Blood Sugar Balancing Hacks: Small Tweaks That Make a Big Metabolic Difference
If you’ve ever felt shaky, hangry, anxious, foggy, or weirdly exhausted after eating… That was your blood sugar talking.
Blood sugar instability is one of the most common (and overlooked) drivers of fatigue, hormone imbalance, weight resistance, cravings, anxiety, and inflammation
And the good news? You don’t have to eat “perfectly” to support it. You just need to eat strategically.
Let’s dive in!
Why Blood Sugar Matters So Much
Every time you eat, glucose enters your bloodstream. Your body releases insulin to move that sugar into your cells so you can actually use it for energy. But when blood sugar spikes too high and crashes too low, you get:
Cravings
Irritability
Brain fog
Cortisol spikes
Inflammation
Fat storage
And over time, that rollercoaster contributes to insulin resistance, hormone chaos, and metabolic burnout.
So let’s talk about how to smooth the ride.
Hack #1: Never Eat Carbs or Sugar Alone
This one is foundational.
Carbohydrates and sweets hit the bloodstream fast. Protein, fat, and fibre slow everything down.
So instead of a cookie on its own, try a cookie after your meal. Instead of fruit on an empty stomach, try having your fruit with nuts or greek yogurt.
You don’t have to avoid treats, just buffer them. Protein and fat act like speed bumps for glucose.
Hack #2: Eat in the Right Order
Yes, order matters. Studies show that eating in this order dramatically reduces blood sugar spikes compared to eating carbs first.
Fibre (vegetables)
Protein & fat
Carbohydrates
So start meals with your salad, veggies, or soup, then move to your protein and your fats, and finish with your carbs like rice, potatoes, pasta, or bread.
Oh, and yes.. You should wait until after dinner to eat your dessert!
This one habit alone can help to stabilize glucose without even changing what you eat.
Hack #3: Boil, Chill, Then Reheat Your Carbs
This is one of my favourite simple-but-powerful tricks.
When you cook potatoes, rice, or pasta, chill them in the fridge, and then reheat them, some of the starch turns into resistant starch.
And resistant starch feeds your gut bacteria, slows glucose absorption, and acts more like fibre than sugar in the body.
So leftover potatoes and rice are actually more blood sugar friendly than fresh! Another reason to prep your meals for the week ahead!
Hack #4: Protein With Your Coffee
Coffee raises cortisol, and cortisol raises blood sugar. So when you drink coffee on an empty stomach, you can get a glucose spike without any actual fuel. Combine this with how a lot of us drink our coffee with plenty of sweet and syrupy flavors, and it's no surprise that many morning coffee drinkers feel jittery, anxious, and crave a sweet treat by mid-morning.
The best thing is to have your breakfast before your coffee, but if you insist on having your coffee first, try adding protein and fats, like whisking in an egg yolk, collagen or protein powder, or even a bit of butter or olive oil to stabilize the response.
You don’t have to give up coffee — just anchor it.
Hack #5: Walk After You Eat
You don’t need a full on workout post meal, just 10 minutes of walking after meals helps your muscles pull glucose out of the blood without needing insulin. This helps to lower blood sugar, reduce inflammation, support metabolism and improve digestion
Hack #6: Don’t Skip Meals
Skipping meals trains your body to rely on stress hormones to keep blood sugar up, which can lead to adrenal burnout, cravings, poor sleep, and insulin resistance.
Eating regularly sends your nervous system the message: We are safe. Fuel is coming. Less stress hormone allows your other hormones and metabolism to normalize.
Hack #7: Sleep Is Blood Sugar Medicine
One bad night of sleep can make you more insulin resistant the next day. That’s why tired people crave sugar, carbs and caffeine.
Prioritizing sleep is not lazy, its metabolic therapy! Set a regular bedtime, try to wake up around the same time everyday, and practice good sleep hygiene with a winddown routine, screen free bedrooms, and a dark room.
Stay steady out there!