Are there any Type 1’s who practise Bikram yoga & use a pump & CGM?
Really hoping to find someone !!
1 Like
ohh I can see that being a slight issue with the insulin heating up and with your spot possibly peeling off. I would love to know how it works out for you. Sadly, we don’t have any Bikram yoga in our area.
I do use a pump, and have done Bikram a few times. I ended up taking the pump off for the time of it (I was due for a site change), but did keep the monitor on and the pump at my side just in case, I find that yoga can really make my BG drop! I haven’t had TOO many issues with the Tegaderm over the Sensor coming off, but the sweat could be an issue. Good luck, I think you should power forward with it, its so great!
It's a little late - but I have recently been doing Hot Yoga (same as bikram but not one of his teachers) and my bgs are going through the roof. I need to be more consistent in the analysis; however, I will wake at 115 and after class 250. I have tried to bolus a bit before and remove it - thinking it might cook up the insulin. but not really having too much luck. looking for anyone else that's tried / had success.
I am not on a pump but have had the same experience with BG surging during hot yoga. I often go up 50-60 points from the workout, but the only times I have tried to take insulin before class I have crashed. No winning there!
Unlikely the insulin is being defacto "boiled", if so your readings would be high everywhere, as the chemical bonds would get broken by the high heat caused by heating the insulin even once.
Far more likely would be adrenaline caused by the adrenaline response caused by the dynamic asana being done that vigorously. Used to get high readings doing certain asana, head stand, etc., figured out i was using too much strength, effort and was getting adrenaline from doing them way too hard...
Controlled the effort lost the spike hours afterwards...
Stuart
I do Bikram yoga regularly and use CGM. IV-3000 is good to keep the sensor on my tummy. It's pretty good (however, after having false-hypo, I decided to not to bring the transmitter to a classroom since it keeps buzzing)
I have used a CGM while doing hot house yoga and have had no difficulty with keeping it on. If you do notice that the tape starts to curl, you might want to slap a new tape over the old one after first trying the area. I also remove my pump completely because I find I do not need an hour of insulin when I am doing hot house yoga. I sweat so much that I don’t need the insulin for an hour. Have fun yoga-ing with your devices.
Hi, I’ve just started practicing Bikrams again (5 weeks in, 3x a week), after taking an almost 6 year break. I am getting my cgm started back up again too…although I am not sure where I’ll connect it as non-yoga times I prefer the abs - so when I had my pump connected there last week, it almost dislodged during the first 1/3 of class, then I spent the next 1/3 trying to keep it on but then decided to just take it off. I reconnected when I got back home, but as I had to get right to work on a deadline, I forgot to fill the tubing! Talk about a spike! I could feel the ketones popping up. I got it all sorted by morning, but man, what a pain! I just don’t want to take away the abs as a site, but since the pump stays in firmly on hips & thighs…I’ll have to do so unless I can get a better adhesive.
I plan to contact Minimed to see if they have any other adhesives. I found using extra stickers just helped it come off even more quickly, as the moisture build up just encouraged it to dislodge. Love the yoga though!
Oh - I also have been noticing less spikes in general after class, when I take a small bolus just after class and making sure I have a snack about two hours before. Good idea about not trying too hard…paradoxical, but going to that edge that doesn’t require the adrenalin burst makes sense.
Hi fellow Bikram yogi. I always use my upper hip area to attach the pump. I, too, found it difficult to keep the infusion site connected during Bikram yoga. Do you have poor control when you use that area? My physician actually recommended that site after I told him the trouble I was having. I found,like you,that adding more adhesives did not solve the problem either. One more suggestion--how about trying just a more vigorous yoga flow class. The Indians had no choice about "heat", it was just HOT in India. They probably would have used AC, if they had had it. You could try wearing more clothes to build up heat;-). Good luck.
I've just purchased some 'benzoin tincture', mentioned on the medtronic pump supplies page, that I'll try the next time I change my site. I also read about a few other wet/heat adhesives - I'd love some other real world feedback if anyone has any? I prefer Bikram to all of the other yoga practices I've tried, so I plan to stick with it. Finger's crossed that my adhesives also stick - pun intended... Good luck with your own yoga practice! xx
We do have a Group here for those who practice yoga and wear a cgm
It looks like we might have covered the issue of practicing Bikram yoga and using a pump and CGM. We can. I hope you don't mind if I ask a related question. I would like to go swimming more often but found trying to wear the pump and the CGM while doing so was just too much trouble. How do you gals (and guys, if interested) cover the CGM and pump sites, if you wear them on sites not covered with your swimming suit? Aside from the unattractiveness of the adhesive sites, how do you keep the adhesives sticking when you are in the water for a while? I feel stymied and have given up swimming laps. Thanks for any advice.
HI! I am a Type 1 who wears a pump and is about to start wearing a CGM as well…I am so glad I found this site as I am having an issue with liver dumps in class. I take the pump off for the 90 minute class. My blood sugar has been in the 300 and 400’s after class, even though it is perfect before class. I was advised by my nurse to try taking insulin before class which scares me, but obviously with the liver dumps I need them. Today I took 1.5 units before class, and checked my BS halfway through at the 45 minute mark. It was a little high at that point, but after class my BS had gone up to 407!!! I am keeping a yoga journal and going to take a bit more insulin when I take the class again in 2 days. I am going on an empty stomach. I am trying to find others in similar boats. I am wondering if eating a small snack before class somehow help or make no difference? i am also wondering if taking a bolus of my lantus on the morning of class and not wearing my insulin pump til later in the day would help?? I don’t recall having liver dumps like this in prior years of taking Bikram yoga, and i am wondering if it has anything to do with removing the pump during the class and no insulin going into my system??