Tuesday - Easy Run

Run: 6.5 Miles
Terrain: Sidewalk moderately flat
Time: 0:58:32

Pre-Run BG: 154 mg/dl
Post-Run BG: 143 mg/dl
Intake: 3-4 oz Hammer Gel
Run Pump Status: 50% of Norm. started 60 min prior to run


   This was just your typical "walk-in-the-park" run down a main street in Oshawa. Descent place to run, but too much traffic in some places. It reminded me why I will run trail or park any day over this kind of stuff. The glucose was perfect and I felt great. It was an easy day, so I didn't push hardly at all.

Sunday - Run

Run: 4 Miles
Terrain: Treadmill (grade 4.5 %)
Time: 0:41:05

Pre-Run BG: 161 mg/dl
Post-Run BG: 123 mg/dl
Intake: 4 oz Hammer gel, 10 Glucose Tabs
Run Pump Status: 30 % of Normal


   I had to get some miles in the bank, so treadmill it was. Besides I was on vacation up in Oshawa, CA and the family wanted to take us to the gym. Sweet! All indoor: pool, kick-boxing, track, basketball, circuit training, Spin Room, and like 200 weight, run, and resistance machines of all variances. Pretty nice. They even had child care. We ran treadmill for 30-40 minutes and then headed to the circuit room. Shortly thereafter I began to realize I was sweating way too much for such little effort. I couldn't tell it on the treadmill, but my sugar was headed south quickly. 48 was too low to continue a good or safe workout, so I broke for snack-time. I hadn't yet started a new CG, so it was all feeling. I had also put the pump on reduced basal like 45 minutes before the workout.

Wednesday - Group Run

Run: 5 miles
Terrain: Very Hilly, Lookout Mt. Trails
Time: 01:19:31

Pre-Run BG: 173 mg/dl
Post-Run BG: 243 mg/dl
Intake: 4 PB Crackers
Run Pump Status: 1st 2 miles (0% Basal), Last few miles (50%Basal).

    OK, mountainous trail running is vastly deceiving when it comes to gauging your mileage on very hilly trials. Last night I thought and felt like I'd run maybe 8-9 miles. When calculated with a google map it's only ~5 miles. That's a big difference. So, I checked the BG before I headed out and it was 173. I figured that about 30 minutes into the run the BG would start dropping, so I ate 4 pb crackers for a buffer. My initial pace felt good, but it lead me to the "Diabetes Pain Cave" unbenounced to me. I should note that before the run I was just feeling, I don't know how to say it, but "not quite right"...bit of some head pressure and the belly felt like I'd eaten something slightly disagreeable. I should have picked up on that and taken it out slower with the group. Even if I fell off the back. Instead, I ran headlong into the DPC by tapping the glycogen stores by starting out too hard. So, the BG went up and according to the CG hung at about 200 all of the run. I took .5 units of Humolog during the run and then bumped my basal back up to 50% of norm. I was hoping what little I took would be enough to drop my BG and make the good physical feel of running come back around. It didn't happen. The HR kept jumping up too easily and my breathing was a bit too difficult. I should say our air quality around here right now is not stellar either along with some typical hot southern weather. Oh well, live, learn, laugh, repeat.

It needs to be noted for myself, for later purposes, and for other readers that the following is important floow-up on the above run.

     As can be read, my beginning BG was 173. Under normal circumstances I've come to realize that my sugar will drop within the first few miles of the run and from there it just depends on my effort level and intake. Intake was a problem here. I forgot my gel flask in the car. Duuhh. I also had the understnading that my glucose was trending downward. Hence the snack before I ran and the 0% basal to begin with. Yes, I should have just left the basal at no less than 30% though. The kicker here though, is that while getting dressed for the run before leaving work, I pulled my insulin site out just a hair. It hadn't come out that far, so I re-adhered it to my skin. All I can say is that in the past this has worked. From this point forward I will warn myself to simply replace the site...it's not worth it. This, now non-patent canula, would be the reason for the spiking BG's. My thoughts........that was stupid.

That's Life

It's Friday, ~ 8:20 AM, the wife just left for work. I've got the tri-kit on and I'm walking out the door when the cellie rings. It's work. I naively answer it, thinking my co-worker has a question about one of the imaging protocols.....not. My co--worker was actually hacking her guts up from some bad mojo bug passing around the hospital. Typical of the environment I work in. I'm always overly cautious because of crap like this. So I drop everything and head into work. This sucks. I've missed I can't even count how many Friday workouts now because something keeps coming up. Life huh*. The kicker is I had my mind wrapped around all I was going to enjoy doing Friday. It was my birthday. I was totaly focused on this work-out (a .9 mile climb on the bike that gives one a view of the Chattanooga Valley from the top) and pushing the climb 2 maybe 3 times. But alas, this game we play has many curve-balls, so instead I worked until 5:30 and went out to eat afterwards. Another workout to toss to the tri-gnomes.

Wednesday - Group Run

Run: ~7.5 Miles
Terrain: Very Hilly Mt. Trails
Time: 01:01:12

Pre-Run BG: 150 mg/dl
Post-Run BG: 166 mg/dl
Intake: Kid's fruit Powers Stick
Run Pump Status: 10% of normal

    Man, it's getting freaken hot and extremely humid here. I'd give this up for Northern Arizona anyday. Tomorrow it's suppose to be like 98-100 degrees but feel like 104-105. Definately an early AM or late PM workout schedule right now. Acccchhhhk!

   Last nights run was a little different for me. First, let me say that I run with a group of folks who ALL are faster than me. That being said, for last 4/5 runs I've split from the group and done my own thing. Working on form, adjusting to the climate while trail running again, and getting back up to speed have been the priority until I felt I could at least stay up with the group. That done, last night's run was with the whole group as it use to be. I got there early and did a 1.7-2 mile warm-up. That warm-up got me ready so I could stay up with the group evidently. Nice. This was one of the steepest runs I've done probably since M3 from last year. My BG's were perfect. Absolutely perfect it felt good. The quads and calves were a little sore when I got home so I got the Stick to them and when I woke this AM...no problems and no pain. Nice....I'd like for it to stay this wya, but we all know better then that.

Slower Days

    Somehow, I'm going to figure out a way to use my work-around-the-lawn-all-day-on-the-weekend times as exercise. I mean I wore my HR monitor Sunday from 9 AM till about 8PM and burned 3000 calories hoofing it around the yard. The way I figure it mowing a hilly lawn and keeping the HR at least between 145-160 is as good as a work-out as could be done for two hours in a hilly yard. Or take for example last night. I removed the old stain from our porch ( the deck is larger and next) and got a good sweat out of it. When I scrubbed that old crap off with the hose brush it took my like an hour. I was soaking drenched and not from the hose. That was a good 60 minute work-out also. Hmmm...maybe I'll call them "labor workouts" since this stuff has to be done (don't we all have projects like this calling our names?) and it takes away from the time I could be using for running or cycling.

OK....so this is a slightly nonsensical way of trying to count work as a "work-out" that equals training. I'll just buck-up and call it "base" or "core" maintenance.

Wednesday - Group Trail Run

Run: ~7 Miles
Terrain: Moderately Hilly
Time: 01:06:03

Pre-Run BG: 194 mg/dl
Post-Run BG: 79 mg/dl
Intake: 2 Hammer Gels, 1 bag Power-Bar Gel Blasts
Run Pump Status: 20% of Normal first 2 miles, Suspend rest of run

    Wow, the legs felt much better out there last night. I'm broke off from the group to focus on my own pace and form. I need to do that my first 3-4 runs so that I can just keep up with these crazy folks I run with. Compared to last week, calf pain today is moderate to nothing at all. Last week I was aching for days. That hadn't really happened before. My BG was like 236 about an hour before the run, so I took 1u of Novolog at that time. A few minutes before the run I put the pump to 20% of normal basal. However, I was keeping a close eye on my trending to see just how far that 1 unit was going to go. It went a lot farther then I was hoping it would have. So, at 174 and 2 down arrows (BG has changed 40 points within the last 20 minutes) - I downed a Gel. Then at 124 still having 2 down arrows-I was about 1.5 miles out from the car, I downed another Gel. Banana flavoured. Not too bad. It reminded me of banana bread batter. Did a finger stick and got 79. So, as I'm running up to the car my CG starts complaining to me "You are 60 mg/dl and you still have fast downward trending - 2 down arrows. Come on man fix it!!!" It's at these moments when I remind myself to ALWAYS listen to my body, not the CG or pump. If you do that you will be far better off most of the time. I can get valuable info from all of this "medi-mech" (medical machinery), but it's all about WHEN to listen to it. All-in-all it was a great run in the woods.

Tuesday - 1st Time on the Treadmill

Run: 3.5 Miles
Terrain: Mild Grade ~4%
Time: 0:36:01

Pre-Run BG: 141 mg/dl
Post-Run BG: 198 mg/dl
Intake: Nada
Run Pump Status: normal


    I hadn't put much thought into using our new treadmill for the first time. After Saturday night's swim attempt you would think I might have, .....but. So, I warmed up and tried to get use to a new piece of machinery. All I can say is running on the trail or road is FAR easier. This sucker feels too short also. Maybe it's all in my head, but I kept worrying about being in the perfect spot, which took me like 20 minutes to find...along with the perfect speed to stay there and get a decent run in also. This crap is ridiculous, but I needed the run. Next time I'll get five miles in then go from there. I don't recall having issues like this a the gym. That's for sure. OK, I'll stop complaining. I got to exercise and that's what counts. I can still walk. I have diabetes, but I'm alive with all of my limbs....beeeee positive. I need to use this thing in the dead of winter anyway. So I had better start liking it. No problems and I got a few miles in the bank. All is good.

Saturday - Midnight Mud Run

Run: 4.8 miles

Swim: ~ 300 meters

Terrain: Typical Hay Bay Trail and mucky swim

Time: ~65 Mins

Pre-Run BG: 135 mg/dl

Post-Run BG: 74 mg/dl

Intake: 6 PB Crackers (prior to start), 4 oz. Hammer Gel

Run/Swim Pump Status: I took the pump off for this one

    First, let me say that this was not a race. It was fun, but also a good reminder to me of some past experience and the need for training. I am not, by nature, a swimmer. In fact, not even a runner by nature. Though with much training I've become some what of a runner and with more training I may even become somewhat of a swimmer. However for now....let's just say when I was 300 ft off shore and working way too hard on the swim bec. I haven't done open H2O in years, with shoes that weighed like 5 lbs each (I'm not kidding), I had a nasty little flash-back of being pulled out with the tide in Peru with low sugar and not fully comprehending what was happening. That little Peruvian experience scared the shittaki out of me, but has me a wiser person. So, I swam back to shore and took the smarter route for myself. I did attempt a short one and then completed one of the shorter swims, but it's time to hit the open water for some practice before I attempt that again. My CG had ended earlier this day, so I opted to leave it off and to DC from my pump also..as the pump is not H2O proof. This event really was fun. Especially at midnight with a full moon and we owned the trail to ourselves. I'll do it again when the chance provides itself. It was more sweat and water than mud as this pic shows. I'll bet the folks in house boats were a little shocked to see swimmers with glow sticks and headlamps coming toward them at around midnight!

Wednesday Night - Group Run

Run: ~11 Miles
Terrain: Everything from Mildly Steep Grades to Flat
Time: 02:09:34

Pre-Run BG: 197 mg/dl
Post-Run BG: 132 mg/dl
Intake: 4 oz Hammer Gel
Run Pump Status: 40 % of normal Basal

    OK, as others have noted, today was "National Running Day" and I guess my regular Wed. night group run just happened to fulfill this. I bit off more than I wanted to chew tonight, but I just myself to buck-up and just do it. I needed to be pushing myself and this fit the bill. I haven't run anything close to 11 miles in quite a while. It was a beautiful trail run though. I'd run out there in the woods with nothing but nature around me...anyday. It's far better than running the roads. I kept the BG in pretty good control tonight. Started with a great level and ended very well too. My sugar started up a little bit at by mile 4. At this point I didn't want to experience the lovely feeling of acidic build-up in my leg muscles, as I have a few times before with high sugar during a good workout, so I took 1u of Novolog and kept plugging away. At about mile 8 I started seeing a downward trend on the meter so I had the Hammer Gel. Worked perfectly. Maybe next time I'll leave the basal rate at like 60% and go from there.

May Vacation

So, every once in a while I am allowed to get away from the daily grind and take a vacation. Though not as far traveling and glamorous (as the 3 weeker last year), this vacation was much enjoyed and photo evident as well. It began with seeing things like this that I just had to get photos of.

Need to buy any "Wud"?

When we got to the place we were going to stay at for the week we were a little disappointed. That fixed we were pleasantly pleased to find this view just outside our backdoor.

The bottom one was of Little River on the way back to the room one night. Nice little haze hanging over the river and I'd never tried to capture that on film before.

The rest of these I'm just going to throw out there. We've been to Cades Cove, I don't know like 6-7 times and have never seen more than a few deer and a squirrel. Our luck did a 360 this time as seen in the pics. We rode through the cove on two different days and were treated to mama bear and cubs each time. It's the coolest thing to see your first black bear cub and photo it. Altogether we saw probably 13 bear from those two trips. Not bad. If you went back right now one would probably be treated to the same. Bumper crop of cubs this year from what the rangers have stated.

This is a little of what was at Cable Mill at the back of Cades Cove.

The ranger informed all those watching and photographing this one that it's very rare to actually see a mother black bear nursing in the open like this. Sweet. Lucky us.

Of course these cubs were still learning how to climb. Man they're so small it was great to just watch.

The above pic was our last bear siting and this mama bear had three slightly larger cubs. I snuck around the field through a glad of trees and snapped this from the edge of the field and mama bear looked right up at me. Hmmm, not too bad for like 800 feet away.

If you couldn't tell yet, I'm very much enjoying the Olympus SP 570 UZ I got last year.

Monday - "Suck it up" Run

Run: 3.3 Miles
Terrain: Very Hilly Neighborhood
Time: 0:29:03

Pre-Run BG: 213 mg/dl
Post-Run BG: 138 mg/dl
Intake: 12 oz Choc. Silk (Recovery Drink)
Run Pump Status: Regular Basal

    I was itching to get out for a run. It's been like a week and a half since my last run and I hadn't gotten my lazy arse out while in the Smokies for a week. Oh well, the vacation was much needed and so was the physical break. I didn't pay enough attention to the weather until I hit the road tonight, but the air was wicked thick and hot. I reminded myself that this was the reason why I was running at 4 AM a few years ago. By about 1.5 miles in I hating the fact that I knew better then to go any further for tonight. I knew I'd run much further this Wednesday night, so for now play it safe and use this as a christening for the week. Anyway, this one goes in the books as the sweatiest freaken run for the year so far. No BG problems. The only thing I noticed was that I was struggling to get enough O2, and that just wasn't cool. Of course the city has us labeled today for air-quality as an "orange alert" so that definitely didn't help. You can almost feel your lungs sucking in all of the crap in the air as you're chugging along. Oh well, you only live life once and you do your best right?