Compare notes...

Would any graduates out there like to compare notes/tips about DAFNE and exercise? My working and personal lifestyles make it really difficult to plan exercise. I like to run / cycle (weather dependent!) two or three times a week after work, but I can't guarantee that an opportunity will arise, so its difficult to adjust insulin / carbs in advance. I've found a rule of thumb for me is that a mile of running requires 1 CP (I tend to use a mixture of orange juice and/or banana). This is fine for three or four miles, but I'd like to increase this when the lighter evening get here, and I'm wondering what form any carbs should take if I'm going to run for anything up to an hour. Will oj and bananas still do the trick (not sure I could eat that many bananas!)? (ps: not related to the above, but discovering individual microwavable steamed puddings with carbs on the packet has changed my eating life!)

I find that a bottle of lucozade sport covers me perfectly for a 10k run...

I used to have the same problems with Gym visits. My advice would be, experiment. I don't think there is a good answer because we are
all so different. I tried banana's and chocolate and a few other things. I was sometimes a bit low by not having enough but there was no
set amount since the level of exercise could change from week to week as could my reaction to the carbs and exercise. I would
always keeps some carbs with me though just in case. In fact the biggest issue I had was the next morning when the carb 'demand'
was still higher than normal. Its easy to forget about this when 'planning' exercise.

I am a fell runner so the intensity of the exercise can vary but is generally very high. The duration of exercise also varies from about 40 mins to 2-3 hours. I tend to keep my BI the same as a split Lantus dose of 6/6. I plan for my BG to be somewhere around 10 at the start of exercise (although this doesn't always go according to plan).
I find that I need to snack after about 30-40 mins running (dependent on intensity), jelly babies provide the ideal running snack as they are light and small to carry and easy to chew and get down. Each one provides 4.7g of fast carb. I spoke with a fellow runner who is a nutritionist who said that it isn't advisable to take on more than 30g of fast acting carb per hour of exercise (6 jelly babies). Obviously for diabetics this advice can be swiftly ignored if your sugar is low, I don't normally test during runs (in fact I don't take my blood tester!) I know if that my vision goes a bit blurred or I am stumbling over the moors more than usual it is usually low and I quickly eat 4-6 j.b.'s. The main rule is to carry plenty of them, I also take one or two Kelloggs Nutrigrain Elevenses bars which have 15g sugars and 15g slow carbs, they are there as a contingency for if I am out longer than expected. I used to eat all sorts on my runs and got some strange looks when I opened a bag of crisps during a race, or struggled masticating a clump of malt loaf which goes a bit claggy in the mouth!
I am hoping to trial Levemir as a BI which apparently provides more immediate flexibility in controlling BI doses, I don't know if you were told the same thing but I understand Lantus has a 24hour lag when changing doses so can't always cater for the type of irregular exercise pattern which you describe.
As a general principle, if at all possible I try not to exercise too much in the peak period of my Humalog QA insulin although this is often overlooked and in reality is governed by mealtimes and exercise or race times.
It probably sounds from reading this as though I've got it all sussed out but the reality is that I still cope with a lot of hypos during exercise and in the days after exercise, and can get high readings when I overdo it. To compound all this most of the post-run socialising takes place in the pub so the added alcohol factor needs to be considered too. Overall though DAFNE has really helped in making this exercise much more managable than it ever was before.

I've only just logged on to DAFNE online so am just getting to know the website etc. I am happy to candidly share my diaries and experiences with others with the overall aim of improving my own and helping others where possible. MB