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It’s a Bolus Thing

Rowena
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It’s a Bolus Thing

It's a Bolus ThingSometimes I find myself saying to people “it’s a bolus thing”. This is usually when I have to say no to something because I’ve already had a bolus, or if I need to find out specific information in order to manipulate my bolus. An example of this is if I go out for a lunch date with a friend I usually want to know what is going on after the food and at what time roughly, mainly because if we are sitting around drinking coffee for an hour after the meal I won’t have to reduce my bolus, but if we are going for a walk or shopping straight after I will have to reduce my insulin so that the walk doesn’t make me low. Yes, I could just do the full bolus and eat something more if I go low but I don’t like eating extra because I have to. It is a waste of extra calories and the food isn’t as nice when you have to eat it.

Another time I say “it’s a bolus thing” is when I make my food, weigh it and account for all of the carbs is accounted for and I have calculated and took the correct bolus for it. However, a few mins later I could be eating and then someone asks to try my food. Grr, I was never much of a sharer of food anyway, but when I have a bolus in the equation I am actually forced to say no; especially if it is something carby like potatoes or pasta. The spoonful they take could make the difference of about ten carbs which then means there is a miscalculation on my part of the bolus that was already taken.

Does this make me sound crazy or do you do it too? I think diabetes has made me slightly more obsessive than I used to be, but I am ok with that. I would rather be obsessive and in control that relaxed and completely lost and out of control. Mainly because of avoiding hypos, being low when I am out and about is strange. It makes me feel shaky and weird, like I’m not really here.

Rowena x

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Adrenaline and Insulin

Rowena
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Adrenaline and Insulin

Adrenaline and InsulinI’ve spoken about this before in a previous blog post, but today I wanted to look at it in a little more detail. Adrenaline is a hormone that is produced by the adrenal gland and is usually released in high stress or exhilarating situations. In my case, dancing is an exhilarating experience. I don’t often get stressed before performing; I am actually quite calm and relaxed about it.

Here’s the journey of my blood sugar before and after…

I was due to go on stage at 7pm. The piece was only 3.5 minutes long, which is very short compared to what I am used to. Anyway, I first took my pump off around 6pm and had a BG of 7.2mmols. After warming up and stretching, I checked again at 6:40pm and it was 10mmols. At this point I was due to go on stage in 20 minutes so I took 1 unit of insulin to decrease it a little bit. However, I was then told that there was a delay in the start time so I would have to wait another 30 minutes. At this point I had to consider re attaching my pump because it has already been off for and 70 mins. This was not good as I needed my basal insulin, especially with the adrenaline rush. I decided that rather than putting my pump back on I would just have 1 more unit of insulin and then it would be time to perform.

Performance went well. When I got offstage I reattached my pump straight away and checked my blood sugar which was then 12.3mmols. Obviously I needed a correction, but I knew from previous experience that I would crash so I only corrected by half of what my pump suggested. Especially because I knew I had to drive for an hour after I had finished judging the competition. My BG when I arrived home was 7mmols so I managed to manipulate the insulin without the crash, I would like it to be less than 10mmols next time though. I’ll work on it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3Tu3eeCdzs

As always I will share my performance with you. I’m not sure what kind of mood I was when I created this, but I think the movement worked really well to the music and the audience enjoyed it.

When you are met with an adrenaline rush, how does your blood sugar respond to it and how do you look after it?

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Yoga and Diabetes

Rowena
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Yoga and Diabetes

Yoga and Diabetes 1I was going to call this post “yoga for diabetics”, but I decided against it because there are no specific yoga poses that are targeted at diabetics. People who manage diabetes can actually do any kind of yoga, any position and any discipline. I often do yoga videos that I find on YouTube because it’s convenient, or I go to a yoga class at my gym. Either way I usually combine it with other flexibility training that I have been taught over the years in various dance classes.

Yoga and Diabetes 2The benefits

I don’t do yoga for the strength element; I do it because I NEED to stretch, although I do get stronger as a result of the practice. I stretch because when I have been exercising a lot, especially weight lifting, my muscles get really tight and I find it uncomfortable. Yoga just loosens me right back up. It also has a psychological benefit for me. It makes me feel relaxed, almost like a movement meditation and it gives the feeling of accomplishment when I can reach a new position with ease. Other benefits include improved circulation, ease of migraines, better sleep and it can also help fight off food cravings.

Yoga and Diabetes 3Different Levels

Although I am fairly strong and supple, I am not yet a yogi master. However, I have held my own in a few of the more difficult classes so I would say I’m advanced with lots of room for improvement. Levels range from beginner, intermediate, advanced and expert. I would suggest that most people should start at beginner’s level, but if you are already quite active and consider yourself a fairly flexible body you could potentially go to an intermediate class. Most teachers are happy for you to work at your own pace as yoga is more about listening to your own body, than trying to compete with the rest of the class.

Yoga and Diabetes 4Basal

To avoid those pesky exercise related hypos/hypers we have to look at the basal insulin. My basal for yoga is usually set with a 40% decrease, but this can vary depending the exercise that I am combing with the practice. I usually do an hour pole practice before yoga which is quite physically challenging. However, if I doit on its own with no prior exercise my body reacts to it like it’s a very gentle exercise, similar to walking. For a first timer I would start with a 20% decrease of basal and then go from there.

The results you get from this type of training will obviously be very dependent on your commitment to it and how often you practice. If yoga is your main source of exercise I would say go for three times per week to begin with and then adjust as you see necessary. I would definitely recommend trying, even if you feel a bit nervous about it. Your body is an amazing and it should be explored.

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Happy Yoga.

Rowena x

Insulin Basal Rate for Circuit Training

Rowena
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Insulin Basal Rate for Circuit Training

Insulin Basal Rate for Circuit TrainingA few weeks ago I started Sunday morning kettlebell circuits, mainly to add variation to my training in order to keep things interesting and to shock my body to adapt to new exercises. For us diabetics it certainly is a shock to the body if you don’t manipulate insulin for it. This is why I always say that it is about trial and error, particularly with circuit training because it combines strength and cardio. We are in constant experiments with our blood sugar, insulin and carb intake. Here is how I went about my little trial run to get my basal right for circuit training. Let’s look at the first 4 sessions as an example of how to find what’s right for you.

Session 1

Starting BG was 7mmols and post workout bg was 14.1mmols. I didn’t adjust the basal at all because I wanted to use this first session as a starting point to fine tune it for the next few weeks. This indicated a definite increase.

Session 2

I had the same breakfast and same carb / insulin ratio as the week before. However, I did increase my basal 20% and it turned out that it wasn’t enough. Start bg – 7.2mmols and end bg was 8.2mmols. Increase again..

Session 3

Again, I ate the same things to avoid any interference from bolus. I increased basal by 40% and this did the trick. Starting bg was 7 and end bg was 6.5mmols.

Session 4

I ate an hour before this circuit without adjusting the bolus for exercise so I took the pump off because I knew the insulin from the food bolus would cover the lask of basal insulin. Starting bg was 9mmols and end bg was 4.5mmols. Next week I will reduce my carb / insulin ratio and see what happens.

So this concludes that when I eat within an hour of circuit training I am able to take the pump off. However, if I eat a couple of hours before I am forced to increase my basal insulin for said activity. The result can also be dependat on how hard you work or how hard you don’t work. Always work your hardest and you won’t have to worry about that part.

If there are any topics you want me to cover let me know.

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Rowena x

My Go to Meals

Rowena
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My Go to Meals

This week has been a busy one, my book has been published and is now available for purchase on Amazon and various other platforms for eBook, I have finished my choreography for my next performance in two weeks and I have been working on my business. I find that when I am busy it is easier for me to stick to meals that I always eat so I’ve put a post together of my go to meals that you might like to try. Obviously I have been eating other things, and there was a day with pizza, chocolate and some beer. I enjoyed it at the time but felt crap afterwards. Anyway, here are my go to meals.

Breakfast

BreakfastI love having eggs for breakfast. I find that if I eat a decent breakfast it really sets me up for the day. The addition of bread is usually dependant on when my workout is going to happen. Mainly because it’s better for my blood sugar if I eat higher carb closer to exercise.

  • 1 whole egg, 1 egg white
  • Spinach or asparagus
  • Slice of wholemeal seeded bread or a thins bagel
  • 1 or two vegetarian sausages

Snack (Pre Workout or post workout)

FullSizeRenderCarbs before working out really helps my energy and I can really feel the difference between low carb and high carb before exercise, particularly if it is something like circuit training. Equally is is great to restore energy if I eat high carb post workout.

  • Banana
  • Snack a Jack
  • Protein shake or cottage cheese

Lunch

FullSizeRender[2]The reason I choose salad for lunch is because it’s easy to make as I’m preparing breakfast and I really like it. I can make it light by leaving the carbs out or heavy by adding them in.

  • Lettuce
  • Sweet potatoes
  • Spinach
  • Tomato
  • Pumpkin seed oil
  • Meat free pieces

Dinner

DinnerIf I cook for myself I will get something as listed below, which is fine for me and makes me happy because I like all of the ingredients. However, when my gf cooks she tends to make high carb / low fat stuff like cabbage and potatoes or lentil dahl.

  • Whatever veggies are on offer. Broccoli and cauliflower is always a hit
  • Linda McCartney Burger
  • Pasta, rice or potatoes.

Desert

FullSizeRender[3]I call this “Mix the Macros” haha. It is built on the same ingredients pretty much every time I fancy it, but because it is the last thing of the day that I will eat I usally make it according to my macros. The ingredients are

  • Protein powder of any flavour, but I’m really into strawberry at the minute
  • Either low fat or full fat cottage cheese
  • Natural yoghurt or Greek yoghurt
  • Oats (only if I need to add a few carbs)
  • Peanut butter

This whole day of eating is currently about 1800 calories, sometime over but rarely less. Macros are Protein 149, carbs 170 and 48 fat.

What are your go to meals? Leave a comment below or tag me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Rowena x

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