WillisB

I started riding a year ago when I found out that I was diabetic. My doc said I needed an hour per day of vigorous aerobic exercise. My knees don't let me run, but they do let me ride. I found that riding was the about the most pleasurable thing in my life. Fresh air, exercise, no blood pressure meds, better sugar control!

Who else started because of a serious health issue? And have you become totally hooked on the experience?

Tom Stormcrowe

That would be me! Look at the early days of my blog and you'll understand where I started out.

JeeperTim

ME! Blood pressure being the main reason. I'm still on meds but not as many. I hate taking medicine so I'm trying to get healthy enough to not need them.

I've been a bike rider 2 or 3 times in the past, so it was a natural to get back into. My knees are no longer what they once were so I'm staying on pavement this time - afraid my dirt days are behind me.

onastrat

I got hooked riding when I went through cardiac rehab two years ago. I'm 46 now, but as a kid I rode all the time, so I knew it wouldn't take me long to get hooked again. Currently I ride a 2006 Fuji Newest 4.0 which I found for brand new for $299.00. I had a heart attack two years ago and suffered heart damage had a stent put in. I have since aggresively persued a exercise plan which includes 4 to 5 rides during the week that go from 14 to 20 miles. I have dropped 12 lbs this summer from 226 to 214 and rode in my first ride at the Tulsa Tough and went 50 Km. I have a couple of more rides coming up out of town which I am looking forward to. I am also type 2 Diabetic, and riding has kept my numbers under control. I hope to work up to riding a century next spring. Biking has really helped my health and I don't hardly feel any ill effects from the heart attack I had.

unixpro

I started riding for the same reason you did -- my doctor told me that I had type II diabetes. I'd always been a weight lifter, but I guess that wasn't enough. I started riding 14 miles 2-3 days a week and now I'm a full-time commuter, 28 miles a day 5 days a week.

And, you know what?? After about a year, I'd lost about 70 pounds and reversed my diabetes! That's right. My doctor took me off all my meds (I was taking Avandia and Metformin) and said that my insulin production and usage was absolutely normal. I still take my levels using my meter every once in a while, but it hasn't been over 120 in quite a long time. Usually after a good ride its down in the 80s or lower.

My BP has also dropped significantly. I was borderline HBP before and he wanted to put me on meds for that too, but I talked him out of it. Now he doesn't even mention it. It's absolutely normal.

Hang in there and keep riding. Watch the foods carefully. Low carb, high protein and a vitamin every day worked for me.

BeckyW

Prediabetic, and got a major wake-up call about a year ago when my doctor mentioned that I might want to consider bariatric surgery. Yikes! Made several starts at diet/exercise, started walking, but got bored with it and my knees started hurting. So in June I bought a bike. I've hit a few speed-bumps along the way (metaphorically!), but have lost over 15 lbs so far, and gained a LOT of muscle! For the past month I've quit losing weight, but I'm noticing my clothes are continuing to get looser. I'm also on one high blood pressure medication, which I'm hoping my Dr will take me off of next time I see her. I haven't had it checked lately, but my heart rate has dropped, so I imagine BP has dropped too.

I'm really looking forward to being lean and fit, even athletic, in a couple years! I feel like a totally different person already, and my brother pointed out that since I've been riding for a while, I AM a different person, since exercise like this changes pretty much all the hormones and chemical stuff that happens in your body.

GlennCoco

I haven't started yet, but this is the reason I'm thinking about biking. I was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes 2 years ago, when I was 28 years old. I weigh 425 lbs (highest ever was 464 lbs). I don't think that ever I will be off my meds but I sure wouldn't mind.

SaCaCh

Never say never, just focus on what you need to do and do it. Don't let anything or anybody get in your way, and that includes you! You will be shocked at what kind of difference and how much better you will feel in just a short time. Eat right and bike everyday (even if it for only a few minutes) and soon you will feel better and have the energy to keep pushing on. It has been done before and you can do it, trust me.

Nightcap

Let me be indelicate. Diabetes is a primary cause of impotence. The pumping action of cycling improves blood flow to *all* of your extremities. You get to keep your feet longer, and you get to keep other things working better, too. https://www.bikeforums.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

soniq

Hi guys...n00b here. I just got back into cycling for the same reason you are WillisB. Long story short bad eating habits and a sedentary lifestyle led to the current me...48 y/o at 288 lbs and diabetic for about 15 years. It's been so bad that I'm taking five insulin shots a day, plus three other diabetes meds and am still out of control 250-400. Add to that high cholesterol and high blood pressure and I'm basically a heart attack or stroke waiting to happen.

I decided that I'd had enough of this crap and am determined to beat this disease, not just for me but for my wife and five kids. Having enjoyed cycling in the past, getting back into riding was a no-brainer. I just bought a new mountain bike last week, have been riding every day, and am so stoked that my glucose levels are dropping into the normal range after years of being out of control. Amazing how a one hour medium intensity ride can drop sugar levels 200 points.

I can't wait to start losing weight and ultimately not have to poke myself eight times a day. This forum is a major inspiration, and I thank you all for giving me the drive to push through with this.

Tom Stormcrowe

Sonig,keep your Dr in the loop....for a couple of reasons:

1. You'll need to adjust your insulin dosage
2. You'll need to keep in a reasonable HR zone at first. Let your Dr help set your max HR limit.

Welcome to cycling!

HAMMER MAN

I don't have diabetes but I do suffer from peripheral neuropathy . I believe 30 + yrs of riding has been one of the major benefits of less pain and more blood circulation in my feet as well as improved cardio system and health system. The benefits are surmountable.

DieselDan

Same here, but without the results. I ride as much as I can, sometimes with the "A" group with th elocal club, my weight has gone down, but my diabetes turned out to be type 1. Now I use a large seat bag with a compact glucose meter, insulin, sryinges, proper documentation, and some gel packs instaed of a small bare bones bag with a tube, CO2, and tire levers.

BeachBum63

Don't discount getting off the meds. The fact is, once you are diagnosed with diabetes, you are never "cured". However, you can reduce it to lifestyle control only. I was diagnosed in 12/06 with a blood sugar of over 300, and an A1C number nearing 12 (almost double the maximum desired). I weighed approximately 430 lbs. As of this point in time, I am down to 375, not biking yet due to travel, but that is coming soon, and my daily sugar is in the 95 to 110 range. As of last check in May, my A1C was down to 6.5. This is with minimal meds, but a lot of change in diet and exercise.

Don't let the disease win, kick it's tail!

KingTermite 

I am diabetic, but I can't honestly say that was a "big" reason I got into cycling. It was just exercise and weight loss in general in a setting I knew I already liked doing.

Although, ironically, I knew little about cycling when I started and would have thought 10 miles was a big ride. I would have called 20 miles an "epic" ride. I had no idea that people could build up to those kind of mileage in no time.

Winter76

I started to avoid serious health problems. In the last ten years I've gained 100lbs, now I hope to lose at least 60 in the next few years.

cohophysh

Keep up the good work fellow diabetics...read Dr Bernstein's book diabetes solutions....I found that it works quite well when I follow it.

https://www.diabetes-normalsugars.com/

hr2510

For some more good reading, I suggest the books written by a friend of mine Dr Joe Juliano. https://www.authorsden.com/visit/myti...AuthorID=10674 Joe was a great guy and devoted a large part of his life to research,Dr to Dr consultations, and helping those with diabetes. He was also the president of our local Amateur radio club. Joe passed away last November. I miss him and wish he were still around. I'm sure he would have enjoyed a ride on the tandem.

• Chicago Tribune
  An endocrinologist and research scientist and juvenile-onset diabetic for more than thirty years, blind as a result of the disease, Joseph Juliano knows what he is talking about. Denial, he writes, is common. There's no cure for diabetes now, and it is folly to pretend that diabetes will have no effect on the diabetic's life. His strength is getting the diabetic involved in managing the disease and living with it. This he accomplishes with authority and sensitivity.
  

soniq

Thanks for that link!

Rosie8

Wow, my problem isn't as serious as some. My BP has been creeping up, heart rate too. Just had to start taking thyroid medicine last year which has helped with my energy level. Diabetes does run in my family along with heart problems so I started riding in May and am loving it. I try to ride 4-5 times a week for at least 45 minutes or more. My mileage isn't high like some, maybe 7.6 -9 miles per trip, but I feel way better and my BP & HR have dropped down to normal again. That's reward enough for me for now.

cohophysh

Hey TOM S. and others, what about putting the diabetes discussion as a sticky?

GlennCoco

That is quite the book. I've read it once, and I'm rereading it now. In fact, I am also on that forum at this very moment reading some threads there.

I totally agree with Bernstein's method, it's just the doing it part that is hard. I'm trying though.

DieselDan

How about no?

GlennCoco

Well, this isn't exactly the place for this maybe, but today I got my most recent A1c, not too great at 7.0%. But my grandfather died very recently, and I ate like crap for a few weeks. I mean, horribly. So I like to think that contributed a little at least.

The good news is, I am down 8 pounds since last time, which was only a month ago. That's without exercizing. I know once I actually starting biking, the blood sugar and weight will go down.

cohophysh

and why not?