Rylee Arnold Recalls Moment Blood Sugar Spiked During DWTS Performance

Rylee Arnold is opening up about what managing her Type 1 diabetes looks like as a pro on Dancing with the Stars.

After one fan made a TikTok video asking why Arnold’s Dexcom — a wearable device that monitors one’s glucose levels throughout the day — was never visible while she was dancing on the show, Arnold stitched the creator’s video to explain.

“I actually have no intention of covering it ever when it comes to my costumes,” influencer and professional dancer, 20, revealed in the TikTok clip. “It just so happens that it is always covered because I tend to put my Dexcoms in my lower abdomen.”

Going on, the dancer explained that affixing her Dexcom to her arm wouldn’t necessarily work, dancing “just gets super physical,” and it makes her nervous that the device might accidentally be pulled out. Her Dexcom, she says, is always on her stomach on either her left or right side.

Luckily for Arnold, she feels like “most of my costumes are just pretty covered in the midsection area and are usually high-waisted.”

In a follow-up video posted to her TikTok page, Arnold went more in-depth about how she manages her Type 1 diabetes during rehearsals and practices for Dancing with the Stars.

Arnold explained that the Dexcom G7 is the only device she wears on her body, and that she also carries insulin pens with her so that she is able to give herself shots multiple times a day.

Rehearsals, Arnold says, are easier to manage in terms of her blood sugar as she has a lot of time to go and look at her phone and check her blood sugar often.

She also revealed that she often schedules her meals way before rehearsal, so she doesn’t have to worry about her levels going too high while she is practicing.

“If my blood sugar is too high or if it’s too low, it really does affect my performance,” Arnold admitted.

Show days are an entirely different experience for Arnold, she revealed.

“Usually on show day, I try to eat just high protein meals and the most minimal carbs I can,” Arnold revealed. “Because just with stress and not really having the time to worry about my blood sugar, I try to eat so that it doesn’t spike my blood sugar throughout the day.”

Arnold also shared that the pro and celebrity couples on the show each have coordinators who help them throughout the day.

Arnold’s coordinator, Chuck, knows “a lot about Type 1 diabetes” as he also has someone in his family who has the disease as well, she explained.

“He knows that I need my phone often,” she added. “He carries my insulin wherever I go and just always stays in close proximity to me so that my phone can stay connected to my Dexcom to get all of my blood sugar readings.”

Arnold also revealed if her blood sugar levels have ever impacted her ability to go on and perform, after one commenter asked if the show had ever adjusted the order of the couple’s dances to accommodate her blood sugar levels.

“They have not done that and probably won’t,” Arnold said. “It is a live show and the show just keeps going. There is no pausing, there is no adjusting. So for me, I have gone out while being low before and it was not the best time ever, but I’ve Learned how to manage it and figure that out.”

Arnold even recalled one dance she did last season with partner Stephen Nedoroscik, where her blood sugar went high and she got a cramp throughout the majority of the dance.

“Luckily, this season I’ve had it down to a T,” she said. “I really make sure what I’m eating throughout the day doesn’t spike my blood sugar, and I also am just super aware.”

Arnold has been open in the past about her difficulties learning how to manage her diabetes, sharing one moment where she forgot her insulin after boarding a plane.

Arnold was quick to assuage fans’ fears, though, posting a follow-up video a few hours later with a dancing update. Writing over the video, the star let fans know that she was “alive and well” and that she had been able to get insulin “right as I landed.”

In a post to her Instagram in May 2024, Arnold reflected on her journey navigating her Type 1 diabetes diagnosis. “Although it was one of the hardest times in my life and one of the biggest learning curves for me, I’m incredibly grateful for the strength it has given me,” she wrote.