The Big Blue Test is a program of the Diabetes Hands Foundation that rallies communities to experience the impact that small changes can have on their health. Taking the Big Blue Test is easy:
If you have diabetes you test their blood sugar (no diabetes? no testing!)
You exercise for at least 14-20 minutes.
You test again (if you have diabetes), and
You share their experience on BigBlueTest.org or through the app for
iPhone or Android.
Since 2010, over 40,000 people helped themselves while helping more than 10,000 others. Most participants in the Big Blue Test experience an average blood sugar drop of 20%. Each Big Blue Test helps you and helps others, through a life-saving donation made on your behalf. This has translated in $250,000 awarded by Diabetes Hands Foundation in Big Blue Test grants in the past 4 years.
For every Big Blue Test result that gets logged between October 14th and November 30th, 2015, Diabetes Hands Foundation generates a donation for 2 different organizations serving people with diabetes in need around the world. Big Blue Test grants awarded this year will benefit two initiatives (each will receive US$5,000). To do this, weāre seeking to reach 110,000 Big Blue Test entries by November 30th. Help yourself and help others. Get active, #jointhemovement:do the #BigBlueTest every day!
For my Big Blue Test today I swam. My BG was 285 when I got into the pool (first thing in the morning. Not my favorite beginning to the day), and 200 when I got out, after swimming for an hour AND doing insulin. I had hoped for a better result, but am at least glad I didnāt go low while in the pool.
What are others doing for their Big Blue Tests, and what are you seeing in your BG?
I was putzing on my computer this afternoon when the FedEx came with a package, my LIVONGO starter kit! She asked how I was doing, and I guess I didnāt respond with the level of enthusiasm she was expecting, and she told me it was a beautiful day (it really was) and I should go for a walk, so we started talking about diabetes and of course I mentioned TuDiabetes and gave her a piece of paper w our website URL (she has a coworker w type1) - right after she left, I took her advice and went for a nice walk.
the leaves are about at their peak here in northern NJ. great time for a walk.
I woke up this morning with a fasting of 147. I got dressed and walked my normal 3.5 mile route. When I got home about 40 minutes later, my bg was 100. I love the Big Blue Test for what it does for me AND others.
Big Blue Test has always been the time of year that Iām most motivated to get active. Iām stoked that itās going to be extended throughout the year now. I know it will make me get up and move!
It most certainly does, @Laddie!! Thanks for reminding us of that. ANYTHING physical counts, and of course āexerciseā is different for different people! Walking, chair exercises, tai chi, cleaningā¦ It doesnāt need to be in a gym to be a Big Blue Test
I have been doing the Big Blue Test, makes me realise that my walk is very beneficial so that I donāt dip out on those ādonāt want to walkā days. Not only am I doing myself good, but also diabetics who do not receive medication.
Time of day makes a huge difference in my case. After my 30 min. bike ride to work in the a.m., BG unchanged or even up a little. Bike ride home in the evening: a drop of 40-60 is not unusual. Really struggling to get that evening one under better control. Setting a temp basal down to 5% for an hour starting about an hour and a half before leaving seems to work. As long as I rememberā¦
This morning 7:00am my BG was 137 mg/dL fasting at gym 55 min workout with trainer, retest before heading home 8:15am 198 mg/dl, retest again at 9:20am 135ng/dL with a down arrow on my CGMā¦
I was 198 so I decided to go for a walk and it was 165 when I got back, nice weather today again. I find it really helps me get a little extra motivation to get out there and walk.
I was way too high after after lunch the other day (222!) and went out for a brisk 20 minute walkā¦and dropped to 167. Guess I could have walked longer!!
I never know IF or WHEN itās going to kick in for me, I start correcting at 3 AM if I wake up & check & need to, and sometimes check my bg every hour after that & take small corrections if it keeps going up (explains why I go to bed at 9)
and then thereās the days I flatline but no rhyme or reason, or even sleep until 6
We just had a cord of wood delivered yesterday and itās now sitting at the bottom of the driveway. It will need to wheel barrowed down to where we have our pallets of wood in various stages of age. Itās a tremendous job to get it down there, and a real Big Blue Test challenge. Today I spent a good half hour clearing the steep gravel path to the pallets of large piles of clippings, weeds, leaves and old tomato plants. I started off at 179 and finished at 103 and then went low after that. Got a tick on my arm, but I felt it before he could bite. Reminds me I need complete coverage when Iām doing stuff in the yard.
i am going to do a big blue test after my thanksgiving dinner. it will be low carb, but a lot of low carb food still ends up being a lot of glucose. if itās nice out, i will bike or walk. if dreary, bike on my exercise bike in the basement.
Great question, @MapleSugar. Itās true that one does not need to log in to record BBTs on the site. The initial thinking behind the log-in was that we could then use it to track and create person-specific statistics ā anonymous, but still stats by individual people as opposed to individual BBTs.
