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As title says so been booked in for ECG and additional blood test and 20min Drs appointment in three weeks time. I've already anticipated that I'm on my way to diabetes due to my symptoms which are peeing a lot at night, itching, occasional blurred vision. I am upping my exercise so more cycling 😀 and being carful about what I eat and drink.
I need to learn more about the condition and relationship to sugar and exercise i.e energy gels & drinks on long rides dos and don'ts. Any tips appreciated.
Any tips appreciated.
Vegan plant based whole food diet will sort you out - just log easy on the starch
Vegan eh better start growing some dreadlocks then 😆
[i]peeing a lot at night[/i]
I've put this down to an aging prostate not being able to take the pressure any more.
Should I be worried?
Blurred vision a worry! Eye damage could affect your ability to ride. Peripheral vision ok?
Lay off the carbs as much as possible, remember fruit juice is lots of carbs.
Work on that waistline.
Depending on what type of diabetes you have you might be able to control it just by having a sensible diet so I would wait until you've spoken with your doctor first before making any drastic changes.
I've just booked a similar appointment. Its a just in case thing and maybe combination of things. Recently my children have started putting labels on things they want because I've been complaining about left arm aching (old crash injury) hot flushes (the sun's out), slight tightness in chest (hay fever which I haven't had since I was 14). Sure its to do with working to much and not exercising enough but feeling knackered/stressed isn't pleasant. Seriously watching my diet and upped riding. Better safe than sorry.
Hope its ok and let us know how it goes.
Best thing I think is to be positive about my diagnosis and for it to be a motivator for a healthier lifestyle and get that Adonis like body for real that I've always had in my minds eye.
Vegan plant based whole food diet will sort you out
How will losing the will to live help ?
Type II diabetes can be not just controlled but beaten by diet. I know because I have. 3 or 4 years ago I was diagnosed as type II diabetic, doc gave me all the diet info. I've since lost over 3 stones* and my blood sugar levels are now back in a normal range. Doctor took me off the diabetes register, although I do still need to have a blood test once a year.
*I'm still overweight but much nearer a healthy weight
That's self-induced type 2 right? You don't develop type 1 in later life as if by magic do you? Fill me in if I'm wrong. Surely type 2 is to a large degree reversible seeing as it's something of a lifestyle affliction.
Nope, sorry john drummer, but no it cant. You're either diabetic or not. You cant be a little bit diabetic, or and ex-diabetic, but you can stay within normal blood sugar range with great control, excersize and diet. Something that very few of my patients manage!
Its a progressive disease, with no cure yet, just ways of controlling the ineviatble - so it would seem as if you were back to normal.
pre-diabetic isn't diabetic, it just means that you're potentially on the way. first thing you might want to do is confirm how pre-diabetic you are or aren't. easy to do, pop into boots and buy a blood glucose meter (about £12) and some testing strips. also get yourself a set of gi (glycaemic index) tables, about £5 from waterstones.
before eating in the morning, take a blood glucose reading. if it's consistently below 7, you can try not changing your eating for a few days to se how much it changes, if it's higher than 7 you need to change now. Once you decide there's a need to change you eating habits, use the gi tables and cut out the red stuff (white bread, potatoes, beer, wine, chocolate) and concentrate on the green (wholemeal/multigrain brad, sweet potatoes, spirits).
i did and now get a full nights sleep without the middle of the night going for a pee carry on.
My weight is under control apart from a bet of a gut which is rapidly disappearing, I am 5'11 and just under 82kg so not really overweight. I want to get down to 79kg or perhaps 76kg to improve my climbing prowess.
Meal planning is going to need some consideration as can't leave that up to Mrs FH even though she insists on doing the weekly shop she will struggle to come up with meal ideas based on my new dietary requirements.
iDave diet. Being very low GI.
Best thing I think is to be positive about my diagnosis and for it to be a motivator for a healthier lifestyle and get that Adonis like body for real that I've always had in my minds eye.
I thought that after my diagnosis for hypercholesterolemia. After two weeks my 'self-destruct' superpower switched on. I've started to dream of cheese. And, unfortunately, eat it. 😕
I stand corrected 😳
either way I'm ok at the moment
[i] I am 5'11 and just under 82kg so not really overweight.[/i]
Dunno how old you are, but on the NHS BMI calculator, you're overweight (BMI over 25) Sorry to burst your bubble
As others have said above, if you can lose some weight then you may never stray in to the diabetes zone.
Pre diabetes is a bit of a vague concept as it is measures by blood sugar, its a bit like looking at a paint chart and deciding where black starts on a range of white to black!
Low GI foods would be a good idea as they reduce the spike of sugar after a meal (this stimulates a spike of insulin).
Your body basically is becoming resistant to the insulin that it makes, don't underestimate the good that exercise can do to restore this.
Diabetes uk is a good website to look at, there is lots of nonsense on the web related to diabetes!
Just look at it as the perfect excuse to spend more time on the bike!
BMI 😆 good one!
Dunno how old you are, but on the NHS BMI calculator, you're overweight (BMI over 25) Sorry to burst your bubble
I hit the big 50 in July and yes I'm a bit past my fighting weight 😀
use the gi tables and cut out the [s]red [/s] good stuff (white bread, potatoes, beer, wine, chocolate) and concentrate on the [s]green [/s] boring (wholemeal/multigrain brad, sweet potatoes, spirits).
😉
BMI good one!
Aaah, are you now going to quote the example of elite rugby players being 'obese' due to having lots of muscle mass, thus discrediting it? Gotta love the number of cyclists who trot that one out as a defence for their excessive weight, when they compete in a sport which will make you very lean.
>82kg at 5'11" is overweight, in fact it's nearer "obese" than "normal".
let me get the BMI calculation right...
weigh in kg / (height in metres * height in metres). Yes?
5'11 = 71in = 1.80m. squared = 3.24
82 / 3.24 = 25.31
that's hardly "obese". I think it has to be > 30 to be "obese". or have I got something wrong here?
Ah yes, shows how good I am at reading charts! Not nearer obese at all, on the cusp of normal, but still overweight!
Point on cyclists decrying BMI still stands!
I am 5'11 and just under 82kg so not really overweight.Dunno how old you are, but on the NHS BMI calculator, you're overweight (BMI over 25) Sorry to burst your bubble
Bejaysus, I'm 5'11 and a half and come in at 100kg! I better get measured up for my coffin now... No moobs, but a round pot belly. People don't flinch/gag when I take my top off on holiday on the beach or round the pool.
If I were my 'ideal BMI weight' I would look seriously ill.
Gotta love the number of cyclists who trot that one out as a defence for their excessive weight, when they compete in a sport which will make you very lean.
Er yeah but lean isn't the same as light, is it?
Headfirst, I'm 178cm and weigh 69-70kgs depending on which side of dinner you weigh me, and I've got spare. In fact I could probs do with losing a bit of my tum myself
Er yeah but lean isn't the same as light, is it?
Its those heavy bones I reckon 😉
Er yeah but lean isn't the same as light, is it?
Well, in this context yes, pretty much. People say BMI doesn't work for 'athletes', as a convenient way to bury their head in the sand as to their weight. Find me a pro cyclist (some sprinters or downhillers aside) who are even 'overweight', let alone 'obese'.
If you do a lot of weight training there's perhaps more in it.
Waist / Hip ratio is a better guide for cardiovascular disease (and diabetes) than BMI.
I better get measured up for my coffin now...
Never mind that, you need to start saving up for all that extra mahogany.
🙂
I'm about to go for checks myself - had a temporarily blurry eye on a ride a week or so ago, although I've been fine since. Have probably got a bit too much timber around the waist too - I've been using cycling as an excuse to neck loads of biscuits.
[i]Er yeah but lean isn't the same as light, is it?[/i]
I'm willing to bet with your money that someone who's 180cm and weighs 83kg and lean isn't going to be pre-diabetic though...
Someone who's 180cm and 83kg isn't lean! They might be broad and muscular, or they might just be a bit chubbier than they like to think, but they aren't what I would call lean.
As Alibongo says. A [url= http://www.diabetes.co.uk/waist-measurement-diabetes-risk.html ]37 inch waist[/url] seems to be the current point to worry.
surely that's another arbitrary number though? a 37in waist on someone who's say 6'7" is going to be a lot better than a 37in waist on someone who's 5'7"
incidentally I'm 5'8" & my waist is under 37in
Well, in this context yes, pretty much. People say BMI doesn't work for 'athletes', as a convenient way to bury their head in the sand as to their weight. Find me a pro cyclist (some sprinters or downhillers aside) who are even 'overweight', let alone 'obese'.
How did Big Jan do? Offseason 🙂
But still better than a waist that's measured in the 40s
A lot of these numbers are a bit 'wafty' but they're just indicators
[i]surely that's another arbitrary number though? a 37in waist on someone who's say 6'7" is going to be a lot better than a 37in waist on someone who's 5'7"[/i]
It's based on statistical averages.
There'll be people at the 'tail' at either end of the spectrum for whom this isn;t an appropriate way of measuring it.
For 95% of the population it's probably not a bad starting point though.
Find me a pro cyclist (some sprinters or downhillers aside) who are even 'overweight', let alone 'obese'.
Bit of a daft thing to say. Some people bulk up when they exercise, that's just how it is. Those people tend not to go on to become pro cyclists, cos they are too heavy. Doesn't mean they are obese though. And by excluding people who aren't XC racers or tour athletes, you're only allowing skinny people into your point about weight. Crap reasoning from all sides.
Someone who's 180cm and 83kg isn't lean! They might be broad and muscular, or they might just be a bit chubbier than they like to think, but they aren't what I would call lean.
Lean means low fat. You can be big and heavy and still have low bodyfat and hence be lean.
But they're still unlikely to be pre diabetic. I think Gee Atherton is about those stats, but he's a crap example.
Of the people down the pub that complain about how inaccurate BMI is, 'lean' is not the first adjective that springs to mind to describe them.
There's a Venn diagram somewhere with 'people who say BMI doesn't apply to pro rugby players' and 'pro Rugby players'.
Headfirst - I've got exactly the same stats as you and have realised that I've got to get it down. Work issues make it difficult to create a sensible routine for food or exercise but I'm trying really hard to sort out both.
BMI doesn't bother me but people half my age going faster than me does!
Consider drastically cutting down or eliminating meat. Almost everything available in supermarkets is industrialy reared and processed garbage. High omega6. Incude farmed fish in that too.
Fruit, veg, nuts, carbs and exersise... you dont need more than that really. Maybe a bit of wild fish once or twice a month... squid is a good one.
Fruit gets a bad rep ref diabetes. Thing is the fructose is bound with fiber and slow to absorb so most fruits are low gi; as long as you eat normal portions no worries. Same with other complex carbs, like wholewheat pasta or rice, meduim gi.
Doctors seem confused on this. My MIL was pre diabetic and was told not to eat oranges... which are low gi, like 5!
Ps
Diabetics have to limit carbs so you might want to look into that. My MIL was 60g per meal after she became full diabetic IIRC. Although she "likes" white bread so its academic.
Of the people down the pub that complain about how inaccurate BMI is, 'lean' is not the first adjective that springs to mind to describe them.
This was my point.
I have type 1 diabetes
There really is a load of old twaddle on this thread.
With any luck the OP's GP will refer to the local diabetes specialist care centre if necessary.
Almost everything available in supermarkets is industrialy reared and processed garbage
That's bollocks and also irrelevant.
Just got back from my 20min diabetic appointment with my Dr following ECG and subsequent blood tests for liver £ kidney function etc. I walked in to see my Dr with a baffled expression scratching his head whereby he proclaimed I've not had this before your results have changed over the previous 3 months your not diabetic and your blood levels have improved. He also expressed concerns over my heart rate which was 40 from the ECG, that was until I explained I cycle and my weight is down to 12st 5.
So brilliant news and I'm on the right track healthwise. 😀 I can now look forward to being 50 and fit.
Congrats!
I used to eat sweets mid-ride, chocolate bars every day etc. I realised on a ride after stuffing my face with jelly babies (to stave off the start of hunger) a short while later I'd crash and burn. Same with constant chocolate. Since cutting all of it out I'm fine- I even eat less before the ride itself. No idea about diabetes but I think exercise and a bag of processed sugar (or cake post ride) shouldn't go together for longterm health.
The roadie thing for energy gel can't be good for you.
That's just standard insulin crashing- you eat a bunch of sugar, your body produces insulin to deal with it, then the sugar runs out but the insulin response lags and you end up with a low blood sugar level.
I didn't really know about this, being a diabetic- it's not something that can happen to us. So I mainline haribos on longer rides, and keep giving them to people, especially broken people. Which, in a certain light, could be considered sabotage 😆 Ian the guide at A Quick Release found me feeding handfulls jelly babies to a mate on a long ride and more or less slapped them out of my hands 🙂
especially broken people. Which, in a certain light, could be considered sabotage
This used to be classic-me.
"I'm peckish, anyone got anything"? Sure, pulls out big bag of haribo and pours a over-large generous-gesture handful...
20mins later [b][u]BANG[/u][/b]
I thought sugar was OK while you're exercising 🙁 😳
Jelly babies are pretty much the only thing I've turned back for when I've set off for a ride
Sugar is OK, you've just got to be careful with it. Generally it's about matching high gi and low gi foods, if you're going to use nitrous you've got to have some petrol in the tank too or it's danger to the manifold.
Surely peeing a lot is an actual symptom of diabetes not pre-diabetes?
When I was diagnosed I was peeing a lot, drinking a lot and washing out any nutrients from my system, and getting the most horrendous cramps at night.
What was your actual BGL?
allmountainventure - Member
PsDiabetics have to limit carbs
Really? News to me. Dr Bernstein would probs disagree with me but hey.
The roadie thing for energy gel can't be good for you.
I'd say more mountain bikers tended to rely on them for on the go sustenance. Useful for racing (either type of bike), but not many roadies will just have gels casually. Cake for roadies.
I thought sugar was OK while you're exercising
Depends.
When exercising intensely (ie short XC race), you are using your muscle glycogen stores, so when you eat sugar (or something else high GI) the insulin produced encourages your cells to take up glucose from the blood which is a good thing - getting energy back into your muscles quickly where it can be used.
However, insulin also inhibits the use of fat by your muscles, so if you are on a long endurance ride or even a long race you WANT to be burning fat, so sugar is to be avoided at first and then limited later. This is a vital piece of information I was previously missing.
My current approach is to not eat for several hours before a ride, so insulin levels are low, and then not within the first 45 mins so that you start off burning fat. I've found that after 45 mins I might have a gel but I seem to want to consume far less carbs than I would previously.
It also gets easier to go without, quite quickly. Yesterday i did a fairly stiff 2h15 ride at 7pm having only had a salad and a couple of coffees all day. Attempting Streatley hill in 39/25 did my legs in though!