This year in conjunction with the Race to Cure Diabetes 5K (Register HERE find out information HERE) I am doing some diabetes awareness. As a runner I was interested to find out what it would take to be a runner with Diabetes. Meet Chris Scully, an awesome woman who is insanely active and just ran her first marathon. I met her while at my sister’s house a year ago. She drove down from Canada to support Joe in his JDRF walk. How cool is that? I contacted her about doing an interview for this fundraiser and she was game so …. Here we go (my comments are in purple).
When were you diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes?
Does it run in your family?
What was it like adjusting to life with diabetes?
How did you life change?
How did your family react?
Other impacts?
Were you athletic before you were diagnosed?
How did that change after you were diagnosed?
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| Scully in a recent Snow Shoe Race. Can you see her smile? |
It took me years to understand the basics of exercise and diabetes (I'm still learning). I remember snowboarding with my pockets full of candies. I remember going camping and getting stuck in the middle of the night with a low because my food bag was hanging in the trees. Or another time a raccoon stole all my food and I was on a slippery slope of adventure to get out and call for help while trying not to expend too much energy. I was backpacking alone.
Basically, any physical activity meant I had to carry sugar somehow, somewhere on my person, no matter what! Even if it meant attracting bears. Ok never would have thought of any of these issues. Super impressed with Scully’s adventurous nature and that she didn’t let Diabetes stop her. I am floored by her.
Last year you ran your first marathon, wahoooo! What was training like for that?
It was a giant mixed bag of trial and error. A lot of testing my blood sugar while running. My blood sugar would react depending on the time of day and the duration of the run. Also, the heat of the summer and the type of run would effect it all differently. So a speed workout in the morning vs. the afternoon would have a significantly different effect on how I managed my insulin levels. It takes a lot of pre and post run insulin adjustments since most of the time I need to set my pump at least an hour before I plan to exercise. I had to try and predict how things would go on race day by experimenting with different types of fuel and the timing of carb intake. In the end I felt like I had encountered any situation which made me feel confident that I could make decisions on the fly should anything happen. And happen it did! due to a diabetes crisis that I had no control over my marathon was wrecked before the gun even went off. Aside from that I can't count how many times high or low blood sugars ruined a run for me. I said, "there's always tomorrow" so many times. Wow!! Just Wow! I think most of us will agree this is stuff we never thought of. Just running a marathon is hard enough but with all of the Diabetes care it is a whole other ball game. Super impressed that she started and finished her 1st marathon.
What goes into a marathon (4+ hrs of activity) for a diabetic, what do you have to consider that the average runner out there doesn't have to think about?
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| She says the picture says it all. |
Well see the answer above for a start. The biggest difference is that yes, we all experience pre-race anxieties but people without diabetes don't understand that stress severely effects blood sugars. So to manage stress levels is hard. I might not lower my insulin AS MUCH on race day as I would on a training run of similar duration. We also need fuel just like the next person but fuel usually means carbs so there's a delicate balance that exists between input and output. Personally, I adjust my insulin so that I am expected to take in gels. I just have to be sure not to miss those gels. Finally there's the baggage. I choose to run with a glucose meter so I can test while running because I can't afford a CGM (continuous glucose monitor) as often as I'd like. I will also carry more gels then the next person in case I go low. Some diabetics will drink the Gatorade that is provided but I can't stand the pasties.
Type 1 is an autoimmune disorder and many type 1's have other issues like with Gluten. I believe that is your case as well. How does that affect your training and life?
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| My Sister Reyna and Scully last year. |
I know right now you are sitting in your chair thinking…Holy CRAP! That woman is amazing. I totally agree.
Happy Running Everyone!
Go enter the 5K HERE. We need to find a cure for this.
