If you say someone’s is “spinning” in German, it means that he or she is pretty much nuts. I’m thinking this definition may apply pretty well as I’ve tried my out first three Spinning Classes at a local 24-Hour Fitness Club here in the last week.
Trying out a new sport with diabetes is always tricky: how to adjust your food intake and insulin
dosing beforehand? Do you need an extra snack before, during, or immediately after? What kind of fast-acting carbs are best, and where should you keep them for easy access?
Now add to all that a full hour of intense panting, dripping-all-over-the-floor perspiration (didn’t know I could do that), burning legs indoor cycling — all pumped to the chords of blasting rap and old disco music in a darkened studio, with mirrors on every wall, no less. Why DO we do these things, anyway?
Still, I can’t say I haven’t enjoyed it. I can actually feel my butt shrinking after just three classes. OK, there was also a full hour of “body conditioning” with free weights before each spinning session. That helped. My upper back is so sore that it hurts when I inhale. (Please don’t mention midlife crisis. I was always up for a nutty new exercise challenge. And hey, in this case it only took my husband three years to drag me to these spinning classes he’s been raving about.)
Of course after the first class I went home and HAD to Google “diabetes and spinning,” and came up with some interesting stuff:
I suppose it shouldn’t surprise me that the JDRF and ADA both organize fundraising “Spin-A-Thons.” In the recently debuted Tour de Cure Spin-A-Thons, even 66-year-old diabetic guys with hip replacements are peddling their at-risk hearts out. Wow. Where have I been?
According to this article in Diabetes Health, spinning sure is beneficial, for anyone at any level of fitness — “whether your personal goals are weight loss, reduced blood pressure, decreased blood glucose, cross training, overall fitness, stress management, or competition training.”
That’s excellent to know, since for the first half-hour of class, I generally feel like I’m going to DIE on the bike. After that, some sort of sweat-drenched delirium takes over, and I actually start feeling pretty good. (Endorphins?)
Come to think of it, there’s another saying in German: “The beginning of everything is difficult.” Yup. Right on the money there, too.
So, let’s hear from you… who spins? And how do you handle your BG control?
I have been into cycling for over 20 yrs now and been type 1 for 35 yrs. I have done 5 JDRF Ride to Cure Diabetes rides and too many to count ADA Tour de Cure rides. I normally put ride over 5000 miles a year. There is a big difference in how I manage my diabetes for road cycling versus Spinning classes that I do over the winter. For cycling I normally turn my basal rate down to 40- 50 % and consume about 15- 20 grams of carbs every hour with hardly any bolus. Spinning classes is a different animal. The intensity is quite high for the 1- 2 hour class. I do not lower my basal for these classes and a lot of times my BS is higher after the class than before. It is mainly because of the “fight or flight” type of hormones your body releases during high intensity workouts. A lot of times I give myself a corrective bolus after a class but normally less than 50% of what I’d normally give for a correction. It is the few hours after that I look out for lows.
I similarly do not decrease basal rates during intense exercise sessions such as cycling classes and track workouts/tempo runs, and may even need to correct for highs. But later in the day I might notice a dip in the BGs.
What is up with me I go low with any movement.
How did your bloodsugars do Amy?
Extremely well the first time – beginner’s luck? After that I overcompensated with glucose tabs and went way too high, and moderately too high in the second and third classes respectively. Ugh. I’m still working it out…
I loved spin classes when I did them regularly a few years back. I’d typically eat something and only bolus for 50 percent just before the class if I was in a normal range, and might take a tiny amount of insulin (tiny! a tenth of a unit maybe?) if I was in the 200s before a class. Until I started doing triathlon training, spin class was the best workout I’d done–total high intensity, obvious body toning after doing them regularly, and usually great blaring music.
“Do you need an extra snack before, during, or immediately after?”
I’ve been a daily work out animal for 30+ years (spining, eliptical trainer –now on a 3 1/2 year streak without missing a day!) and I have the answer to that question.
The answer is yes, no and maybe; or alternatively, no, maybe and yes, or maybe, no and yes … depending.
The spinning will usually make my bG go down, except of course on those days where it makes it go up. Keep an energy bar and juice pack within reach and you can just grab it as you are spinning. (Heck, Lance Armstrong consumes 4,000 to 5,000 calories during a Tour stage and he sure doesn’t stop.)
The long term benefits of daily exercise are great, so try to develop a regimen that you can stick with. Good luck, Amy.
I ride and race mountain bikes. I’m not a pump fan, so for my shots, I always keep my long acting (basal) at the same dose, and then adjust my fast acting downward according to the intensity of the event/race. For high intensity, I cut the fast acting by 50%, and for endurance events (longer than 3 hours) I cut the fast acting anywhere from 30% to 50%.
For fueling, I’ve had great luck with Hammer HEED for races under 2 hours, along with taking Hammer gel shots. For long duration activities/races, you need a soy protein mixed with your carbs/fuel. I’ve tried Perpetuem, and it works OK for training, but for races, I make my own blend of HEED and soy protein, and other goodies and it works awesome.
You can make your own energy bars too in a food processor. Just experiment with different proportions of dates, almond butter, hemp flour, agave nectar, and other things you like. Wrap them up in little baggies or something easy to unwrap, stick them in the freezer, then stuff them in your jersey pockets before spin or a workout!
Cheers!
Congrats on the class! It’s a great one. My only comments, since you are doing upper body weight training, is to take 10-15 minutes when you are done, before you cool completely down and focus on stretching. Complete leg, low back, tricep and hip openers. Also, bring earplugs. Those classes are loud. Studies show that you are MORE likely to get ear damage while working out,if you are exposed to loud noise,than when you are not working out. Increased blood flow to the inner ear puts you at risk.
Perhaps this is where my absolutely no exercise regimen pays off. A sedentary lifestyle makes it much easier to control bloodsugars . . . as long as you don’t mind a bunch of other health risks
Hi, this is an interesting article for me (thanks!!!), because I have diabetes type 1 and love Spinning (see: http://www.diabetes-leben.com (German)). Since 2010 I’m a spinning instructor and give own classes. Sometimes it’s difficult because I’m responsible for the class and members. I have to control my blood sugar very often, before, during and after the class. During the class (when it runs longer than an hour) I fix my “accu chek mobile” on my Spinning bike. I’ve learnt to control my blood sugar during riding my bike. Best wishes Steffi