{"id":22816,"date":"2011-12-11T11:06:06","date_gmt":"2011-12-11T16:06:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/asweetlife.org\/?p=22816"},"modified":"2015-12-27T15:41:50","modified_gmt":"2015-12-27T20:41:50","slug":"blood-sugar-control-and-running-still-a-mystery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/asweetlife.org\/?p=22816","title":{"rendered":"Blood Sugar Control and Running: Still A Mystery"},"content":{"rendered":"

Since going on the pump I\u2019ve been trying to relearn my body and the way it burns sugars while I run. I did an experiment like this once before when I was training for the 2011 Tiberias marathon<\/a> (a year ago).\u00a0 At the time I was injecting insulin (MDI). It took a while<\/a> but within a few months I had it down to a science, well may be not a science, but I was very confident and didn\u2019t feel like I needed to check my blood sugar during races.<\/p>\n

Now, since going on the pump, I feel as if it is totally random and chaotic. Sometimes my blood sugar plummets within 3 miles and sometimes it just won\u2019t come down.<\/p>\n

Although I\u2019ve been training hard and checking my blood sugar during my runs, I still don\u2019t feel as if I\u2019m on top of things. I’ve run a few shorter races without checking (10k<\/a> and 15k<\/a>), but in short races the price for messing up is usually paid for only after the race is done. A marathon, or even a half, is a totally different story.<\/p>\n

On Friday, I ran the Beit She\u2019an Half Marathon<\/a> for the 3rd<\/sup> time. Well, I actually ran 20 miles – 7 miles at an easy pace before the race began and then 13.1, the half marathon. The extra miles were an attempt to make up for a lack of miles and long runs in the past few weeks due to injury and a cold and with only five weeks left until the Tiberias marathon I felt I needed a 20 miler.<\/p>\n

I woke up at 4:45am to get ready for the race. I checked my blood sugar and it was 157<\/strong>. Too high for a regular day but good for race day. I had some coffee and got ready for the trip (about an hour and a half without traffic). I left at 5:45, picked up a few people on the way and drove toward the Beit She\u2019an valley.<\/p>\n

The race was supposed to begin at 9:15 so I decided to set out at 8:00 for my extra miles. (At 7:00, while driving I remembered to reduce my basal rate to 30%.) We arrived at the race area a little late because of race traffic, but early enough to not mess up my plan. I checked my blood sugar again. It was down to 138<\/strong>. I got myself ready and at 8:00 I was out running. After 3.5 miles I checked my blood sugar thinking it was time to take an energy gel (usually my BS starts to drop at this point) but my blood sugar was 140<\/strong>. I decided to just continue running. I arrived back at the starting area at 8:50 with plenty of time to get myself ready. \u00a0I checked my blood sugar again, thinking it was definitely time for a gel, but my blood sugar was still 140<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

I couldn\u2019t, and still can\u2019t, understand it. I checked again 15 minutes later. I was sure my blood sugar would be dropping but the glucometer said 165<\/strong>. I didn\u2019t know what to do. I took out an energy gel from my pack and decided to take it at the first water station (3 miles away).<\/p>\n

The race started and I found myself running at faster pace than I had planned.\u00a0 Like in my last race I tried to slow down but kept on running at a pace that was 10 seconds faster per mile than planned. I reached the first water station but was too scared to take my gel thinking it may cause my blood sugar to spike. I waited two more miles and then decided to take my first and only gel of the race.<\/p>\n

At the 5th<\/sup> mile we turned on to an open road with fields on either side. Last year this was a very enjoyable part of the race but this year there were no clouds and a strong headwind to fight.<\/p>\n

I continued to run at a steady pace, the same pace I started with, not letting the wind, or extra miles slow me down. \u00a0<\/p>\n

The course is pretty flat for the most part except for one section. At the 10th<\/sup> mile there is a steep descent downhill which is followed by a long and grueling climb back up. The downhill was nice and quick but the climb was a breaking point. I knew I would have to slow down during the uphill part of the race, but thought I would pick the pace back up when it flattened out again.<\/p>\n

That did not happen. The lack of energy and the extra mileage had taken their toll and I just couldn\u2019t get back to a good pace. I tried to save some energy thinking I could finish strong when I came to the last half mile but that didn\u2019t happen either.<\/p>\n

Although I was not happy with my performance I set a new personal record, 1:45:12<\/strong>, running 3 minutes faster than my last half marathon.<\/p>\n

I checked my blood sugar after the race and it was 109<\/strong>. I realized I had made a mistake. I should have taken another gel. It would have given me the energy I needed during the last few miles of the race and would probably not have sent my blood sugar too high.<\/p>\n

All this has made me worry about my readiness for my upcoming marathon. I am in better running condition than ever but as far as diabetes is concerned I feel less prepared than ever.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":129,"featured_media":53098,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1501],"tags":[575],"yoast_head":"\nBlood Sugar Control and Running: Still A Mystery<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Since going on the pump I feel as if it is totally random and chaotic. 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