Just diagnosed Runner, Insane leg cramps :( Help!
lucyehynes
Posts: 1
Hi,
I am a 22 year old active runner. 4 Half marathons under my belt, registered for my first full marathon in February.
I have only been diagnosed for a week. Have had symptoms since last November at least.
The few weeks before my diagnosis I found myself essentially unable to exercise.
Now that I am diagnosed and on insulin, whenever I do try to exercise I have extremely horrible leg cramps. My bg has been in the normal range when I go to exercise.. It feels like there are sticks in my legs... How long does this take to go away?
Any tips for working past these pains? I have read about Alpha lipoic acid being helpful, anyone take this?
I am a 22 year old active runner. 4 Half marathons under my belt, registered for my first full marathon in February.
I have only been diagnosed for a week. Have had symptoms since last November at least.
The few weeks before my diagnosis I found myself essentially unable to exercise.
Now that I am diagnosed and on insulin, whenever I do try to exercise I have extremely horrible leg cramps. My bg has been in the normal range when I go to exercise.. It feels like there are sticks in my legs... How long does this take to go away?
Any tips for working past these pains? I have read about Alpha lipoic acid being helpful, anyone take this?
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Replies
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sorry about your new diagnosis. I've been at this for 23 years now and everyday I still learn something new! I wish I had some advice for you about the leg crams, but I do not. I do a lot of walking and was having leg and foot cramps while exercising but it was my shoes. I went to a running store and had them fit me for the proper shoes and it made all the difference!! I hope you find the answers you are looking for!0
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Lucy, sorry to see you have joined the club. I was dx'd for my 60th bday.
Working the exercise piece back in as a T1 can be a fairly complicated piece of the puzzle. I'm still struggling with it 18 months later.
Have you found the community boards at
http://www.tudiabetes.org/
http://community.diabetes.org/?loc=util-header_connect
Also have you read Using Insulin by John Walsh,
Think like a Pancreas by Gary Scheiner,
Diabetic Athlete Handbook,
Your Diabetes Science Experiment
They all have a lot of good info. And a lot of people to talk to who ave been doing it a lot longer than both of us!
Some of the issue may be that your sugar drops too low while running, or it could be that your electrolytes are out of wack or that you have not had a chance to recover physically for what you went through prior to Dx. It may take tweaking basal and bolus rates prior to run in, as well as glucose replacement during. It may mean changing the time of day you run.
There is an active community of runners/bikers/athletes on the DOC diabetic online community.
They will be very happy to share their experiences- you will need to experiment to see what will work for you.0 -
Sorry to hear your diagnosis. At least now that you know what it is you can treat it and start to get better. I have had type 1 since age 6 (30 years!) and am still doing well. It is a challenge to deal with but can be done. Thanks for reaching out.
For the leg cramps I think this might be non-diabetes related. I am a soccer player and horrible cramps in high school but they eventually went away on their own. I get cramps from time to time now and find that they are diet related. When ever I don't eat enough greens they come back. Things to try are: new shoes, make sure you are getting enough rest, make sure you are getting enough vitamins (try adding a good multi or the vitamin C packets).
Feel free to friend me. I play soccer occasionally and do cross-fit 5 times per week.0
