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Awful Bs Spike During Cycling

Wurst

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1,128
Location
Germany
Type of diabetes
Type 1
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Insulin
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I cycle every week to work ~ 30 km's per day. Weekends , when in the mood , I reguarly go out for longish rides 80 - 90 km and in all my time I have never experienced what happened yesterday. It was fairly windy and hot , but i intended to keep up my average speed ~ 35 km's per hour.

After ~ 30 kms I started feeling really sick , thinking that the cause was my breakfast wanting to make a re-entrance, I continued and ignored it. Eventually I had to abort ~ 60 kms , taking a short cut home.

It was only when I got home and checked my BS , I found it had gone through the roof. This has never happended before in all my time cycling. Normally I go low if anything, and that is rare.

Could anyone shed some light on what happened.
 

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If you crossed a lactic threshold, your body would start breaking down muscle to support the effort you were making. As a T1, you would have to have insulin to support the release. Otherwise, your numbers would go high. Maybe that’s what happened- maybe you crossed a lactic threshold and paid the price with a high blood sugar.
 
As we all know, stress causes BG to rise.
Even though you are a regular cyclist, the wind and heat from yesterday may have caused additional stress on your body making your BG rise.
Or your body may be fighting some bug or struggling with lack of sleep from the hot weather or ... and it had nothing to do with the cycle ride.
Or maybe it was just one of those things.
 
Thanks for the replies, hope this doesn't become a regular thing. Cycling is one of the main reasons I'm able to maintain good BS levels.
 
Hi @Wurst It could of been one of many things, a repeat pattern would suggest something needs to change, however I tend to agree with @helensaramay on the heat/stress factor, the heat can cause a swing either way so just take care out there in this weather.
 
I'll say, right up front here - I'm not T1, but about the only times I have seen really elevated numberers, in myself, was in the Tropics, after a ful afternoon, working in the rerlentless sun, with no fluids. Yes, yes. That was incredibly stupid, but the circumstances were somewhat odd.

I put my numbers, on that day, down in the largest part to dehydration.

It could have been a number of factors in play, but hydration really does matter to me.
 
I suspect that it's a multitude of factors here. As others have mentioned, the heat can play a part, but you also mentioned wind. It's possible that to maintain your speed you crossed over into Anaerobic exercise, also pushing glucose levels up. If the drop off from the peak coincides with when you slowed up a bit, then that would suggest it played into it.
 
35 Km an hour ? Jings, you don't hang about !
 
Crossing the lactic threshold is bad! Been there. Controlling emotions is another thing- can’t get angry and move into that fight-or-flight mode. Type 1’s need more insulin for that, where a normal person could use it for more power.

It’s not something we can count and dose for, like food math. We can only correction dose for it afterward. After one well fought out group ride at a stop everyone looked totally wiped out. I pulled out my meter and thought I was on the crazy upside of Symogi Effect. The number was so high I had to drop out right there. I was certain I crossed the lactic threshold on that one- we all probably did.
 
Thanks again for the replies. Something I'm going to have to watch out for in the future , very difficult to carry insulin on long rides particularly in the heat.

Might have to resort to laps nearby my house so I can abort quicker!
 
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