Doing your research is an important step after receiving a diagnosis. About month ago I learned that I have pre-diabetes; and I\’ve been scouring Google for articles about diabetes and cycling.

Long ago I discovered Team Novo Nordisk. This sports team includes runners and triathletes as well as cyclists. I can\’t imagine how hard it must be to balance the demands of pro-level sports training with managing Type I diabetes.

There\’s this article, for example; look at this excerpt:

You see, aerobic activity leads to falling blood glucose levels. But if you push into what we call anaerobic activity, blood glucose can actually rise (and very quickly!). When you push into anaerobic level exertion (basically all-out effort, the kind you can’t sustain for more than a few minutes at a time), the liver sends out stored glycogen, which is very potent stuff designed to surge the system with glucose. On top of that, the body sends out stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol to help your system further elevate blood sugar. It does this because your body assumes you’re pushing all-out to get away from danger. The end result can be a reading of 250 when you’re expecting 60!

 I hadn\’t thought of that. I\’m not sure whether I need to be concerned about it at this point; first I\’ll see whether cleaning up my diet helps. Besides, I don\’t spend much time doing anaerobic efforts.

Apparently doing your research means wading through a lot of material that seems irrelevant to your situation. For example, much of what I\’ve found by googling \”diabetic cyclist\” pertains to Type I diabetes. Not that it isn\’t interesting; and I\’ve no doubt that many people with Type I find it helpful.

I only know that I have pre-diabetes; presumably Type II. My doctor told me to work on my diet, and get tested again in August. We\’ll see how it goes.