains the
weight loss and gives a more reassuring answer to the eyesight problems
than the ones which are offered by the less-than-sympathetic. However,
it does explain why I tend to get wiped out by walking up mountains
when I'm reasonably fit. Are there any other diabetic walkers out there
who'd like to share their strategies for managing food input and
exercise output on the hills, and what's good diabetic-friendly food
for mountain pit-stops?

Me too. I've managed to get mine under good control by throwing
everything out of my diet which spikes my blood sugar readings too
much, which is basically rice, potatoes, bread, pasta, sugar, oats.

Haven't yet got round to finding out how to handle long hill walks
which need serious amounts of extra leg fuel, but I've found no
problem handling fairly exhausting walks or cycles of an hour's
duration. In fact now my blood sugar has stopped wildly yoyo-ing, I
find I'm much less likely to get into the the hill-walking yoyo I used
to suffer from of sugary snack followed later by low blood sugar and a
desperate need for another sugary snack. Now fuelled more by long
lasting fats and protein I can happily go without eating for much
longer than I used to be able to. I've clearly spent most of my life
eating a diet which was hard for my body to handle. If I'd discovered
that sooner then perhaps I wouldn't now be a diabetic.

I can eat some fast carbs like bread without blood sugar problems
providing I'm doing enough exercise at the time to use it up roughly
as fast as it hits the bloodstream. Mixing the bread with fats such as
in a cheese sandwich slows down and flattens the subsequent blood
sugar spike so lessens the vigouressness of exercise needed to sop it
up.

My guess is that I'll be able to eat anything on a pit-stop, provided
there's not too much fast carbohydrate (high glycemic index) in the
snack, and there's some fat to slow it down. Note that there's a
personal element in glycemic index -- diabetic individuals vary quite
a bit, so you can't just adopt a diet from a book.

Snacky stuff that's diabetic friendly is cheese, sardines, preserved
meats such as salami of biltong (chewy sun dried beef strips), and
chewy fruits like apples. I rather like the idea of the old Canadian
trapper's staple of a mixture of corned beef and berries. Berries are
usually lower than the average fruit in glycemic index. And of course
there's always spam :-)

For dried stuff that you cook it's worth experimenting with beans,
peas, lentils, etc., since they're likely (people vary) to be lower in
glycemic index than rice and pasta. Some diabetics can cope with
oats. I can't, unless they're limited in quantity and I'm going to
start moving when I stop eating.

With type II diabetes people vary individually a great deal. You can
get general guidelines, but for good control you need to experiment
with your own diet and habits using a blood glucose meter.

In walking some type IIs can manage with a few big meals a day,
provided it's the right kind of meal for them, while others find that if
they go too long without eating something their liver will dump more
glucose than they can handle into their bloodstream, and they need to
prevent this by frequent small snacks.

You'll get good detailed advice and discussion on
<alt.support.diabetes.uk>. Unless you've got an unusually progressive
doc, you may also find that it's actually possible to control your
blood sugar much better than many docs think is possible, or even
advisable. There is some evidence that the better your control the
longer you last without developing diabetic complications. The goal of
course is to slow down the progress of your diabetes so that the
complications arrive some time after you're dead :-)

--
Chris Malcolm [email hidden] +44 (0)131 651 3445 DoD #205
IPAB, Informatics, JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK
[http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/]

[email hidden] said...

Quoted message said:

I've recently discovered I'm a Type II diabetic, which explains the
weight loss and gives a more reassuring answer to the eyesight problems
than the ones which are offered by the less-than-sympathetic. However,
it does explain why I tend to get wiped out by walking up mountains
when I'm reasonably fit. Are there any other diabetic walkers out there
who'd like to share their strategies for managing food input and
exercise output on the hills, and what's good diabetic-friendly food
for mountain pit-stops?

Bill Grey will be along in a minute. He's good company on a walk; just
needs to stop every now and then for a quick snack of some appropriate
fodder. That suits me, because I need to stop every now and then for a
breather and I rarely say no to food. Actually, I suspect you'll find
you're in very good company, and as soon as you get to know the disease
and get to know your own limitations you'll be back where you were
before but fitter and wiser. The great thing about identifying problems
is that you can start to deal with them sensibly; however do remember
that it may take you a while to work out a reasonable balance of all the
various factors involved that suits you and your needs. 'Don't try to
run before you can walk' is probably a good maxim here.

Also, and not walking related - get your dental health sorted out.
You'll find you are more prone to certain things now, like dental
abscesses and circulatory problems. Maybe you've already had tooth
nasties and not known why, even. Well, it's all connected with the dire
beasties. Ain't life fun.
--
To reply see 'from' in headers; lose the domain, and insert dots and @
where common sense dictates.

In article <[email hidden]>, Chris Malcolm
<[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

Pat the Chooks said:

I've recently discovered I'm a Type II diabetic, which explains the
weight loss and gives a more reassuring answer to the eyesight problems
than the ones which are offered by the less-than-sympathetic. However,
it does explain why I tend to get wiped out by walking up mountains
when I'm reasonably fit. Are there any other diabetic walkers out there
who'd like to share their strategies for managing food input and
exercise output on the hills, and what's good diabetic-friendly food
for mountain pit-stops?

Me too. I've managed to get mine under good control by throwing
everything out of my diet which spikes my blood sugar readings too
much, which is basically rice, potatoes, bread, pasta, sugar, oats.

Haven't yet got round to finding out how to handle long hill walks
which need serious amounts of extra leg fuel, but I've found no
problem handling fairly exhausting walks or cycles of an hour's
duration. In fact now my blood sugar has stopped wildly yoyo-ing, I
find I'm much less likely to get into the the hill-walking yoyo I used
to suffer from of sugary snack followed later by low blood sugar and a
desperate need for another sugary snack. Now fuelled more by long
lasting fats and protein I can happily go without eating for much
longer than I used to be able to. I've clearly spent most of my life
eating a diet which was hard for my body to handle. If I'd discovered
that sooner then perhaps I wouldn't now be a diabetic.

I can eat some fast carbs like bread without blood sugar problems
providing I'm doing enough exercise at the time to use it up roughly
as fast as it hits the bloodstream. Mixing the bread with fats such as
in a cheese sandwich slows down and flattens the subsequent blood
sugar spike so lessens the vigouressness of exercise needed to sop it
up.

My guess is that I'll be able to eat anything on a pit-stop, provided
there's not too much fast carbohydrate (high glycemic index) in the
snack, and there's some fat to slow it down. Note that there's a
personal element in glycemic index -- diabetic individuals vary quite
a bit, so you can't just adopt a diet from a book.

Snacky stuff that's diabetic friendly is cheese, sardines, preserved
meats such as salami of biltong (chewy sun dried beef strips), and
chewy fruits like apples. I rather like the idea of the old Canadian
trapper's staple of a mixture of corned beef and berries. Berries are
usually lower than the average fruit in glycemic index. And of course
there's always spam :-)

For dried stuff that you cook it's worth experimenting with beans,
peas, lentils, etc., since they're likely (people vary) to be lower in
glycemic index than rice and pasta. Some diabetics can cope with
oats. I can't, unless they're limited in quantity and I'm going to
start moving when I stop eating.

With type II diabetes people vary individually a great deal. You can
get general guidelines, but for good control you need to experiment
with your own diet and habits using a blood glucose meter.

In walking some type IIs can manage with a few big meals a day,
provided it's the right kind of meal for them, while others find that if
they go too long without eating something their liver will dump more
glucose than they can handle into their bloodstream, and they need to
prevent this by frequent small snacks.

You'll get good detailed advice and discussion on
<alt.support.diabetes.uk>. Unless you've got an unusually progressive
doc, you may also find that it's actually possible to control your
blood sugar much better than many docs think is possible, or even
advisable. There is some evidence that the better your control the
longer you last without developing diabetic complications. The goal of
course is to slow down the progress of your diabetes so that the
complications arrive some time after you're dead :-)

Whilst agreeing totally with Chris, I would recommend not letting your
blood sugar fall too much between meals. Top up between meals with maybe
a biscuit or two. Of course your diet should comply with your
doctor's/dietician's guidlines. The topping up helps to keep your blood
sugar at a fairly constant level without having highs and lows in the
readings. I have had one or two (literally) episodes of running out of
energy, and it can happen in a short space of time too. If this happens
I usually munch on a piece of Mars bar. This is my emergency remedy.

Using a blood glucose meter to test your blood should give you a good
indication on how you're handling diabetes. If you get readings of
between 5 and 7 you're doing fine. Some say figures below 10 i.e. single
figures are OK.

--
Bill Grey
http://www.billboy.co.uk

In article <[email hidden]>, Fran
<[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

Bill Grey will be along in a minute. He's good company on a walk; just
needs to stop every now and then for a quick snack of some appropriate
fodder.

Oh Fran, you're making me blush.

If the truth be known I love eating al fresco :-)
--
Bill Grey
http://www.billboy.co.uk

Thanks to everyone for their considered, thoughtful, and very helpful
comments. I blush to find myself in such illustrious company and will
definitely look more closely at all of the suggestions.
--
Patrick

"Pat the Chooks" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've recently discovered I'm a Type II diabetic, which explains the
weight loss and gives a more reassuring answer to the eyesight problems
than the ones which are offered by the less-than-sympathetic. However,
it does explain why I tend to get wiped out by walking up mountains
when I'm reasonably fit. Are there any other diabetic walkers out there
who'd like to share their strategies for managing food input and
exercise output on the hills, and what's good diabetic-friendly food
for mountain pit-stops?

Hi,
I`m a diabetic walker and have been taking insulin four times a day for as
many years as I can remember, you don`t say if you are on tablets or
insulin.The risk of having a hypo when on insulin is a real threat when
doing hard mountain walking, I think when on tablets the risk is very
minimal.

What works for me is

Breakfast - bowl of porridge made with skimmed milk

Before setting off (maybe one to one and half hours after breakfast) a
cheese sarnie made with wholemeal bread

Hour or so later maybe a couple of biscuits or a bag of crisps.

Lunch is usually a cuppa soup,couple of wholemeal tuna sarnies and fruit
(either tinned of fresh)

Hour or so later biscuits or bag of crisps

Hour or so later, depending on how hard the walking has been, I find I`m at
my highest risk of a hypo. This is where the emergency rations come in, I
never go out without
banana
mars bar
flapjacks
fresh orange juice
Chocolate digestives

I check my blood at least half a dozen times during the day and generally
decrease my usual dose of insulin to compensate for the extra energy being
used.

The problem I have is getting my sugar levels up the next day.

This works for me, I`ve only come close to needing medical help a couple of
times, but with the help of friends I got over it.

I wish you all the luck in the world and please play by the rules. I didn`t
when I was younger and I now pay the price,I`ve had three strokes, I`ve got
a blocked right artery in the heart that can`t be put right, but worse of
all is the diabetic neuropathy which means I can only ever wear sandles on
my feet (not a very good idea in the mountains in the depths of winter)
And it is for these reasons my friends and family always make sure I never
go walking on my own.
Good luck,
Chritine.

In article <[email hidden]>, Wy Wurrie
<[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

"Pat the Chooks" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've recently discovered I'm a Type II diabetic, which explains the
weight loss and gives a more reassuring answer to the eyesight problems
than the ones which are offered by the less-than-sympathetic. However,
it does explain why I tend to get wiped out by walking up mountains
when I'm reasonably fit. Are there any other diabetic walkers out there
who'd like to share their strategies for managing food input and
exercise output on the hills, and what's good diabetic-friendly food
for mountain pit-stops?

Hi,
I`m a diabetic walker and have been taking insulin four times a day for as
many years as I can remember, you don`t say if you are on tablets or
insulin.The risk of having a hypo when on insulin is a real threat when
doing hard mountain walking, I think when on tablets the risk is very
minimal.

What works for me is

Breakfast - bowl of porridge made with skimmed milk

Before setting off (maybe one to one and half hours after breakfast) a
cheese sarnie made with wholemeal bread

Hour or so later maybe a couple of biscuits or a bag of crisps.

Lunch is usually a cuppa soup,couple of wholemeal tuna sarnies and fruit
(either tinned of fresh)

Hour or so later biscuits or bag of crisps

Hour or so later, depending on how hard the walking has been, I find I`m at
my highest risk of a hypo. This is where the emergency rations come in, I
never go out without
banana
mars bar
flapjacks
fresh orange juice
Chocolate digestives

I check my blood at least half a dozen times during the day and generally
decrease my usual dose of insulin to compensate for the extra energy being
used.

The problem I have is getting my sugar levels up the next day.

This works for me, I`ve only come close to needing medical help a couple of
times, but with the help of friends I got over it.

I wish you all the luck in the world and please play by the rules. I didn`t
when I was younger and I now pay the price,I`ve had three strokes, I`ve got
a blocked right artery in the heart that can`t be put right, but worse of
all is the diabetic neuropathy which means I can only ever wear sandles on
my feet (not a very good idea in the mountains in the depths of winter)
And it is for these reasons my friends and family always make sure I never
go walking on my own.
Good luck,
Chritine.

Hi Chritine (or is it Christine?)

Your eating regime explains the answer admirably.

A diabetic type1 or II should consider "grazing" rather than fixed
mealtimes with big gaps in between.

Thanks for the information and good luck and good health.
--
Bill Grey
http://www.billboy.co.uk

Quoted message said:

Hi Chritine (or is it Christine?)

Your eating regime explains the answer admirably.

A diabetic type1 or II should consider "grazing" rather than fixed
mealtimes with big gaps in between.

Thanks for the information and good luck and good health.
--
Bill Grey
http://www.billboy.co.uk

Hi Bill,
Yes it is Christine, that`s what happens when typing and watching the tele
at the same time. Who was it that said women can do more than one thing at a
time.

W. D. Grey <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

In article <[email hidden]>, Fran
<[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

Bill Grey will be along in a minute. He's good company on a walk; just
needs to stop every now and then for a quick snack of some appropriate
fodder.

If the truth be known I love eating al fresco :-)

Where can you buy it?

I was hit by a sudden hunger/weakness pang as we were completing a mere
three mile stroll today, which included a rest while we fed and watched
some birds.

I had cereal and toast for breakfast about 9am, and had coffee and a
couple of fruit and fibre bars as we sat bird watching, around 12 noon.

When the hunger knock started I had to wolf a couple more bars to
recover, and glanced at my watch. It was 13:15, but I suddenly
realised that my body clock thought it was 14:15, having stepped back an
hour, and I wondered if this was the cause. It only happens
occasionally, but the weakness is scary, and I rarely walk more than a
few hundred yards without a snack in my pocket.

Should I get a blood sugar meter, or should I buy a book on
hypochondria?

;-)
--
Gordon Harris

[email hidden] said...

Quoted message said:

In article <[email hidden]>, Fran
<[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

Bill Grey will be along in a minute. He's good company on a walk; just
needs to stop every now and then for a quick snack of some appropriate
fodder.

Oh Fran, you're making me blush.

If the truth be known I love eating al fresco :-)

Oh, so do I. What I /don't/ like is some of the company I attract. You
know the sort - tends to be black and yellow and goes bzzzzzzzzz
whenever I sit down for a snack. That or black and tiny and wants to
share my lunch while it's being absorbed into my blood stream...
--
To reply see 'from' in headers; lose the domain, and insert dots and @
where common sense dictates.

[email hidden] said...

Quoted message said:

Should I get a blood sugar meter, or should I buy a book on
hypochondria?

Well let's see now. What would your doctor say if you went to him for a
check and it turned out to be 'just one of those things'? And what will
he say if you don't go for a check - and thus miss something that could
do with being sorted out?
--
To reply see 'from' in headers; lose the domain, and insert dots and @
where common sense dictates.

[email hidden] said...

Quoted message said:

I`m a diabetic walker and have been taking insulin four times a day for as
many years as I can remember, you don`t say if you are on tablets or
insulin.

True, he doesn't - but he does say he's had a recent diagnosis of type 2
diabetes, so chances are that at least for the time being he's on
neither. He's definitely not injecting insulin.
--
To reply see 'from' in headers; lose the domain, and insert dots and @
where common sense dictates.

[email hidden] said...

Quoted message said:

Who was it that said women can do more than one thing at a
time.

I don't know, but they were wrong. *Some* women can do it, just as some
men can. Others - can't. That's life.
--
To reply see 'from' in headers; lose the domain, and insert dots and @
where common sense dictates.

.. He's definitely not injecting insulin.

Quoted message said:

--
To reply see 'from' in headers; lose the domain, and insert dots and @
where common sense dictates.

Here in staffordshire the policy was/is for all diabetics to be put straight
onto insulin as they all end up on it anyway.

Fran <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

[email hidden] said...

Quoted message said:

Should I get a blood sugar meter, or should I buy a book on
hypochondria?

Well let's see now. What would your doctor say if you went to him for a
check and it turned out to be 'just one of those things'? And what will
he say if you don't go for a check - and thus miss something that could
do with being sorted out?

Thing is, it only happens every two or three months, and I have never
had any problem when I have annual blood tests, so I'm just curious
about it.

Taking in sugar, particularly dextrose tablets, has the quickest
recovery effect, but maybe I ought to look at my diet.
--
Gordon Harris

In article <[email hidden]>, Gordon
<[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

Where can you buy it?

Open air markets :-)
--
Bill Grey
http://www.billboy.co.uk

In article <[email hidden]>, Gordon
<[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

When the hunger knock started I had to wolf a couple more bars to
recover, and glanced at my watch. It was 13:15, but I suddenly
realised that my body clock thought it was 14:15, having stepped back
an hour, and I wondered if this was the cause. It only happens
occasionally, but the weakness is scary, and I rarely walk more than a
few hundred yards without a snack in my pocket.

Should I get a blood sugar meter, or should I buy a book on
hypochondria?

I wouldn''t entertain the idea of a blood glucose meter because even if
you buy one, the cost of the testing strips is prohibitive.

If you are diabetic you might be issued with a meter (or you might have
to buy one) and the strips obtained on prescription.
--
Bill Grey
http://www.billboy.co.uk

In article <[email hidden]>, Wy Wurrie
<[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

Here in staffordshire the policy was/is for all diabetics to be put straight
onto insulin as they all end up on it anyway.

Hell I'm glad I'm not in Staffordshire.

For a newly diagnosed type ll diabetic the treatment initially is diet
only, usually followed later by tablet treatment such as Gliclazide or
Metformin. Obviously there must be others.
--
Bill Grey
http://www.billboy.co.uk