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Sport (archery) and high blood sugars

Boo1979

Boo1979

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,849
Type of diabetes
Other
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
I have recently taken up archery again after a 5 year gap but am puzzled by the effect on my sugars
I hace shot 6 times indoors over recent weeks (20m range, 25llb draw weight) shooting 1-2 Portsmouths ( Portsrtsmouth = 60 arrows).According to my fitbit each session involves around 4-5,000 steps (retrieving arrows) with a slightly increased heart rate
I’m having great fun but my sugars are less impressed!
Each time Ive shot my sugars have gone up by 3-4 mmol - generally starting out around 6. and the rise seems unrelated to food intake Ive generally had a breakfast of 2-5g carbs prior to shooting but the same thing happens Whether Ive eaten or not
Im on Gliclazide.
Any ideas?
 
Is each time you've shot an actual competition? Could be the stress and adrenaline of a competition raising blood sugars.

Oo archery sounds fun, although I don't hold out much hope for my aim. Hope your enjoying it.
 
Boo1979 said:
I have recently taken up archery again after a 5 year gap but am puzzled by the effect on my sugars
I hace shot 6 times indoors over recent weeks (20m range, 25llb draw weight) shooting 1-2 Portsmouths ( Portsrtsmouth = 60 arrows).According to my fitbit each session involves around 4-5,000 steps (retrieving arrows) with a slightly increased heart rate
I’m having great fun but my sugars are less impressed!
Each time Ive shot my sugars have gone up by 3-4 mmol - generally starting out around 6. and the rise seems unrelated to food intake Ive generally had a breakfast of 2-5g carbs prior to shooting but the same thing happens Whether Ive eaten or not
Im on Gliclazide.
Any ideas?
Click to expand...

I like a bit of archery but I've never tested blood sugars during / after.

I can't remember the draw weight of my bow but it feels at least as much effort as lifting my 15kg kettle bell and just doing a minute of that can raise my blood sugars. Walking can lower my blood sugars but I guess that standing around, shooting, then retrieving arrows is not getting you out of breath, and not the type of walking that is likely to lower blood sugars at any great rate?
 
archersuz said:
Hi @Boo1979 There only thing I can think of is excitement or stress. I haven't noticed any rise in my BG levels but I've never tested whilst shooting or immediately afterwards - I will this weekend and see what happens!
Click to expand...

I always wondered whether your username was because you liked shooting arrows or because you liked listening to The Archers!

I'll be interested in your findings when you test.
 
catapillar said:
Is each time you've shot an actual competition? Could be the stress and adrenaline of a competition raising blood sugars.

Oo archery sounds fun, although I don't hold out much hope for my aim. Hope your enjoying it.
Click to expand...
Hi
No not back up to competition standard yet - just competition against myself to see if I can improve my score shoot on shoot, which so far Im managing.
Today I had a coaching session so there was certainly a bit of stress involved in being videod and then watching the playback to check my form - mind you I got far more hooked up on how my haircut looked!
Archery is great fun when I first started out, I found imagining aiming at particularly moronic nhs managers improved my aim no end!. Its a sport that I find frustrating and relaxing in almost equal measure
 
AdamJames said:
I like a bit of archery but I've never tested blood sugars during / after.

I can't remember the draw weight of my bow but it feels at least as much effort as lifting my 15kg kettle bell and just doing a minute of that can raise my blood sugars. Walking can lower my blood sugars but I guess that standing around, shooting, then retrieving arrows is not getting you out of breath, and not the type of walking that is likely to lower blood sugars at any great rate?
Click to expand...
No no out of breath walking involved - I‘m far too lazy and far too unfit for that!
Weights sessions at the gym (machine based) also send my sugars up so know what you mean re kettle balls
 
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archersuz said:
Hi @Boo1979 There only thing I can think of is excitement or stress. I haven't noticed any rise in my BG levels but I've never tested whilst shooting or immediately afterwards - I will this weekend and see what happens!
Click to expand...
Id never tested when I did archery before but I’m in a food retesting phase (since the medics cut my diabetes meds in half at last annual review) so have been using libre sensors which show a rather alarming upward trending graph whenever I do archery
 
Now been home 90 mins and sugars have dropped back to pre archery level (10.5 when I left archery , 7.2 now) all very strange
 
Hi @Boo1979 Field Archery is my passion, i try to get to my clubs wood two or three times a week. I find that a couple of hours shooting with mates does wonders for my levels. Competitions on the other hand seem to have the opposite effect. Although on the day I don't feel at all stressed and thoroughly enjoy myself, I think it is the excitement of shooting an unfamiliar course against archers from different parts of the country that encourages my liver to dump buckets of glucose into my bloodstream.
 
catinahat said:
I think it is the excitement of shooting an unfamiliar course against archers from different parts of the country that encourages my liver to dump buckets of glucose into my bloodstream.
Click to expand...
I'll test at the club this weekend, and again in May when I compete and see what happens on both occasions. This could be really interesting research and worth writing up!
 
archersuz said:
It's looking like we need to have an archery meet!
Click to expand...

I'd be up for an archery meet but I suspect I'd be out of my depth. All I really do is occasionally pack a simple take-down bow in my rucksack, then when I'm in the middle of nowhere, blow up some balloons, draw faces on them and shoot them from afar. I've never even attached the sight to my bow - I like to "use the force". Mind you the force can be strong with this one sometimes.

But I don't mind being laughed at, and taught a lesson etc :)
 
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