The Red Flags: When Your Client's Glucose Tells You to Hit Pause
Safety is the First Step in Precision Coaching
As a coach, you play a pivotal role in your client's safety. Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) provides you with crucial insights. Still, it also entrusts you with a significant responsibility by knowing when to pause a workout and protect your client's well-being.
Stepping outside your scope or ignoring the data can lead to serious consequences, including adverse events, energy crashes, and loss of trust.
As a coach, your decisions directly impact your client's well-being. It is essential to recognize red flags and respond to them.
1. Glucose below 70 mg/dL (Hypoglycemia)
When your client's blood glucose drops below 70 mg/dL, they are at risk of hypoglycemia. Symptoms can include dizziness, sweating, confusion, and shakiness.
What should you do?
Stop the workout immediately
Provide a fast-acting carbohydrate (15–20g)
Recheck glucose after 15 minutes
Only resume training once glucose is back in a safe range
Understand your scope of practice:
Call emergency services or refer clients to their healthcare provider if their glucose doesn't rebound.
2. Glucose above 250 mg/dL with Symptoms
Severe hyperglycemia (very high glucose) can indicate the body is under significant stress or, in rare cases, progressing toward diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) in Type 1 clients.
What should you do?
Stop intense training immediately
Encourage light movement or hydration if appropriate
If ketone testing is available, encourage them to test
Refer to medical care if glucose remains high or symptoms (nausea, vomiting, confusion) appear
3. Rapidly Changing Trend Arrows
Trend arrows on a CGM indicate the direction and speed of glucose changes. Two arrows down (↓ ↓) can mean a dangerous drop is imminent, even if the current reading looks fine.
What should you do?
Stop the workout
Reassess glucose after 10–15 minutes
Adjust your client's future sessions to prevent rapid drops or spikes
4. Client Shows Physical Symptoms (Even if Glucose Looks "Normal")
CGM isn't perfect. Sensor lag, calibration issues, or individual responses mean you can't ignore your client's feelings.
What should you do?
Pause and address symptoms like confusion, extreme fatigue, or nausea
If in doubt, err on the side of caution and end the session
5. You're Unsure What the Data Means
If you're ever unsure how to interpret the data, don't guess. Acting outside your knowledge base can put clients at risk.
What should you do?
Pause the workout and gather more information
Encourage the client to contact their healthcare provider
Consider additional training or certification
Understanding Your Role: Coach, Not Clinician
Things to Remember:
You do not diagnose medical conditions
You do not change medications
You do not ignore symptoms just because numbers look fine
As a coach, your responsibility is to observe, adjust clients' workouts, and refer them when necessary. You are an integral part of your clients' safety process, and your actions can significantly impact their well-being.
Want to Feel Confident About Safety?
Recognizing CGM red flags is just one piece of the puzzle. The Certified CGM Fitness Specialist™ Program includes a complete Safety Module Preview so you can:
Know exactly when to pause, adjust, or refer
Stay within your scope of practice
Keep your clients safe while using CGM
Join the Certification waitlist now and get instant access to the Safety Module Preview.
CGM gives you powerful data, but it's only valuable if you know how to use it safely. When in doubt, pause and lean on the data and your training to protect your client.
Join the waitlist here and start building the skills to coach with confidence.
