It also appears to help insulin work better and is key to taking off extra pounds and maintaining a healthful weight. If you need insulin or another medication to control your diabetes, it's a good idea to check your blood- sugar level before a workout to make sure it's not too low. If it is, eat a snack. In some cases, losing as little as 10 to 20 pounds is enough to bring blood-sugar levels back to normal. Physical stress such as overexertion, illness, or injury can cause blood-sugar levels to rise.
Mental stress can make blood sugar either rise or fall.
Either way, being rundown and stressed-out makes diabetes harder to control, so it's important to get enough rest and to learn to relax. Good stress-busting techniques include meditation , deep breathing exercises, physical exercise, and regular massages . Test your blood-sugar level. To test your blood, you'll prick your finger and place a drop of blood on a strip of test paper, then either wait for the strip to change color and match it to a color chart or use a blood-glucose meter to get a reading. Talk to your doctor about other tests you might need, including a yearly eye exam.