Blood Sugar Log Example: A Simple 7-Day Sample

A good blood sugar log example has five columns: the date, the time, the reading with its unit, the context (fasting, before or after a meal, bedtime), and a short note. Below is a fictional seven-day sample laid out exactly that way, followed by a walk-through of why each column earns its place and how to make the finished log easy for your doctor to read.

A simple 7-day blood sugar log example

The sample uses mg/dL, the unit US meters report in. If your meter shows mmol/L, the layout is identical — only the numbers change (the glucose unit converter shows how the two relate). Note the header: name, unit, and the target range copied from the care team, left blank here on purpose.

Eighteen entries over a week is neither a recommendation nor a minimum. How often you check is set by your healthcare professional — the CDC notes it depends on your type of diabetes and whether you take diabetes medicines. The example simply shows several different contexts so you can see how each one is written down.

Column by column: what each part is for

Date and time

Two separate columns, always both. The value of a log comes from lining readings up by time of day across several days; the ADA suggests looking for readings that are too high or too low several days in a row at about the same time. Without exact times that comparison is guesswork. Write the actual clock time, not “morning”.

Reading and unit

Copy the number from the meter as displayed. Put the unit in the column header once instead of after every number — it keeps the column clean and prevents mixed units. In the US meters report mg/dL; much of the rest of the world uses mmol/L.

Context

This is the column people skip and later regret. A reading before breakfast and one two hours after dinner are not comparable, so the log must say which is which. The contexts in the sample — waking or fasting, before a meal, about two hours after a meal, bedtime — are the typical times to check that the CDC lists. Use the same wording every time so entries can be sorted and grouped.

Notes

The ADA recommends noting factors that may have affected a result, such as food, activity and stress; the NIDDK mentions what you ate and what physical activity you did. Look at the sample notes: they are short, factual and free of interpretation. “Pasta, larger portion” and “Long bike ride, afternoon” describe what happened. They do not say why a number came out the way it did — that conversation belongs with your care team, who can see the log alongside the rest of your history.

Leaving a note blank is fine. A dash is more honest than an invented explanation.

Header: unit and target range

At the top of any real log write the unit once and the target range your doctor or diabetes educator gave you. That range is personal — it depends on your age, health and treatment — which is exactly why the example leaves it blank instead of printing a generic one.

Why the notes column matters more than it looks

Numbers without context invite guessing. The same reading can follow a skipped meal, a long walk, an illness or a dosing mix-up, and the meter records none of that. The notes column is the only place the story survives until the appointment. It also changes the tone of the log: instead of a list of numbers to be judged, it becomes a record of days. The ADA points out that glucose results often trigger strong feelings and that tracking is simply a way to see how well the care plan is working — a notes column makes that easier to remember.

Making the log readable for your doctor

The NIDDK recommends taking your record with you when you visit your health care team and reviewing your blood glucose chart or app together. A few habits make that review faster.

• Chronological order, one week per page. Your doctor reads down the page; don't make them flip back and forth.
• One unit, stated once. Mixed units are the fastest way to make a log unreadable.
• Consistent context labels. “Fasting” should always be spelled the same way and mean the same thing.
• Your target range on the page. It saves the first two minutes of every appointment.
• Flag, don't interpret. Mark the entries you have questions about and ask. Leave the conclusions to the visit.
• Bring the meter too. Some clinics like to check the device memory against the written log.

Two ways to keep a log like this

On paper: the free printable blood sugar log sheet covers the same fields as the example above, with daily, weekly, monthly and large-print layouts and a header for your unit and target range. Print it or save it as a PDF; nothing to sign up for.

On your phone: DiabetLog works as a digital blood sugar diary and records the same information — the reading, the time of day, a context tag such as fasting — and turns the entries into charts and statistics against the target range you enter. Premium users can export the history as a PDF report to send to their doctor before a visit. Readings are stored only on the device.

For the reasoning behind each field, see how to keep a blood sugar log. For getting the finished log in front of your care team, see how to share blood sugar readings with your doctor.