Distance cycling and diabetes

[cet1956@hotmail]

Are there any diabetics out there who are doing Brevets? I would like your advice on what kind of foods work best for you and how often you eat. I am don't have to take shots yet for my diabetes so I might be able to eat more on the Brevet. How often do you check your blood? Thanks for the help.

[Carbonfiberboy]

You're a B, not a type A? I'm not one, but I ride with type A's. Drill for an A is kit, pen, notebook, log everything - time, everything you eat, ride level, blood sugar, insulin - test every rest stop or control - about every 2 hours or more often if you think something has gone weird. Clif bars and Gatoraid seems to work. Now everyone has pumps, so it's easier.

If you're a B, I'd think cycling would fix you right up. It sounds like you haven't done much long distance stuff? If so, I'd work into it slowly, doing group rides at increasing distances. You need to know what works for you every time at 60 miles before you think about 300k.

[cet1956@hotmail]

Thanks for the reply. I have been riding a lot and haven't had any problems. I can tell when I need to eat. I am lucky that I don't have to take shots. I rode across Indiana in an organized ride last July. Afterwards I realized that I had not eaten enough during the ride. I wanted to see how other diabetics planned their food and drinks for long rides. I am new to this forum thing so I am very pleased to have had someone respond. Thanks.

[Dewbert]

Thanks for the reply. I have been riding a lot and haven't had any problems. I can tell when I need to eat. I am lucky that I don't have to take shots. I rode across Indiana in an organized ride last July. Afterwards I realized that I had not eaten enough during the ride. I wanted to see how other diabetics planned their food and drinks for long rides. I am new to this forum thing so I am very pleased to have had someone respond. Thanks.

I'm a type I diabetic and also did the RAIN ride last year. I kept a BG monitoring kit with me and checked my sugar about every two hours. I also let my sugar run a little higher than normal 120-140 during much of the ride. I used a few gels and munched on peanuts and dried apricots throughout the day. It was pretty hot and I kept one bottle full of water and one full of 1/2 water and 1/2 gatorade. Overall, I did pretty well. I think I only got a little low once and a gel picked me right back up.

The only other thing I'd add, is that my sugar tended to want to run low for the next day or so. Long rides (65+ miles) tend to affect my sugar 18-24 hours following the ride moreso than during the ride.

[Carbonfiberboy]

I talked to a couple of my type 1 riding friends over the weekend. This is what they said:

They say that type 2 is actually more complicated. Talk to your doctor about your current med plan. Take your blood sugar at least 5 times a day. After three months of this monitoring, have your doc give you an A1C test. That will tell you how well you have controlled your blood sugar for the previous three months. Their opinion is that the simplest and best thing is to take insulin to keep your blood sugar down and stable during long exercise. Again, check with your doctor.

There's a great thread going over in Training and Nutrition:
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=235621