Fitness and Living With Diabetes
How does physical activity affect diabetes?
Welcome to another post on Pumping The Cure! I have thought about a lot of new content and I have come up with a list that has various topics that I think are very important to inform others about. This post is going to focus on physical activity/fitness and how this may affect life with diabetes. I am one of those people who is crazy about fitness. However, it is a definite challenge to control my blood sugar levels after a day at the gym.
When living with diabetes, one has to always pay attention to their daily physical activity. Physical activity can range from cleaning the house to going to the gym and training with heavy weights. Regardless, the blood sugar control of a diabetic will be affected.
When living with diabetes, one has to always pay attention to their daily physical activity. Physical activity can range from cleaning the house to going to the gym and training with heavy weights. Regardless, the blood sugar control of a diabetic will be affected.
"During a physical activity, active muscles use up glucose as a source of energy. Regular physical activity helps to prevent glucose from building up in your blood"
- Canadian Diabetes Association
Any type of physical activity will help your body burn calories, and therefore, it will also burn carbohydrates. As mentioned in the previous quotation, active muscles use up glucose as a source of energy. Being active helps to prevent glucose from building up in the blood. Therefore, our bodies burn carbs with physical activity, causing our blood glucose levels to lower. This is also not only for diabetic people. Therefore, both a well-balanced diet and exercise are strategies to achieve great BG levels when living with diabetes. Eating well-balanced carbohydrates, healthy fats, and proteins is extremely important in order to have the energy that is needed to be active.
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Balance is everything.
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My Experiences... It all began when I was 5 years old. I had asked my mom to help me join a gymnastics class. My school in Venezuela was very popular for providing two great gymnasiums for gymnastics with the required equipment. It was my dream. I went for tryouts when I was 5 year old, unfamiliar of what I was truly getting myself into. However, I fell in love with the sport and made the team.
From then on, I would be in school from 7:20AM until 1:50PM. From 2:30PM to 6:00PM, I would train with my team, EVERY day, in either one of the school's gymnasiums... even some Sundays! This became my life. I worked very hard and I met some amazing friends. Then 2003 came around... I was not feeling well at all. I would struggle to even stay awake in school. I would be so dizzy that I could not stand on my feet by myself... This took me out of school for a while. I visited multiple doctors and had various tests done. Finally, on April 1st, 2003, I found out I had diabetes type 1, and no, it wasn't an April Fools' joke! My whole life completely changed from then on. I had to quit all of the extra curricular activities I was involved in - gymnastics, music (vocal theory & violin lessons) and dance lessons. It was a terrible moment in my life. I felt hopeless and like everything I had wanted in my life was over. I had to watch my friends in gymnastics advance from level 2 to level 3, and from level 3 to level 4, and so forth. This all occurred when I was unable to practice gymnastics. It was a very tough situation in which I felt extremely lonely. However, after learning more about diabetes and its control, I was able to enroll back into gymnastics. Even though I was unfamiliar with the other girls on my team, I still managed to make it on to level 5 at age 11. On August of 2006, I moved to Canada from Venezuela. It was a totally different experience, I had to leave everything in my life behind, but that did not stop me. A few months after moving to Oakville, Ontario, I enrolled in the Oakville Gymnastics Club. This experience was definitely different, unfamiliar, and scary, as I barely knew any english and I was still very young and shy. Even though I enjoyed practicing gymnastics here in Canada, it just wasn't the same. I felt very lonely since I did not know the other kids and they all had made friends. It was hard.
From 2006 until 2013, I was inactive. I was definitely more concentrated in controlling my diabetes and achieving honour-roll grades in school. But in 2013, I decided to get out of my comfort zone and try out for Brock University's cheerleading team. I tried out in hopes of experiencing the same happiness and joy that gymnastics once brought me. Once I was at the tryouts, I saw it as almost impossible to achieve. I didn't think I would make the team since I had been inactive for the past 6 years. But I made it. I spent my second year of university travelling and competing with the other cheerleaders on the team. I made so many friends and it was an amazing year. It really encouraged me to get back to working out. After my experience cheerleading for Brock University's cheer team, I decided to get back to the gym. I realized that being active was extremely important for my blood sugar levels and well-being. From then on, I was motivated to get a gym membership and go to fitness classes, as well as do my own training, 5 out of 7 days a week. I now balance my diet by having 6 meals a day.
My gym schedule... Even when having a busy life, it is extremely important to take care of yourself as best as possible. Here is what I tend to train on a weekly basis...
MONDAYS - legs
TUESDAYS - arms WEDNESDAYS - shoulders THURSDAYS - rest day FRIDAYS - back/chest SATURDAYS - cardio SUNDAYS - rest Before going to the gym, I eat 1 cup of brown rice, 4oz. of skinless and boneless chicken breast, and a salad (romaine lettuce, cucumbers, and tomatoes with 1 tsp. of extra virgin olive oil and spices). After going to the gym, I have 1 scoop of isolate protein powder (with no added sugars), 1 cup of blueberries/strawberries and 6oz. of red potatoes.
By having these meals, I have been able to control my glucose levels. I also take 1 scoop of BCAA's while training, which tend to keep my sugars under control while working out. This lifestyle has truly been amazing and has definitely changed my life for the better! |
Myself at age 8 after winning 1st place in a gymnastics competition. This was right before I was diagnosed with diabetes type 1.
Brock University's 2013-2014 cheerleading teams posing after a competition in Atlanta, Georgia. I was a part of the blue team!
Both of these photos have been taken after 2 hours of training at the gym. It took me a long time to feel this motivated, but I have realized that having diabetes type 1 won't stop me.
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If you have diabetes, I hope you enjoyed learning more about how to live a healthy life! If not, I hope you enjoyed reading my experiences!