HELP....strange reaction after exertion

Scubanana7

ok, I guess I am a dummy. Eating 25 net carbs/day, high fat. I had a high fat breakfast 41 g fat, 3 g protein, 3 g net carbs. Then I did strenuous yard work in the sun for 2 hours. I thought I would faint. My heart rate felt like it was racing, but my hrm indicated normal, so I felt pulse and it felt normal but I was breathing hard. I shoulda tested my sugar immediately but all I could think of was eat. So I ate a protein snack I made from butter, protein powder, flax.....again only 1 carb. About 15 minutes after eating it, I thought to take my sugars....they were 153. They are normally under 100 2 hours after eating, but this was on 16 minutes so I don't know how to compare. I then drank a protein shake (also low carb), retested a few minutes later and was 105.

Is there any way exertion raises sugars, or did I just go too low which made me feel so awful. This has not happened before even on low carb with strenuous workouts. I am sure the sun played a part. I feel better now, but still not normal. I have never had a sugar low before but also wonder if that super low-carb snack could possibly send me to 153 minutes after eating. Dazed and confused....literally!

texasgal22

I can't say that it has happened to me but I have read of others that claim that exercising raises their blood sugar. You might do well to test it for yourself my tracking before & after. It is good that you were able to bring it down so quickly. I haven't tried proteins to drop it down but it sure sounds like it worked well for you. Glad you are okay.

Scubanana7

oh, my breakfast was 41 g of FAT not carb. oops

JaceyMarieS

Exercise can raise blood sugars ...or cause them to go too low. Heat and humidity can also affect blood sugar, so that was probably a factor as well! With the heat and exertion, it's also possibly you were dehydrated.

Just remember, if you go ever go low, what you ate was not a great choice. To treat a low, you want straight carbs - not protein or fat, which slows the rise...not what you're looking for with hypoglycemia. At the same time, you don't want to over treat and cause your BG to skyrocket, since that sets off an unpleasant rollercoaster ride.

To treat truly low blood sugar the 15/15 rule is usually applied.
Eat 15 grams of carbohydrate and wait 15 minutes.
The following foods will provide about 15 grams of carbohydrate:

3 glucose tablets
Half cup (4 ounces) of fruit juice or regular soda
6 or 7 hard candies
1 tablespoon of sugar
Non-fat candies such as Skittles, jelly beans or Smarties are also good, but it's easy to over-treat because they're tasty (or is it just me that likes jelly beans?)

After the carbohydrate is eaten, the person should wait about 15 minutes for
the sugar to get into their blood. If the person does not test within a good range
in 15 minutes, more carbohydrate can be consumed. Their blood sugar should be
checked every 15 minutes until it has come within a safe range.

If starting out with a blood sugar of 50 or lower you can begin with
30 grams of carbs and then lower to 15 grams at 15 minute intervals. Eat a regular meal within an hour or so.

LauraDotts

Yes, exertion can raise your blood sugar. Your blood sugar probably dropped which resulted in you liver dumping glucose into your blood stream to bring it back up. Only it probably over compensated. That can give you all kinds of weird feelings.

retiree2006

When I work in the garden and get heated up, I can get the same symptoms (shakey, sweating, nauseous, dizzy) and find I'm low if I check my BG. I get really hungry and need to take in some carbs quickly. I usually grab a few Werther's candies or some other quick sugar source. Since you didn't get a chance to check you BG, you might have been low rather than high when it first happened.

jknops2

I also sometimes get a spike during/after a lot of exercise. But the numbers drop back to normal after 15/30 minutes or so. Eating some carbs during exercise helps.