How to be friendly to your blood sugar

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Whether you have diabetes or not, these ideas can help you to feel your best and have more stable energy throughout your day.

1. Take a 2-minute walk after meals

The 2-minute walk was shown to significantly improve blood sugar levels. Take the walk within 60-90 minutes of finishing your meal. If you can walk longer than 2 minutes, great! If you only have 2 minutes to walk, that alone can make a big difference.

2. Include protein and fiber in each meal and snack

Protein and fiber both slow down how quickly you digest your food, and slowing down digestion can slow down how much sugar gets released into your blood at a time. This can even out the spikes and dips that can make you feel icky or tired between meals. It can also help you feel more satisfied and focused between meals.

For snacks, try:

  • Yogurt + berries
  • Cheese + whole grain crackers
  • Veggies + hummus
  • Fruit + peanut butter
  • Popcorn + almonds
For meals, try to include 3 food groups, and choose whole grains or starchy veggies as your starch. Aim for 20-30 grams protein each meal from meat, beans, nuts, eggs, legumes, seeds, tofu, tempeh, cottage cheese, or yogurt. 

3. Decrease or eliminate sugary beverages

Sugar in liquids often gets consumed more quickly than sugar from solids. In addition, it can get absorbed faster by your body since there's less work to break it down. Sugary beverages don't usually provide any of the nutrients that slow down digestion (like fat, protein, and fiber) which means that your soda or juice is going to hit your bloodstream more quickly than a cookie or cake (which has fat and is a tiny bit more complex to break down). These can quickly spike and tank your blood sugar, leaving you feeling tired later.

Try infused water, seltzer, or herbal iced tea instead!

4. Increase your muscle mass

Having more muscle gives your body more places to use up the sugar. Weightlifting and body weight exercises can both help. There are also less obvious ways to get in your resistance training, like hiking up steep hills, swimming, or kayaking. Get creative and have fun with your activity!

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