What It Takes To Finish 26.2: Temp Basals, Glucose Tabs, and Guts

Preparing For A Marathon With Diabetes

What it takes to make it 26.2 with T1D

I began running when I was around 24 years old (12 years after my diagnosis with type 1 diabetes). I had always been reasonably fit, participating in sports during high school, but during my three years at university and a couple after I let my fitness slide. At the time I didn’t ponder its impact on my diabetes until I started back.

My best friend signed up for a 14km race in Sydney, Australia and got me to sign up–now I had no choice but to train. He had a head start on me, and was naturally a lot faster. I struggled to keep up in general, consistently worrying about lows during runs which would make me tired and slow me down while I scarfed down a snack. I was embarrassed when these things happened, which was pretty often at first.  I was still on injections at the time, not managing my diabetes at the best of my ability, and just getting use to exercise’s effects. Improvement was my only way forward. (more…)



The Weekend Workout — Hit The Trail and Run!

The air is cooler. The foliage has a tinge of yellow. You can still feel a little bit of summer, but you know what’s coming–autumn. In my mind, there’s no better introduction to the season than blazing a trail on a run. No matter where you live, even here in the barren flats of Oklahoma City, trails are everywhere.

If you hit the trail this weekend, give this tutorial a quick watch to avoid any common trail running mistakes.

In my experience, trail running tends to produce more work on the body, thus leading to more demands on the blood sugar. Here’s a few tips to stay in range:

1) Pack more than one snack. I tend to use a few that have different macronutrient ratios. I’ll bring a Gu and a Clif Bar.
2) Remember that it’s always easier going out than it is coming back, especially if you started running downhill.
3) Lots of water. It’s still hot out.