The current situation

One of the problems that diabetics complain about is inconsistency. Why is it that exercise and sticking to the diet doesn't give the same blood sugar readings from day to day?

My fasting blood sugar yesterday morning was 106; the day before I had not had a chance to exercise. In fact, I had gone to a meeting where I had a cup of coffee and a piece of cake. I went to the office later where there was a small going away party and I had a glass of wine. Going home, I stopped at a restaurant and had a hamburger. So the following morning, my blood sugar was very good.

Yesterday, I ran for one mile in the morning. Had a small bowl of granola with nonfat milk as well as my usual cup of coffee. In the afternoon, I went to the gym ran 5 miles on the treadmill, lifted weights for a half hour total, and swam (I usually stay there two hours). I ate a green salad. After that I walked through the Boun That Luang festival, the biggest Buddhist festival in the country. Returned home after dark, ate a small portion of rice, yogurt, steamed vegetables and malai kafta. This morning, my blood sugar was 130. Go figure.

I guess the main thing I - and other diabetics - have to remember is that looking at blood sugars on a day to day basis is like trying to figure out what's going on with the stock market. We're always getting these dire reports - the stock market plunged on this day, followed by reports that it soared the next. When you focus on the day-to-day stuff, you lose sight of the trends.

The trends are the most important. Frankly during the past week, I haven't exercised as much as I should have - I've stayed too late at work everyday. When I get tired, I eat out and don't make the best food choices. If I focus on my figures, yeah it's a mystery. But when I look at my life, it's not so strange.

Our bodies are not machines. There are a millions processes going on that we can't even imagine. It always boggles my mind that our bodies can function at all. I have to remind myself that the blood sugar figures are just part of my total person; I'm a diabetic but I'm not my blood sugar readings.