Howdy from Atlanta!
I hope everyone is doing well, and excited about a great day of turkey. I am just back from partaking in "El Tour de Tucson," which I did on behalf of JDRF. I got in Wednesday night, so that I could go around and visit doctors offices, hospitals, and was amazed at the fact that everyone knew about "the race." There were 9,000 +/- people signed up and ready to rock for the 109 mile venture through the desert. Sometime Thursday night, I came down with a stomach bug, which knocked me dead. By Friday mid afternoon, I had decided I was not going to do the race. No sense in trying to ride 110 miles if you can't hold food down, and haven't been training at all, right?
But then I get the pediatric ward of the UMC Hospital. I got to go around and visit with kids who were in renal failure, cancer patients, hit by a car, depression, and a few others. I see all these kids locked to their beds, but with the best attitudes. I got to compare surgery scars with this one girl, and hers were WAYYY cooler than mine. They all wished me luck on the ride, and I knew I had to do it. That night I gave a brief talk at the JDRF kick off dinner, and it was great to connect with old friends, and meet new ones there. I went straight to bed after, having eaten a total of 100 calories for the day.
Wake up 5:30, BS of 71, and go to breakfast with a sick stomach. I managed to eat some oatmeal with fruit, and drink 1/2 a cup of coffee, but it was enough to tell get the arrow on my FreeStyle Navigator going straight up. Head out the door, and ride 7 miles down to the ride with my buddy John Murphy, and at the start line 15 minutes pre, I was 169 trending down. Not good before a ride that long, right? Wrong! I eat a banana, and then we set off in an all out race for the first few miles. Felt ok sitting in, but when I hit the wind it was like a sack of bricks nailing me.
We make it through the first dirt, I drank some HEED, and then had 3 cliff blocks, and decided to check at about mile 15. 240 with an arrow straight up... So I switch to water only. I should have done some insulin for breakfast, but without a guarantee of holding down food, I didn't. Drinking water, drinking water as the miles fly by, and then I am 296 straight up I flattened out by the time I hit 324 mile 40, but the cramps (combo of dehydration/high BS) kicked in. This was right after the 2nd creek crossing, and it was all out war for position there. I went in 5th, and cruised through, but when it went full gas out, I just went tempo for the next few miles. Settled into the 2nd group, and tried with Jedi mind power to "not cramp!!!" At about mile 60, I was dying, and ready to quit. The cramps were coming strong, and I was not prepared for a ride of this length. Mind you, this was my 3rd ride in 3 weeks, as had been on the road traveling a ton.
I kept drinking water, and I think my BS peaked out at 374. Then it started coming down. As the decent of BS happened, the legs felt better. There was one more long gradual climb that I started near the front, and drifted all the way off the back by the top, but was able to get back on. Then I saw BS dropping, got a lift and sat last wheel for a while. We hit mile 80 at 3hrs and 15 minutes, and I knew with only 30 miles to go, and a block head wind, life would be ok.
Speed picked up, and I stayed right at the back, meeting a few friends, having some good conversation. Misery loves company, and no one (in my area of the pack) was feeling exactly chipper at that point. So we trudged along for the last 30 miles, over one climb, and into Tucson. I was about ready to cry at any given point my legs hurts so bad, as did my butt, neck, knees....
Got to the finish in the 2nd group, in a time of around 4:25, which was fast enough for me. Moral (1) of my story here: If you are going to ride a bike for a prolonged period of time, it is highly recommended to actually ride your bike... I know with some fitness it could have been much more fun, but nevertheless, it was an extremely rewarding experience. Went to the pool right after, and managed to eat a few french fries, and a chicken finger, which was the extent of my recovery meal...
Moral (2:) When you are down (or way up) a few points in The Diabetes Game, it doesn't mean the end, it just means adjustments. Instead of putting down calories for the ride, I put down water. If I would have had a pump, I could have fixed it, but I didn't, so had to make due with water. There is always a way to improve the situation, which may not be ideal, but is doable.
At the dinner that night, I hear the lady who won the spirit award tell her story. It was her 2nd bike ride, and the first she did was 52 miles. She got her clipless 2 days prior to the ride, and she finished the 109 mile ride. After I heard her talk, I shut my mouth, as I may have only ridden 3 times in 3 weeks, but the legs of 150,000ish miles in them over the years, which is tough for the muscles to forget.
Next up is Turkey day with the family, which I am excited about, and then on Monday I head to NYC for Partnering for a Cure conference. This will be very cool, and I should get to hear some wonderful speakers, and sharpen my game, while at the same time, searching for partners in the "Cure death from diabetes" campaign which we will be rolling out. More news to come on that, but for the time being, let's all be thankful for what we have, and have a great day with family, friends, or both!
Thanks for reading, and have a great day!
Happy Thanksgiving!!!
Phil
@philsoutherland
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Diabetes Game: Game Changes...
Howdy from Atlanta,
Yes, I said it, from Atlanta. These past few months have been nothing short of crazy, but awesome at the same time. I am in the middle of an 11 day stretch at home. Out of curiosity I took a look at the calendar, and prior to this stretch, I have only had 11 days at home since Aug 11, however I have got to take 32 different flights to who knows where. Lots of exciting trips, big planning, and hopes to make the team bigger, better, and stronger, and change the world at the same time.
So I last said my program for heading over seas. To do this I would take my basal insulin in 2 doses, and then do an increase of rapid. Out of laziness, it has taken some time to get back to my normal 1x day basal. For some reason or another my morning dose got to be bigger than my night dose. This was good for a while, but then sometime last week, I started going into the 160-180's at 4am. I had taken a break from Navigator, just to go to make sure I still had the talent via BS testing. Brutal reality is that I don't. I had more highs, and more lows than I have had in the last 4 months. It is just challenging to have full control when only seeing snap shots of where you are. The thing I like most about the CGM is that it is a movie, and it tells you a bit about the future, so that you can make these adjustments before there are issues. So I get back from Montreal and immediately put Navi back on. I see that it is 4am where the trend goes up. I try increase in basal, and no avail. My doc Bruce Bode told me I was having some growth hormone spikes in the night. No simple suggestions other than to get up and do a shot at that time. So on Sunday, I was slated to do the 100 mile Spin for Kids Ride. I backed my basal off by 3 units in the am to prep my body for the beating it was not prepared for. To make up for it that night, I did an increase of 3 units, and what do you know, perfect BG all night. Two possibilities here.
1. Bike riding is very good for blood sugar, and the increase in metabolism helped this happen.
2. Basal increase at night was the factor.
So to further this study, I took a few days off the bike, and kept the insulin constant to see. Granted, the metabolism stays hot for a few days after riding, but taking the time off should do the trick. So the next night, perfect BS again, and then the same again last night. So I am now working towards getting back to once a day. I will stay 2 days on this current dose, and then do a decrease in the am, and increase in pm. I should be back to once per day by Sunday, and I am hoping to get 2 good rides in this weekend.
I know I mentioned Montreal earlier, but I did not speak of the sense of accomplishment I got for getting there. In my world of not knowing where I am, I tend to forget some small things from time to time. This time, not so small. I get to the airport with 1hr 15 minutes to spare, which is plenty of time, only to realize I left my suits at home. I call Delta to learn that the next flight is in the am, which would mean missing some very important meetings with great people. So I begin the race home, grab my suit bag, and with 43 minutes before my flight (33 minutes before they close the door,) left buckhead to head to the airport (Mapquest says 25 minutes.) I somehow get parked, and get to the check in with 23 minutes pre-flight, get my ticket with 21 minutes to go, and take off in a sprint. I get to the long line at security, and pulled a Tommy-Boy yelling EXCUSE ME... The wonderful people in that line let me cut, I got through, and then a full sprint to A30. As I get to Gate A24, I cracked. I was winded, dead, and back was killing me from running with 3 bags. I dug real deep, and resumed the sprint seeing the door at A30 closing... So I scream from 100 yards away "Montreal, Montreal, Montreal!!!" only to see a hand come through and the door open, and I got on my flight. My buddy Christian of Dex4, put all bets against me, knowing I would never make it, so it was high fives all around. My door, to my seat on the plane in 33 minutes, which I believe is a world record that will never be seen in Guiness... I felt about as good as one could feel in that moment, and it really did set the tone for the entire week.
So back to that diabetes game. I think the lesson to be learned here, is that we are always going to change, and we always have to adapt. You have to try new things to get the control you want. It is important to look for the trends, and then find a way to get ahead of that trend. My problem was 4am, and it was either going to be play with my basal, or to get up at 3am and bolus. I am kind of partial to my sleep, so decided to play with the basal.
All in all, great to be home for a few days, and glad to be back on the bike. I really can't put into words the good feeling you get from spending a few hours out there with your buddies, and going into that hurt box. It may sound sadistic, but the pain on the bike turns into stories later, and a overall great feeling. So I am back on the bike, loving it, and will continue to ride for fun.
Have a great night, and thanks for reading!!
Phil
@philsoutherland
Yes, I said it, from Atlanta. These past few months have been nothing short of crazy, but awesome at the same time. I am in the middle of an 11 day stretch at home. Out of curiosity I took a look at the calendar, and prior to this stretch, I have only had 11 days at home since Aug 11, however I have got to take 32 different flights to who knows where. Lots of exciting trips, big planning, and hopes to make the team bigger, better, and stronger, and change the world at the same time.
So I last said my program for heading over seas. To do this I would take my basal insulin in 2 doses, and then do an increase of rapid. Out of laziness, it has taken some time to get back to my normal 1x day basal. For some reason or another my morning dose got to be bigger than my night dose. This was good for a while, but then sometime last week, I started going into the 160-180's at 4am. I had taken a break from Navigator, just to go to make sure I still had the talent via BS testing. Brutal reality is that I don't. I had more highs, and more lows than I have had in the last 4 months. It is just challenging to have full control when only seeing snap shots of where you are. The thing I like most about the CGM is that it is a movie, and it tells you a bit about the future, so that you can make these adjustments before there are issues. So I get back from Montreal and immediately put Navi back on. I see that it is 4am where the trend goes up. I try increase in basal, and no avail. My doc Bruce Bode told me I was having some growth hormone spikes in the night. No simple suggestions other than to get up and do a shot at that time. So on Sunday, I was slated to do the 100 mile Spin for Kids Ride. I backed my basal off by 3 units in the am to prep my body for the beating it was not prepared for. To make up for it that night, I did an increase of 3 units, and what do you know, perfect BG all night. Two possibilities here.
1. Bike riding is very good for blood sugar, and the increase in metabolism helped this happen.
2. Basal increase at night was the factor.
So to further this study, I took a few days off the bike, and kept the insulin constant to see. Granted, the metabolism stays hot for a few days after riding, but taking the time off should do the trick. So the next night, perfect BS again, and then the same again last night. So I am now working towards getting back to once a day. I will stay 2 days on this current dose, and then do a decrease in the am, and increase in pm. I should be back to once per day by Sunday, and I am hoping to get 2 good rides in this weekend.
I know I mentioned Montreal earlier, but I did not speak of the sense of accomplishment I got for getting there. In my world of not knowing where I am, I tend to forget some small things from time to time. This time, not so small. I get to the airport with 1hr 15 minutes to spare, which is plenty of time, only to realize I left my suits at home. I call Delta to learn that the next flight is in the am, which would mean missing some very important meetings with great people. So I begin the race home, grab my suit bag, and with 43 minutes before my flight (33 minutes before they close the door,) left buckhead to head to the airport (Mapquest says 25 minutes.) I somehow get parked, and get to the check in with 23 minutes pre-flight, get my ticket with 21 minutes to go, and take off in a sprint. I get to the long line at security, and pulled a Tommy-Boy yelling EXCUSE ME... The wonderful people in that line let me cut, I got through, and then a full sprint to A30. As I get to Gate A24, I cracked. I was winded, dead, and back was killing me from running with 3 bags. I dug real deep, and resumed the sprint seeing the door at A30 closing... So I scream from 100 yards away "Montreal, Montreal, Montreal!!!" only to see a hand come through and the door open, and I got on my flight. My buddy Christian of Dex4, put all bets against me, knowing I would never make it, so it was high fives all around. My door, to my seat on the plane in 33 minutes, which I believe is a world record that will never be seen in Guiness... I felt about as good as one could feel in that moment, and it really did set the tone for the entire week.
So back to that diabetes game. I think the lesson to be learned here, is that we are always going to change, and we always have to adapt. You have to try new things to get the control you want. It is important to look for the trends, and then find a way to get ahead of that trend. My problem was 4am, and it was either going to be play with my basal, or to get up at 3am and bolus. I am kind of partial to my sleep, so decided to play with the basal.
All in all, great to be home for a few days, and glad to be back on the bike. I really can't put into words the good feeling you get from spending a few hours out there with your buddies, and going into that hurt box. It may sound sadistic, but the pain on the bike turns into stories later, and a overall great feeling. So I am back on the bike, loving it, and will continue to ride for fun.
Have a great night, and thanks for reading!!
Phil
@philsoutherland
Monday, October 5, 2009
Diabetes Game and overseas...
Howdy from Munich,
Past week has been pretty rocking. First was EASD in Vienna which gave some great promise to our Euro/World Wide expansion, but also to know that there is still much work to be done so that the diabetes world over here learns about Team Type 1. Had great meetings, hung out with my buddy Kyle Rose, Jay D. (who taught me of a few "Dunniganisms") and many others. It was a grand time for sure.
I read the comment by "jpnairn"
re: goal of sub 5 A1c for type 1 diabetic.
Reminds me of anorexia.
Sub 6, I'd give you an Attaboy. Sub-5, I can't encourage. Sure you can do it. You could probably go sub 4 if you really tried.
The goal should not be to get it as low as it can go. The goal should be to get it to a healthy level.
If I had a 4.8 with a lot of dangerous lows, then I would agree. But, I use "The Best" treatment and technology out there. I do not suggest anyone set their goal at sub 5, and if they did aim for that, to use the exact same stuff (FreeStyle Navigator, basal and fast acting insulin, Dex4) that I do. I am OCD, and I channel that OCD behavior towards my blood sugar. 69 is too low, 119 is too high. I check, and I correct. Some days things are smooth, and that means I do 5 shots. Some days (yesterday) things are tricky and I do 13 shots.
My 28 day average is 102, with 38 mg/dl standard deviation, 88% in target, 4% above target, and 8% below target.
I am trying to lower the standard deviation, and the time below target. My last Glycomark test, which measure the variability in your blood sugar was 11.1, and above 10 is considered excellent.
The motto of Team Type 1 is "A1C: Strive for 6.5" I stand by that. If you can get to 6.5 successfully and safely, then aim for 6.3, then 6.1. The fact of the matter is, that people without diabetes have A1C's between 4.0-6.0. If you can get to that range, then odds are you will have 0 complications just like they do.
Lastly, I am on my 9,900th day as a person with diabetes. I want to be the best I can be, and stay motivated. For me, motivation comes with goal setting, and working towards them. If I set an easy goal, then it is not really worth the effort to achieve it. Goals are meant to be challenging, meant to push, and it was no easy task to lower my A1C like that. It took work, and I am damn proud of the result for my efforts.
So about this travel thing: Flying for a 6 hour time difference can mess things up. Being on an Omni-Pod is easy, as the basal stays the same, or can be micro adjusted. Using basal insulin can be a bit more tricky. So after screwing up a few times, I decided to split dose my basal insulin. This started a week before the trip to get each dose to about even. And then on the night time dose on the plane, I did 1 extra unit to make up for the lack of activity. Then the morning dose was also 1 extra unit, which was too much of an increase, so I was correcting via food a lot...
A couple of runs the first 2 days, and jet lag was gone. Funny enough, my body is so not used to running so both times required a big bolus after even though I ate nothing during the run. I reckon as I get back in shape (long way to go) that this will stop eventually stop. So now the fun begins of trying new stuff, screwing up, adapting, and getting on track. Gotta do something to keep this diabetes game fresh and fun! In the end, I know that running will help all work well again, so really can't wait.
So whatever your A1C is, that is great cause that is where you are. But where you choose to be 1 month from now, a day from now, a year from now is all up to you. If your goal is to get from 10 to 8, that is great. From 8 to 7, congrats. I would say to set a goal that will push you to make the adjustments necessary to get there. Good luck!!
And Have a great day!!!
Phil
Past week has been pretty rocking. First was EASD in Vienna which gave some great promise to our Euro/World Wide expansion, but also to know that there is still much work to be done so that the diabetes world over here learns about Team Type 1. Had great meetings, hung out with my buddy Kyle Rose, Jay D. (who taught me of a few "Dunniganisms") and many others. It was a grand time for sure.
I read the comment by "jpnairn"
re: goal of sub 5 A1c for type 1 diabetic.
Reminds me of anorexia.
Sub 6, I'd give you an Attaboy. Sub-5, I can't encourage. Sure you can do it. You could probably go sub 4 if you really tried.
The goal should not be to get it as low as it can go. The goal should be to get it to a healthy level.
If I had a 4.8 with a lot of dangerous lows, then I would agree. But, I use "The Best" treatment and technology out there. I do not suggest anyone set their goal at sub 5, and if they did aim for that, to use the exact same stuff (FreeStyle Navigator, basal and fast acting insulin, Dex4) that I do. I am OCD, and I channel that OCD behavior towards my blood sugar. 69 is too low, 119 is too high. I check, and I correct. Some days things are smooth, and that means I do 5 shots. Some days (yesterday) things are tricky and I do 13 shots.
My 28 day average is 102, with 38 mg/dl standard deviation, 88% in target, 4% above target, and 8% below target.
I am trying to lower the standard deviation, and the time below target. My last Glycomark test, which measure the variability in your blood sugar was 11.1, and above 10 is considered excellent.
The motto of Team Type 1 is "A1C: Strive for 6.5" I stand by that. If you can get to 6.5 successfully and safely, then aim for 6.3, then 6.1. The fact of the matter is, that people without diabetes have A1C's between 4.0-6.0. If you can get to that range, then odds are you will have 0 complications just like they do.
Lastly, I am on my 9,900th day as a person with diabetes. I want to be the best I can be, and stay motivated. For me, motivation comes with goal setting, and working towards them. If I set an easy goal, then it is not really worth the effort to achieve it. Goals are meant to be challenging, meant to push, and it was no easy task to lower my A1C like that. It took work, and I am damn proud of the result for my efforts.
So about this travel thing: Flying for a 6 hour time difference can mess things up. Being on an Omni-Pod is easy, as the basal stays the same, or can be micro adjusted. Using basal insulin can be a bit more tricky. So after screwing up a few times, I decided to split dose my basal insulin. This started a week before the trip to get each dose to about even. And then on the night time dose on the plane, I did 1 extra unit to make up for the lack of activity. Then the morning dose was also 1 extra unit, which was too much of an increase, so I was correcting via food a lot...
A couple of runs the first 2 days, and jet lag was gone. Funny enough, my body is so not used to running so both times required a big bolus after even though I ate nothing during the run. I reckon as I get back in shape (long way to go) that this will stop eventually stop. So now the fun begins of trying new stuff, screwing up, adapting, and getting on track. Gotta do something to keep this diabetes game fresh and fun! In the end, I know that running will help all work well again, so really can't wait.
So whatever your A1C is, that is great cause that is where you are. But where you choose to be 1 month from now, a day from now, a year from now is all up to you. If your goal is to get from 10 to 8, that is great. From 8 to 7, congrats. I would say to set a goal that will push you to make the adjustments necessary to get there. Good luck!!
And Have a great day!!!
Phil
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Long awaited update on the diabetes game
Howdy from the air! (btwn Las Vegas and Atl)
So it has been about 2 years since I last wrote, and for that I apologize. Lots has been going on for TT1 and myself. From Winning the KOM jersey in Ireland, to Tour of Missouri, and wins at the Tour of Utah. All this coupled in with great meetings with our sponsors about the future. Then there was losing my insulin, trying to keep control with NO exercise, and the 22 different places I have stayed in September….
Losing the insulin was a bit of a problem. It had been about 34 hours straight of travel, and somehow or another, my fast acting insulin disappeared, and I had no back up (idiot!) but it happens. So we are in the team car (for 5hrs,) and I had just committed to not eating, but the metabolism shut down caused me to go from 71 to 220, event though I was injecting insulin like crazy. At the end of the race, the Race Doctor walked me to the pharmacy, I picked up a 5pack of insulin pens, and 20 minutes later the FreeStyle Navigator said I was back in business.
I did get to take a day to myself in Dublin. Went to see my favorite spot: The Guinness St. James Brewery. Who knew that Arthur Guinness signed a 9000 year lease on the property. Needless to say, The Stout is hear to stay. It was cool, as when I told the bartender I was hear for the Tour of Ireland, and we won the KOM, my 1 free pint turned into 3 free ones. This was about the 4th week now that I was walking around with every step being agony. I had seen a good handful of docs, all of who didn’t really think I could have broken my Fibula. But getting back from Ireland, and in one place for 3 days, I was able to get the confirmation… So then a space boot to keep it stabilized and help with repair. It was around this time, that I re-committed to “tight control.”
When I was running 5-6 days a week, control was a breeze. The only pain was when sometimes I was too sensitive to my insulin, and had to eat a lot more. No exercise, big adjustments. I had to change my diet, eat less carbs, and just be really watchful of what I put into my body. My 28 day avg on Navigator had gotten up to 118, which is not within “my goal.” Now if that is your goal, and you get there, that is awesome! My goals would often be viewed as too aggressive, but I have the best tools in the business, so can work towards them, and do it safely. At the beginning of the summer, when my buddies Kevin and KR beat me in the A1C competition, I got pissed. (please note: neither Kevin or KR have diabetes) Still, I beat them last year, and wanted it again. Mine was 5.9 in June, and getting beat spurred me to set a new goal, and a new focus. I had never had an A1C less than 5, so committed to doing it! Running made it easy to get on track, but the fracture set me back. Then it became a lifestyle adjustment to do it. 2 months later, at the ADA I had an A1C of 5.0. I was PUMPED, but still not to goal. This is right when the fracture happened, so I just went into super diet mode. Focused, and ate wisely, and then 2 weeks ago at the Diabetes Research Institute, I got 17 vials of blood drawn for a study about diabetes and exercise long term. 5 days later the results are back: A1C: 4.8! How bout dem apples. If I had set my goal at 6.5, and got there, it would have been the same level of satisfaction. So what are your goals? What can you do differently to achieve them?
I would say first and foremost is exercise. It is SOOOO much easier when doing some sort of activity. I think the last month proves that it can be done no matter the lifestyle. Right now my A1C is better than I would have ever thought 2 years ago. I kid you not, I didn’t think sub 5 was possible, until I did this June. Then it was working to make the impossible possible. I do use a FreeStyle Navigator, and I probably press the button to check my BS 100 times per day. I am always looking for the trend, and trying to be ahead of the trend with my fast acting insulin and my Dex4. A blood sugar of 120 is no longer satisfactory, and I am ALWAYS thinking about where my blood sugar is going. This may or may not be healthy. I would say odds are, that it is not. Too much stress, to much pressure to be on all the time.
Now it is time to focus on the rest of health. I fly to Vienna on Monday for EASD, where I get to meet with Global Leaders in Diabetes. I have plans to change the world, and I need the help of some people there to achieve it.
Life goal: Everyone in the world has insulin and test strips
Sporting Goals: 2011 Giro d’Itallia, and 2012 Tour de France
Diabetes Goals: Lower standard deviation
After Vienna, I get a 2 week vacation traveling around Europe by myself and reading a lot of books. I plan to eat well, sleep well, and come back strong. Lots going on with our current partners, future partners, and operations for the Team. Between TT1, TT2, we now have 80 people in the organization, and it will be run out of Atlanta.
I believe I have gone on too long now, but like to leave with this: Whatever diabetes goal you want to set, do it with the help of your doctor, and your friend. I would highly recommend some goal around the A1C: It is the goal, that gives you a reason to check, to correct, to skip desert, or to make time for exercise. Set that goal, and take the steps to get there. Have fun in the process tooJ
Thanks so much for reading, and for all of your support for Team Type 1 and Team Type 2!!!
Have a great day.
Phil
P.S. Team Clothing still available on www.teamtype1.org
Thanks for the support!!!
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Friday, September 18, 2009
Interview in Milwaukee
Milwaukee WMYX-FM host Tony Loreno talks to me about the teams. I am attending a TCOYD (that is Take Control of Your Diabetes) Conference in Milwaukee. Everyone is great. We have the same goal.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Diabetes Game: Victory Running Game: Ouch
Howdy from Hotlanta (yes it is living up to its name)
A1C: 5.0! That is my personal best, and I am thrilled to death with it. How was it done? Slight adjustments, pushing the envelope, exercise, insulin, FreeStyle Navigator, Dex4 Glucose. I have had close to two years now of using the Navigator, and have learned how to use it to get better. I am not content with a blood sugar of 130 if it is there for more than 20 minutes. If I see 130, and then 131, then 132 I know I am trending up, and will give a slight correction with fast acting insulin. I would rather hover at 70, than at 130. Then again, if I saw 77, then 76, then 72 all in a 10 minute span I would pop some Dex4 tabs to try and bring it up. I use the tools that I have, and I may just be a little OCD about it. I am curious to know how many times a day I actually press the button that shows my blood sugar.
My guess would be about 125. Some days maybe more, some maybe less, but to get a blood sugar, and a trend 100+ times a day gives me a big edge in always being 1 step ahead of the curve. If I have insulin going in before I have a chance to get high, then I don't get high blood sugars. If sugar is going in before I have a chance to get low, then no hypos. I will say that the running has helped, eating well has helped. My schedule is never the same 2 days in a row. It is on a plane, in a car, on the phone, on the computer, so seeing the trend is invaluable to me.
Right now my 28 day average is 100, with 91% in target, 4 above, and 5 below. So I can still get better. I have had some hard times before. I spent Christmas when I was 9 years old in the hospital because of the flu, which turned into ketones. In 8th grade I went in a movie theatre with my mom to see Twister, and woke up in the hospital, but it is those life lessons that drive me to have the best control I can possibly have. When it comes down to it, this is The ONE thing in life I own 100%, the ONE thing I know I can control. My reward is getting to talk about, getting to try and help people.
So this past week I got a few special experiences. First was Camp Kudzu, which rocked. It is great to have a few days where I can talk to kids, talk to people with diabetes, dance, play, and get dirty. I had one young lady come up to me and make my week. She was 18 years old, and about to be a freshman in college, and is now a CIT at camp. She said, I just want you to know you inspired me to take control. She heard my talk 3 years ago at camp, and after that began to check 5-6 more times per day, exercise a bit more, and that her last 3 A1C's have all been 5.9. Awesome, eh? So I got to have a lot of these conversations, and then cap it off with a talk to the teenagers Tuesday night. Then it was the most painful part of the week in leaving camp. It really killed me that I had to leave. Next up was AADE, which I also love. I got to see 10 others on Team Type 1, and Team Type 2 (Nathan, Joe, Kyle, Laura, Saul, John, Jeff, Adam, Tom,) and connect with friends who are Educators, doctors, industry, and a lot of others with diabetes (TJ!!) It is really cool to see so many people who have a passion for making a difference. It was awesome to reconnect with so many who say they use us as an example to all their patients.
Now how about the running: Injured. This has been frustrating, as I was just starting to really feel good out there. Running finally felt natural, and I was getting stronger, getting faster, and enjoying it. I strained something, which I hope to get fixed tomorrow, but it has now been 7 days with no running. By the end of the week it got frustrating, so I decided yesterday to ride. I got 2 days of riding in, and have never felt so awkward on a bike... Recap on this, which I just have to laugh about: Ride lots, get injured, start to run, which is very awkward. Then get injured on run, get out and ride, which now feels very awkward. I feel like a ping pong... I hope to be back on my feet speeding away here soon.
I am still on track for NY Marathon Nov 1. I will do a half marathon in Munich to warm up for it on Oct 11. I have never been to Germany. This is part work, part vacation, and I can't wait. Last year was solo for most of it. This time I hope to hook up with friends while over there. I guess I have rambled on long enough, and would not like to ask a favor if you made it this far.
If you have gotten any help from this blog, any take aways that have helped you manage your diabetes better, or live a better life, then I ask to please pay it forward. Use your skills, and your knowledge to help somebody else do it better. It may be as simple as forwarding this on, as bold as talking to a local support group. Let's be the domino's that change the big D!
One last time, and then I will quit bragging: My A1C was 5.0. What is yours, and where do you want it to be? The past is the past, but the future you control.
Off to Santa Barbara Tuesday for some athlete days, and R+R.
Thanks for reading, and for all your support.
Have a great day.
Phil
Team Clothing is going fast: Get it while it's hot at TeamType1.org
follow me on twitter: @philsoutherland
Ciao!
A1C: 5.0! That is my personal best, and I am thrilled to death with it. How was it done? Slight adjustments, pushing the envelope, exercise, insulin, FreeStyle Navigator, Dex4 Glucose. I have had close to two years now of using the Navigator, and have learned how to use it to get better. I am not content with a blood sugar of 130 if it is there for more than 20 minutes. If I see 130, and then 131, then 132 I know I am trending up, and will give a slight correction with fast acting insulin. I would rather hover at 70, than at 130. Then again, if I saw 77, then 76, then 72 all in a 10 minute span I would pop some Dex4 tabs to try and bring it up. I use the tools that I have, and I may just be a little OCD about it. I am curious to know how many times a day I actually press the button that shows my blood sugar.
My guess would be about 125. Some days maybe more, some maybe less, but to get a blood sugar, and a trend 100+ times a day gives me a big edge in always being 1 step ahead of the curve. If I have insulin going in before I have a chance to get high, then I don't get high blood sugars. If sugar is going in before I have a chance to get low, then no hypos. I will say that the running has helped, eating well has helped. My schedule is never the same 2 days in a row. It is on a plane, in a car, on the phone, on the computer, so seeing the trend is invaluable to me.
Right now my 28 day average is 100, with 91% in target, 4 above, and 5 below. So I can still get better. I have had some hard times before. I spent Christmas when I was 9 years old in the hospital because of the flu, which turned into ketones. In 8th grade I went in a movie theatre with my mom to see Twister, and woke up in the hospital, but it is those life lessons that drive me to have the best control I can possibly have. When it comes down to it, this is The ONE thing in life I own 100%, the ONE thing I know I can control. My reward is getting to talk about, getting to try and help people.
So this past week I got a few special experiences. First was Camp Kudzu, which rocked. It is great to have a few days where I can talk to kids, talk to people with diabetes, dance, play, and get dirty. I had one young lady come up to me and make my week. She was 18 years old, and about to be a freshman in college, and is now a CIT at camp. She said, I just want you to know you inspired me to take control. She heard my talk 3 years ago at camp, and after that began to check 5-6 more times per day, exercise a bit more, and that her last 3 A1C's have all been 5.9. Awesome, eh? So I got to have a lot of these conversations, and then cap it off with a talk to the teenagers Tuesday night. Then it was the most painful part of the week in leaving camp. It really killed me that I had to leave. Next up was AADE, which I also love. I got to see 10 others on Team Type 1, and Team Type 2 (Nathan, Joe, Kyle, Laura, Saul, John, Jeff, Adam, Tom,) and connect with friends who are Educators, doctors, industry, and a lot of others with diabetes (TJ!!) It is really cool to see so many people who have a passion for making a difference. It was awesome to reconnect with so many who say they use us as an example to all their patients.
Now how about the running: Injured. This has been frustrating, as I was just starting to really feel good out there. Running finally felt natural, and I was getting stronger, getting faster, and enjoying it. I strained something, which I hope to get fixed tomorrow, but it has now been 7 days with no running. By the end of the week it got frustrating, so I decided yesterday to ride. I got 2 days of riding in, and have never felt so awkward on a bike... Recap on this, which I just have to laugh about: Ride lots, get injured, start to run, which is very awkward. Then get injured on run, get out and ride, which now feels very awkward. I feel like a ping pong... I hope to be back on my feet speeding away here soon.
I am still on track for NY Marathon Nov 1. I will do a half marathon in Munich to warm up for it on Oct 11. I have never been to Germany. This is part work, part vacation, and I can't wait. Last year was solo for most of it. This time I hope to hook up with friends while over there. I guess I have rambled on long enough, and would not like to ask a favor if you made it this far.
If you have gotten any help from this blog, any take aways that have helped you manage your diabetes better, or live a better life, then I ask to please pay it forward. Use your skills, and your knowledge to help somebody else do it better. It may be as simple as forwarding this on, as bold as talking to a local support group. Let's be the domino's that change the big D!
One last time, and then I will quit bragging: My A1C was 5.0. What is yours, and where do you want it to be? The past is the past, but the future you control.
Off to Santa Barbara Tuesday for some athlete days, and R+R.
Thanks for reading, and for all your support.
Have a great day.
Phil
Team Clothing is going fast: Get it while it's hot at TeamType1.org
follow me on twitter: @philsoutherland
Ciao!
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
The Diabetes Game: Time Zones...
Howdy from Tally,
Back to the original home for a few days. A lot has gone on since I last wrote, and I last wrote so long ago, cause lots has been going on.
I have been in a few different spots: Boise, Atlanta, Seattle, Atlanta, Tallahassee, and maybe some others too. Boise was AWESOME! Had a great time with Tim Schaub of Sanofi-Aventis, and then it was crit time. It was good to see the guys, the crew, and the fans.
I was talking to Joe right before the race about the Blood sugar. 200 30 minutes prior, and 200 10 minutes, so a level trend. He was good to go, and the race proved it. All the guys (Ken, Aldo, Creed, Holt, and Joe) were super aggressive. It seemed like every lap we had a guy in a move, until the critical point. 8 laps to go, 2 guys had 20 seconds. 5 to go, they had 17, 4 to go 22, then TT1 went to the front. Creed got the gap down to 17 seconds in 1 lap, then Joe came through like a freight train for a 1 lap effort that got it down to 10 seconds. Dan brought it down to 5, and then the guys got jumped. Ken and Aldo just so happened to be fresh, and ready so jumped on, and proceeded to blow it out taking 1-2 by about 20 bike lengths. It was great to watch, and I was soooo pumped for everyone, Joe in particular. In all his years on the bike, this was by far the BEST I have ever witnessed him ride. It just goes to show that with hard work, sacrifice, and time, anything is possible. Sure to see him on the top step of the podium very soon.
So yeah, this running thing... Here is what I have learned as of late:
If I give any rapid acting insulin within 2.5 hours of a run, I will drop rapidly.
If no rapid acting insulin within 2.5-3.5 hours I stay steady.
Is this important info: For me, yes. I know if I do give insulin to close, then I need to prepare for the run by bringing extra food, and also taking blood sugar higher before the start. The extra food is only in case of the crash. If I timed the insulin right, it is all about the slow rise within 30 minutes before the start. Getting it up to 150-175, and then taking Dex4 tabs as needed. I have been getting longer runs in, and faster ones in. It is starting to get to the point where I can push myself, suffer, and for some reason or another I like that. Pain is good, pain is addicting. Last week on my tempo run I left at 165 trending up, finished at 208 with 6 Dex4 tabs in there. It was a 6 mile run, with 4 tempo miles, and I did one of em at a 5:40ish pace...
At this point my metabolism was FLYING. Not sure what the deal is, but I was doing less than 25 units and eating a good bit. 2 units covered 90 grams of carbs one morning.
This took some adjusting to, but I have it down now, kind of...
So about 1 month ago I made some crazy diabetes goals. I was looking at my 1,3,7,14,21, and 28 day averages on my Navigator and saw in the 110-125 range, and decided: I can be better, or at least have better numbers. I made it a goal to get all of my averages into the 90's, and do so without HYPO, which is no small feat. So it has taken work, in constantly looking at the number, and the trend. Always trying to be 1 step ahead of my blood sugar. Learning what food, and what the activity will do. Progress came. Bit by bit I have been able to get better. I have gotten to where my 21 day average is at 99, with 3% below 60, 95% between 60-170, and 2% above 170. I would like to compare with a non-diabetic and see where we stand. I think with these #'s I should be able to have an A1C less than 5.0. I have another 10 days until the A1C test, and I hope to have achieved the number with the 28 day avg by then.
I thought these were crazy at first, but now it is doable. My question to you: What is your diabetes goal? If it is an average of 155, that is great, if 130, that is great. Having a goal in mind in regard to the every day #'s gives purpose to diabetes. It makes you learn, adjust, and adapt.
Home for 1 more day. About to go run with my buddy Andy Roberts, and then a few days in Atlanta before 3 days at Camp Kudzu, and then AADE, then Cali, DC, Ireland, and who knows where...
Thanks for reading, and I hope that I can get back more soon. Lots of exciting things going for Team Type 1 and Team Type 2 for the future. Thanks for being a part of it!!
Phil
P.S. TJ: No, not cozy in the 60's. Anytime I get into the 60's I try to eat just a little so that I can bring it back to the 80's and 90's. Sometimes gotta push the envelope though...
Later!
Back to the original home for a few days. A lot has gone on since I last wrote, and I last wrote so long ago, cause lots has been going on.
I have been in a few different spots: Boise, Atlanta, Seattle, Atlanta, Tallahassee, and maybe some others too. Boise was AWESOME! Had a great time with Tim Schaub of Sanofi-Aventis, and then it was crit time. It was good to see the guys, the crew, and the fans.
I was talking to Joe right before the race about the Blood sugar. 200 30 minutes prior, and 200 10 minutes, so a level trend. He was good to go, and the race proved it. All the guys (Ken, Aldo, Creed, Holt, and Joe) were super aggressive. It seemed like every lap we had a guy in a move, until the critical point. 8 laps to go, 2 guys had 20 seconds. 5 to go, they had 17, 4 to go 22, then TT1 went to the front. Creed got the gap down to 17 seconds in 1 lap, then Joe came through like a freight train for a 1 lap effort that got it down to 10 seconds. Dan brought it down to 5, and then the guys got jumped. Ken and Aldo just so happened to be fresh, and ready so jumped on, and proceeded to blow it out taking 1-2 by about 20 bike lengths. It was great to watch, and I was soooo pumped for everyone, Joe in particular. In all his years on the bike, this was by far the BEST I have ever witnessed him ride. It just goes to show that with hard work, sacrifice, and time, anything is possible. Sure to see him on the top step of the podium very soon.
So yeah, this running thing... Here is what I have learned as of late:
If I give any rapid acting insulin within 2.5 hours of a run, I will drop rapidly.
If no rapid acting insulin within 2.5-3.5 hours I stay steady.
Is this important info: For me, yes. I know if I do give insulin to close, then I need to prepare for the run by bringing extra food, and also taking blood sugar higher before the start. The extra food is only in case of the crash. If I timed the insulin right, it is all about the slow rise within 30 minutes before the start. Getting it up to 150-175, and then taking Dex4 tabs as needed. I have been getting longer runs in, and faster ones in. It is starting to get to the point where I can push myself, suffer, and for some reason or another I like that. Pain is good, pain is addicting. Last week on my tempo run I left at 165 trending up, finished at 208 with 6 Dex4 tabs in there. It was a 6 mile run, with 4 tempo miles, and I did one of em at a 5:40ish pace...
At this point my metabolism was FLYING. Not sure what the deal is, but I was doing less than 25 units and eating a good bit. 2 units covered 90 grams of carbs one morning.
This took some adjusting to, but I have it down now, kind of...
So about 1 month ago I made some crazy diabetes goals. I was looking at my 1,3,7,14,21, and 28 day averages on my Navigator and saw in the 110-125 range, and decided: I can be better, or at least have better numbers. I made it a goal to get all of my averages into the 90's, and do so without HYPO, which is no small feat. So it has taken work, in constantly looking at the number, and the trend. Always trying to be 1 step ahead of my blood sugar. Learning what food, and what the activity will do. Progress came. Bit by bit I have been able to get better. I have gotten to where my 21 day average is at 99, with 3% below 60, 95% between 60-170, and 2% above 170. I would like to compare with a non-diabetic and see where we stand. I think with these #'s I should be able to have an A1C less than 5.0. I have another 10 days until the A1C test, and I hope to have achieved the number with the 28 day avg by then.
I thought these were crazy at first, but now it is doable. My question to you: What is your diabetes goal? If it is an average of 155, that is great, if 130, that is great. Having a goal in mind in regard to the every day #'s gives purpose to diabetes. It makes you learn, adjust, and adapt.
Home for 1 more day. About to go run with my buddy Andy Roberts, and then a few days in Atlanta before 3 days at Camp Kudzu, and then AADE, then Cali, DC, Ireland, and who knows where...
Thanks for reading, and I hope that I can get back more soon. Lots of exciting things going for Team Type 1 and Team Type 2 for the future. Thanks for being a part of it!!
Phil
P.S. TJ: No, not cozy in the 60's. Anytime I get into the 60's I try to eat just a little so that I can bring it back to the 80's and 90's. Sometimes gotta push the envelope though...
Later!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Diabetes Game: Hypo Trails
Howdy from Hotlanta,
How goes it? This has been a really great week!! Lots of work done at home on Mon-Tues, then headed down to Orlando for the CWD conference. This thing really rocks! This was my 4th year there, and it may have been the best. Got to see a lot of old friends, and make some new ones. Morgan, Simon, Fabio, and I were in the sanofi-aventis where we thought we had a never ending supply of Calendars and Posters to sign and give out for the kids. But the posters went like hot-cakes. Joe and Kyle were at Omni-Pod, and Matt Brooks and Tom Kingery were rocking at the Abbott Booth. Our goal there was to get the kids excited about good control, and let the parents know that their kids can achieve dreams, and using the best tools will help them do it. My new buddy Frank is going to get a car from dad if he gets his A1C to 6.5. I was glad to help broker that deal...
Big thanks to Jeff and Laura for all the hard work to put it on. It really was top notch.
Then Sat it was back home, and to the Quenton Colby art show. Colby has now begun to do cycling paintings, and they really were sharp. I was lucky enough to win the raffle, and now have my 3rd Q.C painting in my house. Pumped on that one.
So I had gotten a system down for running. It seemed to get to the point where I don't need a whole lot of food for runs, if any, so long as I start at the right level. I think the caveat here is not giving insulin within 2.5 hours of the run. Today was my longest run to date, an 11 mile jaunt. My massage therapist Collette told me I needed to run on trails, as I was starting to turn my body different ways from the roads. So I hit up the trails in Chattahoochee. I woke up at 90, had a slight trend up to 141, where I gave 2units of rapid acting insulin, waited 30 minutes until I was trending down slightly, then ate 50gms of carbs from oatmeal. I began to trend back up, and was 175 when I hit the trail. My Nike mile counter thing was not working, so I had to guess the mileage. I did not want to go short, so I figured 9 minute miles or 100 minutes. I took the usual tube of Dex 4 tabs, which gives me 40gms of carbs. I had planned to get back to the car for a refill if needed.
Low and behold, I get lost. I am in the woods, cruising away, and then BS begins to drop. I see 165 on the Navigator which is a 10 pt drop. So I take in 2 tabs, then see 154, to take 3 more. Then the arrow is going down. Most of the time, when I stop running, my BS rises. I decided I would trick my blood sugar into going up, and stop and stretch. I took my time hoping to get the arrow to flatten out, but after a few minutes I began to run again. Up, down, left, right until I really have no idea where I am, or where to go. Also, the maps were not the best, so it was just guess time. At one point I was on the creek bed wondering if I was even on a trail... By this point I am at 75 trending down, and have 0 tabs left. I was wondering when it was going to bottom out. I was beginning to stress a bit, as I had no idea where I was, and no extra food. My back up here was that it was a nice day, and lots of people were picnicking, so I could just ask for a coke. The blood sugar bottomed out at 51, and I was not feeling so hot. It wasn't until I was 1:25 minutes in that I figured out where I was, and that seemed to be all I needed. Next I checked I was 53, then 55, not feeling great on one level, but feeling real good that I was not in the 40's, and on my way home. I got to the flat part I knew, and did 2 more miles in the last 15 minutes to finish up.
What could I have done differently to avoid this stress:
1. Bolus/inject rapid acting insulin farther out before the run, so the tail is gone.
2. Bring more food. Just cause the body was efficient the last 3 runs, doesn't mean it will be today.
3. Know where you I am going, but then again, getting lost is fun, so I am going to scratch this one.
4.) Bring more food. When exercising like this, it is always best to be over prepped than under.
I got in the car, did 4 units of rapid and then drank 60gm carb 16gm protein from choc milk, then pasta 45 minutes after that. I was sitting right at 80-85 for a while, and next thing I knew was at 165 trending up, Did 3units of rapid, which didn't seem to be enough, so another 2, and that was the trick.
I have done either 16 or 17u of basal insulin each night this week. Last night was 16 on a rest, so I am thinking 15 tonight after the long run. Decision to come in the next 55 minuets...
As for my averages on the FreeStyle Navigator
1 day: 104
3day: 96
7day: 105
14day: 105
21day: 108
28day: 109
These are within goal. I have found that since I am just doing basic fitness now, not racing, control is much, much easier. I am still eating a very healthy diet (for the most part) exercising regularly, and watching my trend arrows on the Navigator like a hawk. I made it a goal 6 weeks ago to get all my averages under 110. Now I want under 105. I also am doing this with a target range of 60-170, and have between 90-94% in target in the above categories. Also, the Standard Deviation ranges from 28-36 on all these too. Trying not to have variability.
Could you do this??? Yes, if you wanted to. If you have made it this far, and if I may ask, what is your 14 day average on your meter? When I first started paying attention, mine were in the 140's. Then over time I was able to lower them, and get much much better.
Also, take into account that this is my life, and these are my goals. This is not a standard to set for yourself. But you can set your standard, set your bar. Maybe lowering the 14 day average by 10 points is a goal. Maybe 20 points?
Off to Boise Id on Wed for 5 days. Then back for 2 nights before heading to Seattle...
The game shall go on...
Have a great night, and thanks for reading!
Phil
www.teamtype1.org
@philsoutherland on Twitter
How goes it? This has been a really great week!! Lots of work done at home on Mon-Tues, then headed down to Orlando for the CWD conference. This thing really rocks! This was my 4th year there, and it may have been the best. Got to see a lot of old friends, and make some new ones. Morgan, Simon, Fabio, and I were in the sanofi-aventis where we thought we had a never ending supply of Calendars and Posters to sign and give out for the kids. But the posters went like hot-cakes. Joe and Kyle were at Omni-Pod, and Matt Brooks and Tom Kingery were rocking at the Abbott Booth. Our goal there was to get the kids excited about good control, and let the parents know that their kids can achieve dreams, and using the best tools will help them do it. My new buddy Frank is going to get a car from dad if he gets his A1C to 6.5. I was glad to help broker that deal...
Big thanks to Jeff and Laura for all the hard work to put it on. It really was top notch.
Then Sat it was back home, and to the Quenton Colby art show. Colby has now begun to do cycling paintings, and they really were sharp. I was lucky enough to win the raffle, and now have my 3rd Q.C painting in my house. Pumped on that one.
So I had gotten a system down for running. It seemed to get to the point where I don't need a whole lot of food for runs, if any, so long as I start at the right level. I think the caveat here is not giving insulin within 2.5 hours of the run. Today was my longest run to date, an 11 mile jaunt. My massage therapist Collette told me I needed to run on trails, as I was starting to turn my body different ways from the roads. So I hit up the trails in Chattahoochee. I woke up at 90, had a slight trend up to 141, where I gave 2units of rapid acting insulin, waited 30 minutes until I was trending down slightly, then ate 50gms of carbs from oatmeal. I began to trend back up, and was 175 when I hit the trail. My Nike mile counter thing was not working, so I had to guess the mileage. I did not want to go short, so I figured 9 minute miles or 100 minutes. I took the usual tube of Dex 4 tabs, which gives me 40gms of carbs. I had planned to get back to the car for a refill if needed.
Low and behold, I get lost. I am in the woods, cruising away, and then BS begins to drop. I see 165 on the Navigator which is a 10 pt drop. So I take in 2 tabs, then see 154, to take 3 more. Then the arrow is going down. Most of the time, when I stop running, my BS rises. I decided I would trick my blood sugar into going up, and stop and stretch. I took my time hoping to get the arrow to flatten out, but after a few minutes I began to run again. Up, down, left, right until I really have no idea where I am, or where to go. Also, the maps were not the best, so it was just guess time. At one point I was on the creek bed wondering if I was even on a trail... By this point I am at 75 trending down, and have 0 tabs left. I was wondering when it was going to bottom out. I was beginning to stress a bit, as I had no idea where I was, and no extra food. My back up here was that it was a nice day, and lots of people were picnicking, so I could just ask for a coke. The blood sugar bottomed out at 51, and I was not feeling so hot. It wasn't until I was 1:25 minutes in that I figured out where I was, and that seemed to be all I needed. Next I checked I was 53, then 55, not feeling great on one level, but feeling real good that I was not in the 40's, and on my way home. I got to the flat part I knew, and did 2 more miles in the last 15 minutes to finish up.
What could I have done differently to avoid this stress:
1. Bolus/inject rapid acting insulin farther out before the run, so the tail is gone.
2. Bring more food. Just cause the body was efficient the last 3 runs, doesn't mean it will be today.
3. Know where you I am going, but then again, getting lost is fun, so I am going to scratch this one.
4.) Bring more food. When exercising like this, it is always best to be over prepped than under.
I got in the car, did 4 units of rapid and then drank 60gm carb 16gm protein from choc milk, then pasta 45 minutes after that. I was sitting right at 80-85 for a while, and next thing I knew was at 165 trending up, Did 3units of rapid, which didn't seem to be enough, so another 2, and that was the trick.
I have done either 16 or 17u of basal insulin each night this week. Last night was 16 on a rest, so I am thinking 15 tonight after the long run. Decision to come in the next 55 minuets...
As for my averages on the FreeStyle Navigator
1 day: 104
3day: 96
7day: 105
14day: 105
21day: 108
28day: 109
These are within goal. I have found that since I am just doing basic fitness now, not racing, control is much, much easier. I am still eating a very healthy diet (for the most part) exercising regularly, and watching my trend arrows on the Navigator like a hawk. I made it a goal 6 weeks ago to get all my averages under 110. Now I want under 105. I also am doing this with a target range of 60-170, and have between 90-94% in target in the above categories. Also, the Standard Deviation ranges from 28-36 on all these too. Trying not to have variability.
Could you do this??? Yes, if you wanted to. If you have made it this far, and if I may ask, what is your 14 day average on your meter? When I first started paying attention, mine were in the 140's. Then over time I was able to lower them, and get much much better.
Also, take into account that this is my life, and these are my goals. This is not a standard to set for yourself. But you can set your standard, set your bar. Maybe lowering the 14 day average by 10 points is a goal. Maybe 20 points?
Off to Boise Id on Wed for 5 days. Then back for 2 nights before heading to Seattle...
The game shall go on...
Have a great night, and thanks for reading!
Phil
www.teamtype1.org
@philsoutherland on Twitter
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Diabetes Game for a 10km
Howdy from the Finish line...
So this was my first real test for my progress. The goal was to do miles 1, 3, 5 easier and 2, 4, 6 hard, and then see what the time was. Personally, I wanted to do sub 40, which was a stretch since 4 weeks ago I did a 5km in 21:33 and it nearly killed me. With that being said, I am 4 weeks further into training, and feel a lot better on foot.
The plan going in:
Slight basal reduction last night. I had done 17u the night before on a rest day. Yesterday was also a rest day, but went for 16u of basal in anticipation of a hard race. So I woke up at 4am at 155, did 2u rapid acting, and at 5:45 (official wake up) I was 120, had 30gm carbs from Oatmeal, with Almond butter, and my standard two Americano's to get me going. I was 126 when I walked out the door, with a slight blood sugar 6 points higher then 5 minutes before. Then it was a 1.5 mile jog to the start. BS got up to 136 at the start. I managed to get to the front of my group, which was the 30-39,000 group. That's right, there were close to 55,000 people at this race, which is America's biggest 10km! I have NEVER competed in an event this big, with so many people.
For the first mile I had open road, and HR quickly got up to 170, which it wasn't supposed to. So I had to work on easing up a little, but not too much. Then I hit 1 mile, and picked it up, keeping my HR right around 170-173. When I finished this mile, I was starting to catch people from the group ahead. All I could see for miles ahead was runners. It was actually pretty cool to see so many people out exercising at 7am on a holiday weekend. So I tried to slow it down for mile 3, which was downhill, so I actually sped up. I also had 4 Dex4 tabs at tis time. I was dodging people left and right. Although the race was 10km, I must have done 12km with all the left and right. I have done bike races where it is a struggle to move up and get to the front. But usually with enough ducking, dodging, and pedaling, you can hit the front. This time: no chance. It was cool, but was tough as there was never a chance to relax. After the 4th mile, I was hurting, and had to dig. I forced myself to recover letting the HR drop to 163-165 for a few minutes, and then I saw the 5 mile marker (first marker I saw.) Put down a gel, and then it was go time!
At this point I was in pain, and wanted to walk. But I went back to old school days, and just turned the pain switch off. My goal was the finish line, and to get there as fast as possible. Note to self: know exactly where the finish is. Why? Well, I made the left hand turn which symbolized being close to the line. I am full on sprinting now, seeing cross eyed, but still passing people, and I see balloons, and think I am done!!! But wait, people are still running, and I hear someone yell "it's all downhill from here!" But wait, I'm not done??? Holy sweet mother... I am at 38 minutes at this point, and 40 is still in reach, so I throw down again. Dodging people, barely breathing, digging into a world of pain I had long forgotten about, and then I hear: ".1 mile to go, almost there!!" I was cracked like an egg dropped from far above, but had to push. One last dig, one last sprint, and hit the line, with a time of 40:13. Will bet official time is 40:13-40:25.
Never had I been so glad to be done. I was just trying to keep myself standing, satisfied for leaving it all out on the road, but kind of pissed for not having gone under 40. So I grab my Navigator, and look at it for the first time since the start. 159 it said. 5 minutes later 171 trending up... TIme to get home, get insulin and eat: How? Oh yeah, didn't plan that far. So I just started jogging... Funny enough ran into another type 1 out for a morning jog. I made it about 3 miles (with 3 to go) and I found a cab who got me home... All in all about 11 miles in today, with 6.2 of them really hard. Got home, with 125 arrow going straight down, which was a HUGE surprise to me that soon after the finish. Did 4u rapid, showered, stretched, foam rolled, and then ate a massive bowl of pasta.
Now I have a benchmark to go by. This was a test. If I had come in above a 7minute mile, it would have not been good for the marathon goal. But I managed to avg 6:30/mile, which is 27 seconds faster than my goal marathon pace, granted 20 miles shorter... No it is time to rest and celebrate a great day, and then get back on the program, trying to get faster, stronger, longer...
And please remember: these are my personal goals. I think some of the biggest awards should go out to the people who did the 10km in 1.5 hours. The people who push themselves to try something new. Everyone has a goal, and should not compare to the other. If I had been racing the winner's, I would have (and did) gotten killed. But the only person I was racing out there was me! And I won. What is your next race?
Happy 4th To ALL!!! Enjoy it!
Phil
P.S. Get your Team Type 1 and Team Type 2 kits on our site: www.teamtype1.org
Thanks for the support!
PPS: Congrats to Allison Powers for winning Fitchburg TT, Darren Lill and Jen McCrae for getting 2nd in the circut race. Go Team Go!!!
So this was my first real test for my progress. The goal was to do miles 1, 3, 5 easier and 2, 4, 6 hard, and then see what the time was. Personally, I wanted to do sub 40, which was a stretch since 4 weeks ago I did a 5km in 21:33 and it nearly killed me. With that being said, I am 4 weeks further into training, and feel a lot better on foot.
The plan going in:
Slight basal reduction last night. I had done 17u the night before on a rest day. Yesterday was also a rest day, but went for 16u of basal in anticipation of a hard race. So I woke up at 4am at 155, did 2u rapid acting, and at 5:45 (official wake up) I was 120, had 30gm carbs from Oatmeal, with Almond butter, and my standard two Americano's to get me going. I was 126 when I walked out the door, with a slight blood sugar 6 points higher then 5 minutes before. Then it was a 1.5 mile jog to the start. BS got up to 136 at the start. I managed to get to the front of my group, which was the 30-39,000 group. That's right, there were close to 55,000 people at this race, which is America's biggest 10km! I have NEVER competed in an event this big, with so many people.
For the first mile I had open road, and HR quickly got up to 170, which it wasn't supposed to. So I had to work on easing up a little, but not too much. Then I hit 1 mile, and picked it up, keeping my HR right around 170-173. When I finished this mile, I was starting to catch people from the group ahead. All I could see for miles ahead was runners. It was actually pretty cool to see so many people out exercising at 7am on a holiday weekend. So I tried to slow it down for mile 3, which was downhill, so I actually sped up. I also had 4 Dex4 tabs at tis time. I was dodging people left and right. Although the race was 10km, I must have done 12km with all the left and right. I have done bike races where it is a struggle to move up and get to the front. But usually with enough ducking, dodging, and pedaling, you can hit the front. This time: no chance. It was cool, but was tough as there was never a chance to relax. After the 4th mile, I was hurting, and had to dig. I forced myself to recover letting the HR drop to 163-165 for a few minutes, and then I saw the 5 mile marker (first marker I saw.) Put down a gel, and then it was go time!
At this point I was in pain, and wanted to walk. But I went back to old school days, and just turned the pain switch off. My goal was the finish line, and to get there as fast as possible. Note to self: know exactly where the finish is. Why? Well, I made the left hand turn which symbolized being close to the line. I am full on sprinting now, seeing cross eyed, but still passing people, and I see balloons, and think I am done!!! But wait, people are still running, and I hear someone yell "it's all downhill from here!" But wait, I'm not done??? Holy sweet mother... I am at 38 minutes at this point, and 40 is still in reach, so I throw down again. Dodging people, barely breathing, digging into a world of pain I had long forgotten about, and then I hear: ".1 mile to go, almost there!!" I was cracked like an egg dropped from far above, but had to push. One last dig, one last sprint, and hit the line, with a time of 40:13. Will bet official time is 40:13-40:25.
Never had I been so glad to be done. I was just trying to keep myself standing, satisfied for leaving it all out on the road, but kind of pissed for not having gone under 40. So I grab my Navigator, and look at it for the first time since the start. 159 it said. 5 minutes later 171 trending up... TIme to get home, get insulin and eat: How? Oh yeah, didn't plan that far. So I just started jogging... Funny enough ran into another type 1 out for a morning jog. I made it about 3 miles (with 3 to go) and I found a cab who got me home... All in all about 11 miles in today, with 6.2 of them really hard. Got home, with 125 arrow going straight down, which was a HUGE surprise to me that soon after the finish. Did 4u rapid, showered, stretched, foam rolled, and then ate a massive bowl of pasta.
Now I have a benchmark to go by. This was a test. If I had come in above a 7minute mile, it would have not been good for the marathon goal. But I managed to avg 6:30/mile, which is 27 seconds faster than my goal marathon pace, granted 20 miles shorter... No it is time to rest and celebrate a great day, and then get back on the program, trying to get faster, stronger, longer...
And please remember: these are my personal goals. I think some of the biggest awards should go out to the people who did the 10km in 1.5 hours. The people who push themselves to try something new. Everyone has a goal, and should not compare to the other. If I had been racing the winner's, I would have (and did) gotten killed. But the only person I was racing out there was me! And I won. What is your next race?
Happy 4th To ALL!!! Enjoy it!
Phil
P.S. Get your Team Type 1 and Team Type 2 kits on our site: www.teamtype1.org
Thanks for the support!
PPS: Congrats to Allison Powers for winning Fitchburg TT, Darren Lill and Jen McCrae for getting 2nd in the circut race. Go Team Go!!!
Friday, July 3, 2009
A record and a record
Howdy from HotLanta,
How about last week? Pure craziness, but everything I could have ever dreamed of.
Team Type 1: 5 days 9hrs 5 Minutes: Avg spd of 23.41 which sets a new record for the Race Across America. What these guys went through to prepare for the race, do the race, win the race is unbelievable. The strength of this team: No weak links! Everyone had their moment to shine, and everyone had their low points, but they all persevered, and busted their butts to get that record.
Here is a great piece from Tara Parker Pope in the NY Times:
and also a great Q+A on how we do it:
Then I went back to the Diabetes and Exercise Association (DESA) conference, where everyone was so pumped to hear about the record. It was awesome seeing Tim, Andy, and Kyle spread the word about the team, and field the questions about TT1. I also got to spend some time with Tarin, Michael Riddel, and Kate Ackerman to name a few. Exciting research brain storming done, and next steps soon to follow.
For me, the true excitement of the week was Team Type 2. These guys are my hero's! They each have their own stories of the path they took to type 2, and then they each have their own stories about how they made major changes in their life, and the path to good health, and to the team.
After training camp in January, there were many, many doubters of these guys. A lot of people who said "Can they do it? Will they do it? Will they survive it?" But meeting them, knowing them, talking to them, I never had a doubt. They are the coolest, most down to earth people in the world, and they all have one vision: Show the world that it is NEVER too late to make change. If Bob Avritt can lose 140lb.s, bust his butt on the bike, get a good A1C, and lead a team of type 2's in a bike Race Across America, then anyone can do anything.
To me, the World Record of Team Type 2 began on the start line. It began when they set foot. Entering a race the caliber, and difficulty of RAAM was a record in of itself. But to cross the country, in 7 days, 7 hours, and 23 minutes, is absolutely unbelievable.
This is only the beginning, and I cannot wait to see the future of all type 2's with leaders such as these.
Now to the anonymous wonders of the blog world: I like the accusation of my team hiding things, and making it easier for people to dope in cycling. I laugh at that.
Team Type 1 has hired Paul Scott, and Michael Roshon to implement a strong internal anti-doping program. We will provide the # of test done in a few weeks when the mid-year report is finished. Team Type 1 is built on inspiration of working hard to achieve goals. Our fans ( and I am a fan) would rather see us finish dead last, so long as we do it clean, and with integrity, and that is what I push in my program.
Another questions as to what happened to Ricardo? He violated a team policy, and was let go. He is no longer part of our program.
Any other questions or comments Mr or Mrs. Anonymous? Happy to answer, but why don't you put a name to go along with your questions?
As for me: been doing the run thing. Up to 9 miles on Monday and it felt good. My body is adapting, and feet no longer hurt all the time. I have become more efficient on foot, and carb needs have decreased. It has taken me 6 weeks, but I am getting a system for pre, during, and post run down. Not quite as good as my bike system yet, but getting there, one mistake at a time. I am running the Peachtree Road Race, which is 10km tomorrow. Should be fun, and should suffer lots. I am hoping for a good time. My dad did a 32 minute time here some years ago, or a 5:22 mile average, which I am not hoping to break...yet
Thanks to everyone for all of your comments during RAAM, and thanks to everyone who pushed us to go faster, go strong, go longer, and win that bad boy!
Have a great day, and a Happy 4th.
Thanks for reading.
Phil
How about last week? Pure craziness, but everything I could have ever dreamed of.
Team Type 1: 5 days 9hrs 5 Minutes: Avg spd of 23.41 which sets a new record for the Race Across America. What these guys went through to prepare for the race, do the race, win the race is unbelievable. The strength of this team: No weak links! Everyone had their moment to shine, and everyone had their low points, but they all persevered, and busted their butts to get that record.
Here is a great piece from Tara Parker Pope in the NY Times:
and also a great Q+A on how we do it:
Then I went back to the Diabetes and Exercise Association (DESA) conference, where everyone was so pumped to hear about the record. It was awesome seeing Tim, Andy, and Kyle spread the word about the team, and field the questions about TT1. I also got to spend some time with Tarin, Michael Riddel, and Kate Ackerman to name a few. Exciting research brain storming done, and next steps soon to follow.
For me, the true excitement of the week was Team Type 2. These guys are my hero's! They each have their own stories of the path they took to type 2, and then they each have their own stories about how they made major changes in their life, and the path to good health, and to the team.
After training camp in January, there were many, many doubters of these guys. A lot of people who said "Can they do it? Will they do it? Will they survive it?" But meeting them, knowing them, talking to them, I never had a doubt. They are the coolest, most down to earth people in the world, and they all have one vision: Show the world that it is NEVER too late to make change. If Bob Avritt can lose 140lb.s, bust his butt on the bike, get a good A1C, and lead a team of type 2's in a bike Race Across America, then anyone can do anything.
To me, the World Record of Team Type 2 began on the start line. It began when they set foot. Entering a race the caliber, and difficulty of RAAM was a record in of itself. But to cross the country, in 7 days, 7 hours, and 23 minutes, is absolutely unbelievable.
This is only the beginning, and I cannot wait to see the future of all type 2's with leaders such as these.
Now to the anonymous wonders of the blog world: I like the accusation of my team hiding things, and making it easier for people to dope in cycling. I laugh at that.
Team Type 1 has hired Paul Scott, and Michael Roshon to implement a strong internal anti-doping program. We will provide the # of test done in a few weeks when the mid-year report is finished. Team Type 1 is built on inspiration of working hard to achieve goals. Our fans ( and I am a fan) would rather see us finish dead last, so long as we do it clean, and with integrity, and that is what I push in my program.
Another questions as to what happened to Ricardo? He violated a team policy, and was let go. He is no longer part of our program.
Any other questions or comments Mr or Mrs. Anonymous? Happy to answer, but why don't you put a name to go along with your questions?
As for me: been doing the run thing. Up to 9 miles on Monday and it felt good. My body is adapting, and feet no longer hurt all the time. I have become more efficient on foot, and carb needs have decreased. It has taken me 6 weeks, but I am getting a system for pre, during, and post run down. Not quite as good as my bike system yet, but getting there, one mistake at a time. I am running the Peachtree Road Race, which is 10km tomorrow. Should be fun, and should suffer lots. I am hoping for a good time. My dad did a 32 minute time here some years ago, or a 5:22 mile average, which I am not hoping to break...yet
Thanks to everyone for all of your comments during RAAM, and thanks to everyone who pushed us to go faster, go strong, go longer, and win that bad boy!
Have a great day, and a Happy 4th.
Thanks for reading.
Phil
Thursday, June 25, 2009
RAAM baby RAAM
Howdy from Boston Airport!
About to board the 3rd flight for the week to head down to see the team. It is going to be 2am, and they are going to be dead from their efforts, but Wired from the thrill of being done. I want to reiterate how proud I am of these guys, and how grateful I am to the crew for making this happen. The have overcome fires, broken down RV's, missing bikes, and are as of right now on pace to set a new World Record, and they all are doing it because of diabetes!
If you have a moment, please visit the blog www.teamtype1.org and learn about these guys. They are not professional athletes, but they sure road like they were.
I am hoping that we can get some info from the riders soon about all the blood sugar data over the past 5 days.
Then we have Team Type 2!!! The world record was broken as soon as they started. To think that there are 8 type 2 diabetics even starting RAAM is unbelievable. To see them cross the country in 7 days, on bicycles is a whole other story.
They are all proving that it is never too late to make change. We are all where we are right now, and that is done. But what we do tomorrow, next week, next month is 100% in our control. The cards are dealt, but how you play the game determines how many chips you leave with.
In honor of both Team Type 1 + Team Type 2, what can you do to take control to the next level, to get that A1C you want? Is there something?
How about these airports. The miles are starting to pile up which is good. The year is half over, and I am halfway to Platinum.... In Boston now for the DESA conference. I had some good meetings with friends so far, and tomorrow get to take part in the conference, which is always fun. Got a 45 minute run in today with 2x10 minute intervals, and 5 Dex4 tabs. Afterwards the BS shot right up. I did 6 units of rapid acting insulin for a blood sugar of 228, and appx 1hr later was headed back to normal.
Hopeful for some sleep on the flight, as it is going to be a long night, and then a 9am flight back in the am... I love airports...
One last time: Go TEAM TYPE 1- race to the line, and cheers for Team Type 2!!!
and a big thanks to those who make this possible, cause without them, we would not be out there!!!
sanofi-aventis diabetes
www.abbottdiabetescare.com FreeStyle Lite and Navigator: All use it
http://www.orbea-usa.com/ Best bikes out there
www.myomnipod.com Insulin Pump that 6 of TT1 RAAM use
www.dex4.com for the hypo's we all use it.
and many, many more
AND to YOU, the fans who push us to go faster!
Have a great night, time to fly.
Phil
About to board the 3rd flight for the week to head down to see the team. It is going to be 2am, and they are going to be dead from their efforts, but Wired from the thrill of being done. I want to reiterate how proud I am of these guys, and how grateful I am to the crew for making this happen. The have overcome fires, broken down RV's, missing bikes, and are as of right now on pace to set a new World Record, and they all are doing it because of diabetes!
If you have a moment, please visit the blog www.teamtype1.org and learn about these guys. They are not professional athletes, but they sure road like they were.
I am hoping that we can get some info from the riders soon about all the blood sugar data over the past 5 days.
Then we have Team Type 2!!! The world record was broken as soon as they started. To think that there are 8 type 2 diabetics even starting RAAM is unbelievable. To see them cross the country in 7 days, on bicycles is a whole other story.
They are all proving that it is never too late to make change. We are all where we are right now, and that is done. But what we do tomorrow, next week, next month is 100% in our control. The cards are dealt, but how you play the game determines how many chips you leave with.
In honor of both Team Type 1 + Team Type 2, what can you do to take control to the next level, to get that A1C you want? Is there something?
How about these airports. The miles are starting to pile up which is good. The year is half over, and I am halfway to Platinum.... In Boston now for the DESA conference. I had some good meetings with friends so far, and tomorrow get to take part in the conference, which is always fun. Got a 45 minute run in today with 2x10 minute intervals, and 5 Dex4 tabs. Afterwards the BS shot right up. I did 6 units of rapid acting insulin for a blood sugar of 228, and appx 1hr later was headed back to normal.
Hopeful for some sleep on the flight, as it is going to be a long night, and then a 9am flight back in the am... I love airports...
One last time: Go TEAM TYPE 1- race to the line, and cheers for Team Type 2!!!
and a big thanks to those who make this possible, cause without them, we would not be out there!!!
sanofi-aventis diabetes
www.abbottdiabetescare.com FreeStyle Lite and Navigator: All use it
http://www.orbea-usa.com/ Best bikes out there
www.myomnipod.com Insulin Pump that 6 of TT1 RAAM use
www.dex4.com for the hypo's we all use it.
and many, many more
AND to YOU, the fans who push us to go faster!
Have a great night, time to fly.
Phil
Friday, June 19, 2009
RACE ACROSS AMERICA
Howdy From Oceanside,
It's been some crazy times lately. Not sure where I was last time, but have been some places as of late. I got the chance to get back into Yoga last week. First class about killed me, and was lucky enough to have Morgan Patton with me to suffer. We had a good weekend of hanging out, and after two rest days off of running, my metabolism shut down. I upped my basal rate to 18 units, and probably did another 30 units of rapid acting, and still not having successful blood sugars. One run in, and it was better, then another run in, and life was good again. Amazing how much easier the diabetes game is when I am active. Then it was off to NYC:
I got in, checked in, and set off to meet my author, John Hance, agent, Linda Konner, and Publisher, Pete Wolverton of St. Martins Press. Planning out ideas for the book, which is set to release in June 2011. Then John and I set off to run with Mike Keohone, who is handling my running program. I had some pasta and not much insulin at lunch, so started the run at 178. Ate half a power bar right before heading out. We did 2 miles easy, then a 6:40 mile, then 1 mile easy, then a 6:40 mile, then 1 cool down. All in all it was a tough day, and gave my 5 units right after shot back to hotel to grab Joe, and begin the BDay Celebration. Fun times in NYC!!! I guess the intensity of the run got my metabolism going again, as I ate a big meal, and just hovered at 60 all night, before going low, low the next morning. Started empty, and met my buddy Christian Strong (Dex4) for another run. We went out for 5 miles at a 7:30 pace, and it felt good. The two feet thing is much better with a friend to chat with. Finished my run at 101, expecting a jump in blood sugar (which is what has happened every run) so did 3 units. This time the jump only went to 108, before a sharp crash as I was walking to meet Matt for lunch. Matt is a super human runner, and just diagnosed last year at 37. Luckily I had my Dex4 tabs, so smashed 6 of those and a gatorade from street vendor to level off before I went hypo. Thanks Navigator. Media training, then a dinner which was awesome. The Euro folks really do it right.
I love that this game is never the same. As soon as I get my system of insulin right after run, then it changes, and I don't need it, or need more food quicker. Will be fun to document the changes. I have been running on the low side in the am at 16u of basal. I would typically cut it, but since today was a 6 hour travel day, I am gonna leave it at 16, and bet I wake up at 100 in the am...
Finished up NYC with a full day of interviews (24 to be exact;Joe and I rocked em together) then a photoshoot which was a good time. Had a Russian dinner with Vassili and Sergey, and hit the hay for the big day tomorrow... What's that: RAAM BABY!!!
For the 4th year now Team Type 1 has a team going for the World Record. For the 1st year, we have Team Type 2 aiming to finish this never ending race. For the 4th year, Dave Eldridge is playing a big role. This year he has taken charge of the 50 crew, in helping get them all prepped for the road. The organizational skills big Dave has are unparalleled. He has gone above and beyond all expectations and has the crew ready to rock, which is crucial to success. No offense to the riders, but the crew are as important, if not more important than the actual guys on bikes... So now we have 4 RV's, 6 mini-vans, 37 crew, and 16 riders. It is quite the operation. Seeing the growth from 4 years ago is awesome. I wish I had more energy right now to take it in, but frankly I am beat. Then I think about it, and the tired feeling I am having is nothing compared to what each and every person on the team will experience in the days to come. This race is brutal. It is a huge mental challenge, an enormous physical challenge, and everyone involved is going to have to go well beyond their limits to succeed. This may seem hard, but all the guys on TT1 and TT2 know that it is more than just the 7 other teammates, but 24 million in the US that are riding with us. They are riding for diabetes, riding to prove that with good control, no challenge too big. I could not be more proud of my guys out there, and more grateful for Big Dave, and his crew who all volunteered their time to make this happen.
So please, check em out, leave comments, show support on www.teamtype1.org. Check the blog. We got printouts of each and every comment over the years, and it really did a number on helping keep us motivated.
Thanks for reading, and for supporting us in our quest to tackle the Country!
Also, thanks to the 100's who have purchased jerseys, and who are going to wear this week! You rock!!!
Ciao for now!!
Phil
www.teamtype1.org (Team Kits available- wear yours this week to show support!) Thanks
http://twitter.com/PhilSoutherland
It's been some crazy times lately. Not sure where I was last time, but have been some places as of late. I got the chance to get back into Yoga last week. First class about killed me, and was lucky enough to have Morgan Patton with me to suffer. We had a good weekend of hanging out, and after two rest days off of running, my metabolism shut down. I upped my basal rate to 18 units, and probably did another 30 units of rapid acting, and still not having successful blood sugars. One run in, and it was better, then another run in, and life was good again. Amazing how much easier the diabetes game is when I am active. Then it was off to NYC:
I got in, checked in, and set off to meet my author, John Hance, agent, Linda Konner, and Publisher, Pete Wolverton of St. Martins Press. Planning out ideas for the book, which is set to release in June 2011. Then John and I set off to run with Mike Keohone, who is handling my running program. I had some pasta and not much insulin at lunch, so started the run at 178. Ate half a power bar right before heading out. We did 2 miles easy, then a 6:40 mile, then 1 mile easy, then a 6:40 mile, then 1 cool down. All in all it was a tough day, and gave my 5 units right after shot back to hotel to grab Joe, and begin the BDay Celebration. Fun times in NYC!!! I guess the intensity of the run got my metabolism going again, as I ate a big meal, and just hovered at 60 all night, before going low, low the next morning. Started empty, and met my buddy Christian Strong (Dex4) for another run. We went out for 5 miles at a 7:30 pace, and it felt good. The two feet thing is much better with a friend to chat with. Finished my run at 101, expecting a jump in blood sugar (which is what has happened every run) so did 3 units. This time the jump only went to 108, before a sharp crash as I was walking to meet Matt for lunch. Matt is a super human runner, and just diagnosed last year at 37. Luckily I had my Dex4 tabs, so smashed 6 of those and a gatorade from street vendor to level off before I went hypo. Thanks Navigator. Media training, then a dinner which was awesome. The Euro folks really do it right.
I love that this game is never the same. As soon as I get my system of insulin right after run, then it changes, and I don't need it, or need more food quicker. Will be fun to document the changes. I have been running on the low side in the am at 16u of basal. I would typically cut it, but since today was a 6 hour travel day, I am gonna leave it at 16, and bet I wake up at 100 in the am...
Finished up NYC with a full day of interviews (24 to be exact;Joe and I rocked em together) then a photoshoot which was a good time. Had a Russian dinner with Vassili and Sergey, and hit the hay for the big day tomorrow... What's that: RAAM BABY!!!
For the 4th year now Team Type 1 has a team going for the World Record. For the 1st year, we have Team Type 2 aiming to finish this never ending race. For the 4th year, Dave Eldridge is playing a big role. This year he has taken charge of the 50 crew, in helping get them all prepped for the road. The organizational skills big Dave has are unparalleled. He has gone above and beyond all expectations and has the crew ready to rock, which is crucial to success. No offense to the riders, but the crew are as important, if not more important than the actual guys on bikes... So now we have 4 RV's, 6 mini-vans, 37 crew, and 16 riders. It is quite the operation. Seeing the growth from 4 years ago is awesome. I wish I had more energy right now to take it in, but frankly I am beat. Then I think about it, and the tired feeling I am having is nothing compared to what each and every person on the team will experience in the days to come. This race is brutal. It is a huge mental challenge, an enormous physical challenge, and everyone involved is going to have to go well beyond their limits to succeed. This may seem hard, but all the guys on TT1 and TT2 know that it is more than just the 7 other teammates, but 24 million in the US that are riding with us. They are riding for diabetes, riding to prove that with good control, no challenge too big. I could not be more proud of my guys out there, and more grateful for Big Dave, and his crew who all volunteered their time to make this happen.
So please, check em out, leave comments, show support on www.teamtype1.org. Check the blog. We got printouts of each and every comment over the years, and it really did a number on helping keep us motivated.
Thanks for reading, and for supporting us in our quest to tackle the Country!
Also, thanks to the 100's who have purchased jerseys, and who are going to wear this week! You rock!!!
Ciao for now!!
Phil
www.teamtype1.org (Team Kits available- wear yours this week to show support!) Thanks
http://twitter.com/PhilSoutherland
Friday, June 12, 2009
Diabetes and um... running (yes I said it)
Howdy from HotLanta,
Great to be home! I have had a few days at home now, and thanks to my little bro, Jacko, I am finally somewhat organized back home. My life the past 3 weeks has been:
Go on trip with bags packed
Arrive home wash clothes (don't put away)- pack bags again
Next am: leave again
Arrive home- unpack- pack- leave etc... There were 22days straight I was gone, and somehow had 3 nights in the house, which was nice, but when I got home the last time, things were scattered... it is somewhat comical, and for those who know me well, know that I can (and often do) function in a state of mayhem... Last time I posted I was in Hollywood. It was cool to go on set of the Sony Studios, and meet with Doug Wick, and chat about diabetes, and the documentary. Then met with a friend that evening for dinner, before hitting the red-eye back to Atlanta. I got home, unpacked, took a nap, did some work, packed, and then set off for Camp Kudzu.
This was awesome. I had the 9-10 year old boys Cabin #24. Great group of kids. I got to witness some doing their first shot, some doing their first pump site change, carb counting, drawing insulin, the works. All of these kids were stepping outside of their normal comfort zone of diabetes, which I think is the reason to go to camp. Seeing kids upset at highs, or cranky from lows at 9 years old is a lot to take in. Seeing kids dance for the first time, or get the nerve up to ask a girl to the dance was all real special. I got 2 days there, and it was my best 2 days so far this year. Camp Kudzu has a few full time employees, but everyone else is strictly volunteer.
Hopefully we can raise enough $ to help make it a full time camp in the years to come, as the kids could really benefit. It was also cool to see the kids that were in my cabin 5 years ago, which was my first time volunteering. Most of them are now a foot taller than me, and are leading cool lives. Sadly I had to leave early, to get to New Orleans for the ADA, but I will be back at camp again later this summer!!
Get home late that afternoon, work for a while, unpack, wash clothes, repack... Chaos is an understatement. Then sleep. Wake up at 4am to finish packing, and get to the airport, which I did, with 2 minutes to spare!! YEE-HA! ADA was great as well. I really got to see how far reaching Team Type 1 and now TT2 has become. Our sponsors, sanofi-aventis diabetes, FreeStyle, Omni-Pod, and Dex 4 were all present at the show, and TT1 members at each booth. Early meeting everyday kept things in check, and it was good to brainstorm research ideas with some of the brighter docs in the world. Always good to see good people.
Oh yeah- so how about this running thing?? I have been doing it for 3-4 weeks now, and it is different. Cardio wise, muscle wise, I am good. But the beating on the body is new to me. Back in the day, I could go ride for 1 hour easy, come home, eat some food with no insulin. But go ride 1 hour very hard, come home, do some rapid or the BS would skyrocket. Why? What I gathered from docs (and I am just theorizing here) is that the body was reacting to the beating by releasing a hormones which caused BS to rise, along with the food that was taken in to perform, now is not needed by muscles, so it goes straight to the blood stream. Running is different, but the same. I can go out for a 4-5 mile run, take in 24-30gms of DEX4 glucose, come home, and then blood sugar sky rockets. So new system is that when I get back from a run, I do 3units of rapid right away. This has been good to level me off. If I want to eat after, I am taking the 3 units, plus an increased dose for the food. It has been a fun shift. I did get to run the 5km race in N.O. It was good to see about 600 people out for a 6:30am start time. I was out with my buddies Matt Vogel (starting BG of 223,) Nathan Bartels (starting at 334-technology set back) and I (starting BG of 194 trending up) The start was all I saw of those guys. I was running with my buddy Chris at a steady pace. Could of gone faster, but really wanted to slow down. Last right turn, went full gas, passed a bunch of people, and finished with a time of 21:33, which is a 6:58 avg pace. My goal was sub 7 minute miles, which was achieved...barely. After a 3 mile cool down, and then a lot of rapid, and off to eat. I hope to be doing longer runs here soon, and will keep posted on the new learning's.
There is no kink age when I run, and I had do get to doing something that is good for my head, and my body. I never thought I would have laced up running shoes for a month straight, but it feels good not to be fighting my body. I still have no answers on the surgical front, and am going to see still about fixing. Until then, Run Phil Run...
Next up NYC for 3 days, then San Diego for RAAM. Both Team Type 1 and Team Type 2 will line up for the start. It is going to be a HUGE challenge for both to meet their goals, and I can't wait to see these guys do it.
So next Saturday, please show your support for the Team's by getting your own TT1/TT2 gear on the site: www.teamtype1.org Wear it on your local ride, and see whose life you change by spreading the word about the team! Thanks in advance for your support!!!
Ciao For now!
Phil
Great to be home! I have had a few days at home now, and thanks to my little bro, Jacko, I am finally somewhat organized back home. My life the past 3 weeks has been:
Go on trip with bags packed
Arrive home wash clothes (don't put away)- pack bags again
Next am: leave again
Arrive home- unpack- pack- leave etc... There were 22days straight I was gone, and somehow had 3 nights in the house, which was nice, but when I got home the last time, things were scattered... it is somewhat comical, and for those who know me well, know that I can (and often do) function in a state of mayhem... Last time I posted I was in Hollywood. It was cool to go on set of the Sony Studios, and meet with Doug Wick, and chat about diabetes, and the documentary. Then met with a friend that evening for dinner, before hitting the red-eye back to Atlanta. I got home, unpacked, took a nap, did some work, packed, and then set off for Camp Kudzu.
This was awesome. I had the 9-10 year old boys Cabin #24. Great group of kids. I got to witness some doing their first shot, some doing their first pump site change, carb counting, drawing insulin, the works. All of these kids were stepping outside of their normal comfort zone of diabetes, which I think is the reason to go to camp. Seeing kids upset at highs, or cranky from lows at 9 years old is a lot to take in. Seeing kids dance for the first time, or get the nerve up to ask a girl to the dance was all real special. I got 2 days there, and it was my best 2 days so far this year. Camp Kudzu has a few full time employees, but everyone else is strictly volunteer.
Hopefully we can raise enough $ to help make it a full time camp in the years to come, as the kids could really benefit. It was also cool to see the kids that were in my cabin 5 years ago, which was my first time volunteering. Most of them are now a foot taller than me, and are leading cool lives. Sadly I had to leave early, to get to New Orleans for the ADA, but I will be back at camp again later this summer!!
Get home late that afternoon, work for a while, unpack, wash clothes, repack... Chaos is an understatement. Then sleep. Wake up at 4am to finish packing, and get to the airport, which I did, with 2 minutes to spare!! YEE-HA! ADA was great as well. I really got to see how far reaching Team Type 1 and now TT2 has become. Our sponsors, sanofi-aventis diabetes, FreeStyle, Omni-Pod, and Dex 4 were all present at the show, and TT1 members at each booth. Early meeting everyday kept things in check, and it was good to brainstorm research ideas with some of the brighter docs in the world. Always good to see good people.
Oh yeah- so how about this running thing?? I have been doing it for 3-4 weeks now, and it is different. Cardio wise, muscle wise, I am good. But the beating on the body is new to me. Back in the day, I could go ride for 1 hour easy, come home, eat some food with no insulin. But go ride 1 hour very hard, come home, do some rapid or the BS would skyrocket. Why? What I gathered from docs (and I am just theorizing here) is that the body was reacting to the beating by releasing a hormones which caused BS to rise, along with the food that was taken in to perform, now is not needed by muscles, so it goes straight to the blood stream. Running is different, but the same. I can go out for a 4-5 mile run, take in 24-30gms of DEX4 glucose, come home, and then blood sugar sky rockets. So new system is that when I get back from a run, I do 3units of rapid right away. This has been good to level me off. If I want to eat after, I am taking the 3 units, plus an increased dose for the food. It has been a fun shift. I did get to run the 5km race in N.O. It was good to see about 600 people out for a 6:30am start time. I was out with my buddies Matt Vogel (starting BG of 223,) Nathan Bartels (starting at 334-technology set back) and I (starting BG of 194 trending up) The start was all I saw of those guys. I was running with my buddy Chris at a steady pace. Could of gone faster, but really wanted to slow down. Last right turn, went full gas, passed a bunch of people, and finished with a time of 21:33, which is a 6:58 avg pace. My goal was sub 7 minute miles, which was achieved...barely. After a 3 mile cool down, and then a lot of rapid, and off to eat. I hope to be doing longer runs here soon, and will keep posted on the new learning's.
There is no kink age when I run, and I had do get to doing something that is good for my head, and my body. I never thought I would have laced up running shoes for a month straight, but it feels good not to be fighting my body. I still have no answers on the surgical front, and am going to see still about fixing. Until then, Run Phil Run...
Next up NYC for 3 days, then San Diego for RAAM. Both Team Type 1 and Team Type 2 will line up for the start. It is going to be a HUGE challenge for both to meet their goals, and I can't wait to see these guys do it.
So next Saturday, please show your support for the Team's by getting your own TT1/TT2 gear on the site: www.teamtype1.org Wear it on your local ride, and see whose life you change by spreading the word about the team! Thanks in advance for your support!!!
Ciao For now!
Phil
Monday, June 1, 2009
Bike racing game-from the sidelines
Howdy from Hollywood,
Jersey rocked! Had a great time up there and the whole team got to go to Sanofi Aventis to meet the people that make it happen for us. Then a bunch of races, and the guys did good. It was definitely interesting being a spectator. While up there I got a chance to see a doctor who was actually knowledgeable about my leg deal. I explained the symptoms, and he pulled out a book written by the guy who invented the surgery in the Netherlands. It was great to read through that to get a feeling for what could be going on. Apparently there are 4 ways the the iliac artery stops working.
1. Lesion in the artery.
2 Stenosis or narrowing due to a ligament coming down on it.
3. Iliac artery is too long, which causes kinking
4. just plain old kinking.
I also learned that cyclist normal ABI: (blood pressure in arm relative to leg) is .90 or above. Symptoms begin at .85 or below, and my left leg had an ABI of .66.
It really meant the world to talk to Dr. Silberman, and now I have copies of the book to take to all my docs in Atlanta to try and get this bad boy figured out.
In the meantime, I need a goal. Having a ride or race goal is out of the question right now, as I have no idea what the length of time for recovery/fixing is. But, a run goal is doable. So I signed up for the NY Marathon, and have begun training for that. Running has been ok so far, but I definitely miss getting lost in the middle of nowhere having the thoughts run free. Back to some bike racing:
I got to watch the " Tour of Somerville" from the sidelines. The boyz were rocking it, being in just about every move. Then at the end, they lined it out, and it was great to see the full TT1 train going for the W. Execution was perfect, but racing is racing, and Aldo got 3rd, which was a great result. I had never been so excited at a bike race before. I was biting my nails out there... We had a nice celebration that night, and then in the air on Tuesday. Delta rocked out for us. I guess I fly enough to get these 6 free upgrades, which I will never use. It just so happened Dan Holt was on the same flight, and the agents let us use a ticket to upgrade him, free bags and all. Sometimes they go out of their way to take care of us, and is much appreciated. Wed I flew to Laguna Beach so I could give a talk at the Mother's dream Guild for the "One Shot" Doc. We are trying to raise funds so they can be there every step of the way from now, till the tour. It was def cool being at the Pelican Hills Resort. I would be willing to caddy to get to walk that course on a regular basis...ha
Friday was an athlete day which was fun, and this time was extra special. I got to talk diabetes to a lot of docs, and finish up with Ramon and Andrew taking me to Millers Children Hospital. This put it all in perspective. I met kids with hemofelia, diabetes, leukemia, cancer, and all sorts of ailments that they can not control. It is 100% in the doctors hands. This made me feel lucky. Diabetes can be a challenge at times, but it is controllable, and that control is up to me. It was really cool to sit there and chat and put some smiles on their faces.
So how about that diabetes game?? Running has made it easy. 15u basal and every night... So far training has been easy, doing 4-5 mile runs at about an 8minute/mile pace. It is nice not having to stress about 1u more, or 1u less, but I am sure as the runs get longer this will come into play. It is interesting teaching the body to do something new. My feet have finally stopped aching, and I seem to be getting more efficient, meaning that I don't have to eat a lot. While out on the run, all I take is a tube of 10 Dex4 tabs. I typically eat about 5 -7 of them on the run, and have been finishing runs around 100. Thing is, right after the run, my BS spikes. So have got a new system to just do 3u rapid at the finish, and no food. Different than riding, but fun to learn.
Also: Big congrats to Shawn Milne for the W yesterday, and Aldo for his win on Wednesday. The boyz are rocking!!!
Today I am meeting back with the "One Shot" http://www.voxpopfilms.tv/oneshot/
crew to try and raise some dollars to make the film happen. The goal for Lisa/Guy (and me:) is to win an Oscar. Tonight will be the Red-eye, getting back to Atl at 6am, run a few errands, and then head to Camp Kudzu to spend a few days with kids. Can't wait! That is all for now.
Have a great day.
Phil
www.TeamType1.org Clothing is available!! Get it while it's hot!
http://twitter.com/PhilSoutherland
Jersey rocked! Had a great time up there and the whole team got to go to Sanofi Aventis to meet the people that make it happen for us. Then a bunch of races, and the guys did good. It was definitely interesting being a spectator. While up there I got a chance to see a doctor who was actually knowledgeable about my leg deal. I explained the symptoms, and he pulled out a book written by the guy who invented the surgery in the Netherlands. It was great to read through that to get a feeling for what could be going on. Apparently there are 4 ways the the iliac artery stops working.
1. Lesion in the artery.
2 Stenosis or narrowing due to a ligament coming down on it.
3. Iliac artery is too long, which causes kinking
4. just plain old kinking.
I also learned that cyclist normal ABI: (blood pressure in arm relative to leg) is .90 or above. Symptoms begin at .85 or below, and my left leg had an ABI of .66.
It really meant the world to talk to Dr. Silberman, and now I have copies of the book to take to all my docs in Atlanta to try and get this bad boy figured out.
In the meantime, I need a goal. Having a ride or race goal is out of the question right now, as I have no idea what the length of time for recovery/fixing is. But, a run goal is doable. So I signed up for the NY Marathon, and have begun training for that. Running has been ok so far, but I definitely miss getting lost in the middle of nowhere having the thoughts run free. Back to some bike racing:
I got to watch the " Tour of Somerville" from the sidelines. The boyz were rocking it, being in just about every move. Then at the end, they lined it out, and it was great to see the full TT1 train going for the W. Execution was perfect, but racing is racing, and Aldo got 3rd, which was a great result. I had never been so excited at a bike race before. I was biting my nails out there... We had a nice celebration that night, and then in the air on Tuesday. Delta rocked out for us. I guess I fly enough to get these 6 free upgrades, which I will never use. It just so happened Dan Holt was on the same flight, and the agents let us use a ticket to upgrade him, free bags and all. Sometimes they go out of their way to take care of us, and is much appreciated. Wed I flew to Laguna Beach so I could give a talk at the Mother's dream Guild for the "One Shot" Doc. We are trying to raise funds so they can be there every step of the way from now, till the tour. It was def cool being at the Pelican Hills Resort. I would be willing to caddy to get to walk that course on a regular basis...ha
Friday was an athlete day which was fun, and this time was extra special. I got to talk diabetes to a lot of docs, and finish up with Ramon and Andrew taking me to Millers Children Hospital. This put it all in perspective. I met kids with hemofelia, diabetes, leukemia, cancer, and all sorts of ailments that they can not control. It is 100% in the doctors hands. This made me feel lucky. Diabetes can be a challenge at times, but it is controllable, and that control is up to me. It was really cool to sit there and chat and put some smiles on their faces.
So how about that diabetes game?? Running has made it easy. 15u basal and every night... So far training has been easy, doing 4-5 mile runs at about an 8minute/mile pace. It is nice not having to stress about 1u more, or 1u less, but I am sure as the runs get longer this will come into play. It is interesting teaching the body to do something new. My feet have finally stopped aching, and I seem to be getting more efficient, meaning that I don't have to eat a lot. While out on the run, all I take is a tube of 10 Dex4 tabs. I typically eat about 5 -7 of them on the run, and have been finishing runs around 100. Thing is, right after the run, my BS spikes. So have got a new system to just do 3u rapid at the finish, and no food. Different than riding, but fun to learn.
Also: Big congrats to Shawn Milne for the W yesterday, and Aldo for his win on Wednesday. The boyz are rocking!!!
Today I am meeting back with the "One Shot" http://www.voxpopfilms.tv/oneshot/
crew to try and raise some dollars to make the film happen. The goal for Lisa/Guy (and me:) is to win an Oscar. Tonight will be the Red-eye, getting back to Atl at 6am, run a few errands, and then head to Camp Kudzu to spend a few days with kids. Can't wait! That is all for now.
Have a great day.
Phil
www.TeamType1.org Clothing is available!! Get it while it's hot!
http://twitter.com/PhilSoutherland
Monday, May 18, 2009
Old School- Finger Testing and Racin in the dirt...
Howdy from HotLanta,
How goes it? Thanks everyone for the great comments, and showing of support. To Mr. Anonymous who likes to talk trash: I don't care. Post your name, then maybe I will take note.
This past weekend was a lot of fun. I haven't raced mountain bikes since, well, um... I have no idea. This race meant a lot more. This was one of the first times I got to go away from home with the boyz, and for a 14yr old, it was the coolest thing in the world. I also remember finishing one 7 mile lap, and being dead. Here we are, 12-13 years later, same camp ground (minus a few who bailed at the last moment...) I was there with RAAM Crew vets Chris Big Daddy Slaton, Daren, Ricky Silk, and Jim. I always new Rick was fast, but I did not know that if you named a song, he could immediately go into chorus, and sing the whole thing... Any song too...
Back to racing in a minute. The past 2 weeks of blood sugars have been pretty good. I was back to finger stick full time. Having run out of sensors, it was time to go old school. At first, I was high, then low, then high, then low, but after a few days I got my rhythm back, and #'s were solid, with 14day avg down to 108. Here is the thing though, with CGM, I could have 14day avg at 103, with 3-5%below target, and no blood sugars under 50. Now to get to 108, I had to drop way too low a few too many times. I woke up low one time, another low while on the phone with my literary agent, and once on the bike. What I found was in the transition period after CGM (Day 4-8,) I was only checking about 14 times a day, and I saw too many #'s that I did not like. So I went old school OCD, and began to check 20-22 times a day. Guess what: No more high BS, cause I caught them before getting there, and a lot less lows. Even without CGM, you can still simulate it... I found myself checking 2-3 times in a 20 minute window to get a real idea of my trend before making a correction. Although this method works, and with effort, it works very well, I still think that CGM is the way to go. I am back on it now (thanks to a study) and have hit the button to see my BS 47 times today, and that is in the last 8.5hrs, or checking an avg of 5 times/hour.
Then the bike race... So 2 weeks ago I got news my artery was healthy, yet I am still having blood flow problems to my left leg. So at a friend's (thanks Joe E. and Tim J) I decided to play with position. No dice. Tried riding mtb, and leg went numb. Pretty bummed out, and not that excited about racing, if one leg is not gonna work, but the thought of mountain bike racing, and doing it with my big bro Slaton brought a smile to my face. Ya see, when I first started riding, while everybody slaughtered me, and left me out in the woods, Mr. Slaton waited. Every Sunday I would make it farther and farther before he would have to stop for me, but every Sunday he waited until he didn't have to wait any longer. I am forever grateful to his Jimminy Cricket for telling him to wait for this punk kid so he would make it home alive.
So we have a good time dying on the pre-ride, camp out, get up and get ready to rock. We take off down the dirt road, and then up a climb. I was 2nd wheel into the woods, but no middle chain ring, as I was stuck in the big ring. This didn't work for this steep climb. So I got off, had a few guys pass me, then back on it, with only a middle ring. Then pass a few guys, blow up, get passed by a few, and settle in. I was 15 seconds back of this one guy for a long time, when it felt like my bike was not right. Sure enough, my crank (attaches to the pedal) was coming off. So I walk up the hill for about 10 minutes (wanting to quit) until a guy came by and let me borrow his wrench. I fixed the bike, and got going again. Passed 3-4 guys, and then at the start of the 2nd lap wanted to quit so bad. I was no longer racing for the win, not really competing, but decided to keep on going. I am thinking that my BS was a bit low at this point. I didn't get to eat too much on the first lap, and then only snacked a bit for the 2nd. I was pretty bad off at the start of the 3rd lap, and seriously thought about stopping. I waited for my BBray for a few to have someone to ride with. At this time, I ate a bunch of food, and had a gel. Then I passed BB, and took another gel, feeling better. I saw another guy and passed him, then had another gel, at which point I felt really good. I was flying the last lap, and I want to say that I had a great Blood sugar for the last 8 miles, where I put 10 minutes into a few people. Fueling, and having the right # is something we all strive for, and with the right technology, CGM, the playing field is close to level, and when we do the other stuff right (eat, insulin, timing...) then I think we have the edge. Over the past few weeks I have gotten to go old school in a few different categories, which I think is always good to put in in perspective. Rapper Rick Smith got 2nd, with Big daddy Slaton winning his, as did Darren. I won my division thanks to nobody else showing up, and had a great time doing it. The experience was priceless if for nothing other than getting the refresher: Finishing what you start is very important, and no matter the result or the pain in the process, always seems like fun. Can't wait till next time. Now is time to move forward with "The Tour of Somerville" coming up this week, and a lot of big events at Sanofi-Aventis this week.
Tomorrow I am off to Jersey, and will be there for a week. Then back, and off to Cali for 5 days, before getting back and then going to Camp Kudzu for a few days, before going to NO for 5 days. All in all, I think I have a run of 22 days away from home coming up. But I am back on CGM, and have weined off the 2-day basal and am now back to once per day. Messed up last night, and had to bolus a few times with rapid bed, so hope to have the right dose tonight.
Thanks for reading, and have a GREAT night!
Phil
P.S. TT1+TT2 jersey's are now available for sale!! http://teamtype1.myshopify.com/
Team Type 1
http://twitter.com/PhilSoutherland
How goes it? Thanks everyone for the great comments, and showing of support. To Mr. Anonymous who likes to talk trash: I don't care. Post your name, then maybe I will take note.
This past weekend was a lot of fun. I haven't raced mountain bikes since, well, um... I have no idea. This race meant a lot more. This was one of the first times I got to go away from home with the boyz, and for a 14yr old, it was the coolest thing in the world. I also remember finishing one 7 mile lap, and being dead. Here we are, 12-13 years later, same camp ground (minus a few who bailed at the last moment...) I was there with RAAM Crew vets Chris Big Daddy Slaton, Daren, Ricky Silk, and Jim. I always new Rick was fast, but I did not know that if you named a song, he could immediately go into chorus, and sing the whole thing... Any song too...
Back to racing in a minute. The past 2 weeks of blood sugars have been pretty good. I was back to finger stick full time. Having run out of sensors, it was time to go old school. At first, I was high, then low, then high, then low, but after a few days I got my rhythm back, and #'s were solid, with 14day avg down to 108. Here is the thing though, with CGM, I could have 14day avg at 103, with 3-5%below target, and no blood sugars under 50. Now to get to 108, I had to drop way too low a few too many times. I woke up low one time, another low while on the phone with my literary agent, and once on the bike. What I found was in the transition period after CGM (Day 4-8,) I was only checking about 14 times a day, and I saw too many #'s that I did not like. So I went old school OCD, and began to check 20-22 times a day. Guess what: No more high BS, cause I caught them before getting there, and a lot less lows. Even without CGM, you can still simulate it... I found myself checking 2-3 times in a 20 minute window to get a real idea of my trend before making a correction. Although this method works, and with effort, it works very well, I still think that CGM is the way to go. I am back on it now (thanks to a study) and have hit the button to see my BS 47 times today, and that is in the last 8.5hrs, or checking an avg of 5 times/hour.
Then the bike race... So 2 weeks ago I got news my artery was healthy, yet I am still having blood flow problems to my left leg. So at a friend's (thanks Joe E. and Tim J) I decided to play with position. No dice. Tried riding mtb, and leg went numb. Pretty bummed out, and not that excited about racing, if one leg is not gonna work, but the thought of mountain bike racing, and doing it with my big bro Slaton brought a smile to my face. Ya see, when I first started riding, while everybody slaughtered me, and left me out in the woods, Mr. Slaton waited. Every Sunday I would make it farther and farther before he would have to stop for me, but every Sunday he waited until he didn't have to wait any longer. I am forever grateful to his Jimminy Cricket for telling him to wait for this punk kid so he would make it home alive.
So we have a good time dying on the pre-ride, camp out, get up and get ready to rock. We take off down the dirt road, and then up a climb. I was 2nd wheel into the woods, but no middle chain ring, as I was stuck in the big ring. This didn't work for this steep climb. So I got off, had a few guys pass me, then back on it, with only a middle ring. Then pass a few guys, blow up, get passed by a few, and settle in. I was 15 seconds back of this one guy for a long time, when it felt like my bike was not right. Sure enough, my crank (attaches to the pedal) was coming off. So I walk up the hill for about 10 minutes (wanting to quit) until a guy came by and let me borrow his wrench. I fixed the bike, and got going again. Passed 3-4 guys, and then at the start of the 2nd lap wanted to quit so bad. I was no longer racing for the win, not really competing, but decided to keep on going. I am thinking that my BS was a bit low at this point. I didn't get to eat too much on the first lap, and then only snacked a bit for the 2nd. I was pretty bad off at the start of the 3rd lap, and seriously thought about stopping. I waited for my BBray for a few to have someone to ride with. At this time, I ate a bunch of food, and had a gel. Then I passed BB, and took another gel, feeling better. I saw another guy and passed him, then had another gel, at which point I felt really good. I was flying the last lap, and I want to say that I had a great Blood sugar for the last 8 miles, where I put 10 minutes into a few people. Fueling, and having the right # is something we all strive for, and with the right technology, CGM, the playing field is close to level, and when we do the other stuff right (eat, insulin, timing...) then I think we have the edge. Over the past few weeks I have gotten to go old school in a few different categories, which I think is always good to put in in perspective. Rapper Rick Smith got 2nd, with Big daddy Slaton winning his, as did Darren. I won my division thanks to nobody else showing up, and had a great time doing it. The experience was priceless if for nothing other than getting the refresher: Finishing what you start is very important, and no matter the result or the pain in the process, always seems like fun. Can't wait till next time. Now is time to move forward with "The Tour of Somerville" coming up this week, and a lot of big events at Sanofi-Aventis this week.
Tomorrow I am off to Jersey, and will be there for a week. Then back, and off to Cali for 5 days, before getting back and then going to Camp Kudzu for a few days, before going to NO for 5 days. All in all, I think I have a run of 22 days away from home coming up. But I am back on CGM, and have weined off the 2-day basal and am now back to once per day. Messed up last night, and had to bolus a few times with rapid bed, so hope to have the right dose tonight.
Thanks for reading, and have a GREAT night!
Phil
P.S. TT1+TT2 jersey's are now available for sale!! http://teamtype1.myshopify.com/
Team Type 1
http://twitter.com/PhilSoutherland
Friday, May 8, 2009
Lessons Learned
Howdy from Hotlanta!
How is everyone doing? Thanks very much for the comments and posts. This has been a pretty interesting week. I have had some big developments in my new training tool, a shake up in the team, and decent news from the doc. But today after spending a week fixing all energy on the now, I began to stop and reflect a bit on the past. What is the old saying: "If it doesn't kill you, it will make you stronger?" I find this to be very true, and want to share a few experiences of the past which at the time sucked are now somewhat entertaining.
14 years old hanging out at Revolutions Cycles (in Tallahassee) when me and my buddies were too loud, and knocked some stuff over or scared a customer away, the owner (who shall for privacy reasons be called Kent Woodville) yelled at us all: "You can leave, or you can sit in this area (a duct tape square on the floor) for 30 minutes without saying a word. " My friends left, but me, wanting to fit in, and become welcome, and to learn from these guys who I looked up to, sat in the box for 30 minutes. Then we were cool.
-lesson learned
16 or 17 years old, first year racing on the road: Leaving a race in St. Pete Fl, and as tradition had it, we stopped at a gas station. I had won some money, and decided to GO BIG with a 64oz Diet Coke... I was told by Louis and Ray: We are not stopping until Ocala, so watch what you drink. 20 minutes later it was gone, and 10 minutes after I had to pee. "We told you," was the response I got. 1 hour later, I really had to go, but still no stop. Then for good measure, they went past Ocala, as I am nearly in tears. For 2.5hrs I sat squirming, screaming, begging to stop, and when we did it was the best thing in the world. They taught me a lesson. I could have gone home and cried to mom, but I wanted to race, and these guys were racers, so I took the lesson, and got a smaller drink next time.
-lesson learned
19 years old racing for UGA: Daytona weekend and racing bikes 20 minutes from Daytona. None of us reserve a hotel, and the only one we could find was a 29.99 dump, with 1 room available, 2 beds. It just so happened that 8 of us had to fit in there. I was the youngest, so got relegated to the floor, where I had roaches crawling all over me for the night. Waffle house the next day, and off to the races. I was broke, but should have made a reservation. We won the race the next day.
-Lesson learned
21 yrs old, racing for UGA: I was 3rd in the conference, and got told that I was not going to Nationals (my goal for the year) because I didn't do Volunteer hours required. I was upset, so won the race the next day, and then whined about it to the world. In hindsight, If I would have taken a little time out of my life, volunteered, I could have helped the team go for Gold that year. Instead, as they were racing crits, I did a 7 hour training ride by myself.
-Lesson learned, and who knew how great it feels to Volunteer.
***For anyone who wants, please visit CampKudzu.org, as they are in need of counselors for Summer Camp. It is a great week!!
How about diabetes:
6yrs old: Mom says "Don't do your shot, you will go blind." Result: I beg for my shot every day so I can keep my eyes.
- Lesson Learned
12 yrs old, I get my A1C of 8.2, and ask my doctor if that # will make me go blind. He didn't say yes, but didn't say no, so I asked if it should be better, and he said yes. I said what should I do: check more. So I checked more, and came back 3 months later to get an A1C of 7.1.
-lesson learned
17 years old: DQ Blizzard #1, 5 units- result BS of 300-
1 week later: DQ Blizzard #2, 7 units- result BS 51 (finish my friends blizzard)
1 week after that: DQ Blizzard #3, 6 units- Result BS of 105
-lesson learned
These were all very important times in my life. Some might seem like bad, or scary times, but in reality, Life is just like riding a bike, you fall down, and then you get back up and do it again. I am grateful to those who have taught me lessons, and showed me the way. I have had a lot of people I looked up to growing up who were very hard on me, and pushed me, but taught me. And then this past winter I get to do Team Training camp/media training, AKA (from the riders) Food Camp, as we were all over fed and under ridden for a few days, all in the name of the team.
As for the now: This week my docs told me my arteries are good. This is good because I don't need surgery, but this is bad because I have no idea what is causing the problem. Now it is back to the drawing board with my team of friends, to adjust position, do body work, and try and figure out what is going on.
As for the rest of our team: a kid quit, made up some stories, and now I wish him well.
I am very happy to report the average A1C of Team Type 1. We have 35 athletes with diabetes, 26 type 1, and 9 type 2. Our motto is A1C: Strive for 6.5, and it looks like the team did just that coming home with an avg of 6.41. The do this, because they all take advantage of FreeStyle, Omni-Pod, and Dex4 (not necessarily all of those) that they have access to thanks to the team. Of the 54 athletes on TT1/TT2, 26 are returning, and 28 are new.
We run a good ship here, and are always learning. I am sure in 5 years, I will look back and laugh at this week, as I have at just about every other one so far in life.
Have a great weekend, and thanks for reading!
Phil
How is everyone doing? Thanks very much for the comments and posts. This has been a pretty interesting week. I have had some big developments in my new training tool, a shake up in the team, and decent news from the doc. But today after spending a week fixing all energy on the now, I began to stop and reflect a bit on the past. What is the old saying: "If it doesn't kill you, it will make you stronger?" I find this to be very true, and want to share a few experiences of the past which at the time sucked are now somewhat entertaining.
14 years old hanging out at Revolutions Cycles (in Tallahassee) when me and my buddies were too loud, and knocked some stuff over or scared a customer away, the owner (who shall for privacy reasons be called Kent Woodville) yelled at us all: "You can leave, or you can sit in this area (a duct tape square on the floor) for 30 minutes without saying a word. " My friends left, but me, wanting to fit in, and become welcome, and to learn from these guys who I looked up to, sat in the box for 30 minutes. Then we were cool.
-lesson learned
16 or 17 years old, first year racing on the road: Leaving a race in St. Pete Fl, and as tradition had it, we stopped at a gas station. I had won some money, and decided to GO BIG with a 64oz Diet Coke... I was told by Louis and Ray: We are not stopping until Ocala, so watch what you drink. 20 minutes later it was gone, and 10 minutes after I had to pee. "We told you," was the response I got. 1 hour later, I really had to go, but still no stop. Then for good measure, they went past Ocala, as I am nearly in tears. For 2.5hrs I sat squirming, screaming, begging to stop, and when we did it was the best thing in the world. They taught me a lesson. I could have gone home and cried to mom, but I wanted to race, and these guys were racers, so I took the lesson, and got a smaller drink next time.
-lesson learned
19 years old racing for UGA: Daytona weekend and racing bikes 20 minutes from Daytona. None of us reserve a hotel, and the only one we could find was a 29.99 dump, with 1 room available, 2 beds. It just so happened that 8 of us had to fit in there. I was the youngest, so got relegated to the floor, where I had roaches crawling all over me for the night. Waffle house the next day, and off to the races. I was broke, but should have made a reservation. We won the race the next day.
-Lesson learned
21 yrs old, racing for UGA: I was 3rd in the conference, and got told that I was not going to Nationals (my goal for the year) because I didn't do Volunteer hours required. I was upset, so won the race the next day, and then whined about it to the world. In hindsight, If I would have taken a little time out of my life, volunteered, I could have helped the team go for Gold that year. Instead, as they were racing crits, I did a 7 hour training ride by myself.
-Lesson learned, and who knew how great it feels to Volunteer.
***For anyone who wants, please visit CampKudzu.org, as they are in need of counselors for Summer Camp. It is a great week!!
How about diabetes:
6yrs old: Mom says "Don't do your shot, you will go blind." Result: I beg for my shot every day so I can keep my eyes.
- Lesson Learned
12 yrs old, I get my A1C of 8.2, and ask my doctor if that # will make me go blind. He didn't say yes, but didn't say no, so I asked if it should be better, and he said yes. I said what should I do: check more. So I checked more, and came back 3 months later to get an A1C of 7.1.
-lesson learned
17 years old: DQ Blizzard #1, 5 units- result BS of 300-
1 week later: DQ Blizzard #2, 7 units- result BS 51 (finish my friends blizzard)
1 week after that: DQ Blizzard #3, 6 units- Result BS of 105
-lesson learned
These were all very important times in my life. Some might seem like bad, or scary times, but in reality, Life is just like riding a bike, you fall down, and then you get back up and do it again. I am grateful to those who have taught me lessons, and showed me the way. I have had a lot of people I looked up to growing up who were very hard on me, and pushed me, but taught me. And then this past winter I get to do Team Training camp/media training, AKA (from the riders) Food Camp, as we were all over fed and under ridden for a few days, all in the name of the team.
As for the now: This week my docs told me my arteries are good. This is good because I don't need surgery, but this is bad because I have no idea what is causing the problem. Now it is back to the drawing board with my team of friends, to adjust position, do body work, and try and figure out what is going on.
As for the rest of our team: a kid quit, made up some stories, and now I wish him well.
I am very happy to report the average A1C of Team Type 1. We have 35 athletes with diabetes, 26 type 1, and 9 type 2. Our motto is A1C: Strive for 6.5, and it looks like the team did just that coming home with an avg of 6.41. The do this, because they all take advantage of FreeStyle, Omni-Pod, and Dex4 (not necessarily all of those) that they have access to thanks to the team. Of the 54 athletes on TT1/TT2, 26 are returning, and 28 are new.
We run a good ship here, and are always learning. I am sure in 5 years, I will look back and laugh at this week, as I have at just about every other one so far in life.
Have a great weekend, and thanks for reading!
Phil
Friday, May 1, 2009
The Diabetes Game: The Sign and the Jinx
Howdy from Emory Radiology Dept:
So the bike racin has not been all that great for me (but great for the team!!) Tuesday in Beaufort was a quick one for me. Before my leg quit working, I typically feel really good, and have no problem riding the front of a race. But once the left leg gives, there is no need to be there, as I just get in the way. Beaufort was a hard race, no doubt about it. Krazy Ken Hanson made the break, and those guys stayed away for most of the race. Got caught with a few laps to go, but he still managed a top 10. Then Wednesday was Walterboro, which is a good one. I like the course, and have ridden well there in the past. Spent 5 laps moving up, then cover a move, and then shut down. I slowly worked my backwards, and then off the back. 2 guys stayed away, and Aldo and Ken took 1-2 in the field sprint again for 3rd and 4th. It was a solid performance, and the team was starting to ride better together. Most of these days, we would ride in the morning, typically to a coffee shop, then back take a nap, and then get ready to race at night. The 2-a-days really boost the metabolism, and for me especially at night. I got the s-a pen, and it seems to be more potent than the vial, or my metabolism is just really flying. I haven't done a bolus over 4 units in a while now, and have been hovering at about 15u of basal a day. Back to 16 now with no racing. Weird though, as every night at 9, I would just need more and more carbs. I was taking in Dex4, and Gatorade at bed time, as that was when it was racing.
There was one night I thought I had it all good, but could not sleep. For me, not being able to fall asleep is a tell-tale sign that I need more food, or insulin. My body won't let me go to sleep having messed up. So sure enough, I check again, and am hovering at 60, got some more carbs in, and then 15 minutes later I was in dream land. Also, I think it is a guarantee that if I brush my teeth before that final check, then I am going to drop and need more food. This is a jinx that has proven itself time after time. Funny little intricacies of The Diabetes Game.
I was planning to stay with the team, and keep trying to race, but I got a call from the Radiology Dept at Emory, and Dr. Diego Martin ( a radiologist) was not happy with the first MRA. So in for another, which is supposedly 2x as powerful as your standard MRI. Diego also rides bikes, and wanted to take everything into account. He actually sat in while they did the MRA, to ensure they got every possible image. Now I get to play the waiting game for a while, and hope to hear something that will allow me to move forward. For some leisure reading on this condition,
I have a couple of links below, which are more descriptive of the condition I have.
http://www.velonews.com/article/13064
http://sportsmedicine.about.com/od/bicyclinginjuries/a/Arteriopathy.htm
Thanks for reading, and the Well Wishes!
Have a great weekend.
Philpott
http://twitter.com/PhilSoutherland
TeamType1.org
So the bike racin has not been all that great for me (but great for the team!!) Tuesday in Beaufort was a quick one for me. Before my leg quit working, I typically feel really good, and have no problem riding the front of a race. But once the left leg gives, there is no need to be there, as I just get in the way. Beaufort was a hard race, no doubt about it. Krazy Ken Hanson made the break, and those guys stayed away for most of the race. Got caught with a few laps to go, but he still managed a top 10. Then Wednesday was Walterboro, which is a good one. I like the course, and have ridden well there in the past. Spent 5 laps moving up, then cover a move, and then shut down. I slowly worked my backwards, and then off the back. 2 guys stayed away, and Aldo and Ken took 1-2 in the field sprint again for 3rd and 4th. It was a solid performance, and the team was starting to ride better together. Most of these days, we would ride in the morning, typically to a coffee shop, then back take a nap, and then get ready to race at night. The 2-a-days really boost the metabolism, and for me especially at night. I got the s-a pen, and it seems to be more potent than the vial, or my metabolism is just really flying. I haven't done a bolus over 4 units in a while now, and have been hovering at about 15u of basal a day. Back to 16 now with no racing. Weird though, as every night at 9, I would just need more and more carbs. I was taking in Dex4, and Gatorade at bed time, as that was when it was racing.
There was one night I thought I had it all good, but could not sleep. For me, not being able to fall asleep is a tell-tale sign that I need more food, or insulin. My body won't let me go to sleep having messed up. So sure enough, I check again, and am hovering at 60, got some more carbs in, and then 15 minutes later I was in dream land. Also, I think it is a guarantee that if I brush my teeth before that final check, then I am going to drop and need more food. This is a jinx that has proven itself time after time. Funny little intricacies of The Diabetes Game.
I was planning to stay with the team, and keep trying to race, but I got a call from the Radiology Dept at Emory, and Dr. Diego Martin ( a radiologist) was not happy with the first MRA. So in for another, which is supposedly 2x as powerful as your standard MRI. Diego also rides bikes, and wanted to take everything into account. He actually sat in while they did the MRA, to ensure they got every possible image. Now I get to play the waiting game for a while, and hope to hear something that will allow me to move forward. For some leisure reading on this condition,
I have a couple of links below, which are more descriptive of the condition I have.
http://www.velonews.com/article/13064
http://sportsmedicine.about.com/od/bicyclinginjuries/a/Arteriopathy.htm
Thanks for reading, and the Well Wishes!
Have a great weekend.
Philpott
http://twitter.com/PhilSoutherland
TeamType1.org
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Twilight Time!
Howdy from Beaufurt, SC:
We are hanging out in the marshland these days, at a beautiful house compliments of Mr. Mike! Last check it was time for the crits. We cam in with a solid team, great staff, and motivated to get some results. First on the block for me was an MRA (MRI of the arteries) to see what is going on with my leg. I got that out of the way on Wednesday, then an easy cruise on Thursday, same on Friday in good ole Athens, GA! It really was great to be back, and good to see a lot of old friends in advance of Twilight.
Friday night we had dinner with the Team Type 1 ladies team, who were also motivated for some good results. Saturday am was an easy ride, and then some relaxation in prep for the race. The writer of my book (due out next June) John Hanc came into town to experience the race scene, and work on the outline so we can get the story straight. It was a pretty hectic day. With the race slated for 9pm, we went to get the last meal at 5:30, which was going to be my last shot of rapid until after the race. I did my 3 units for the All Star breakfast at Wafflehouse (usually 5) and was hoping to be sitting at 130 or so after the meal. Low (no pun intended) and behold I had a bit too much basal, and the metabolism was cooking, which kept me at about 90 after the meal. Then 2hrs before I made an attempt to get the blood sugar up, but no response. 45 minutes before I ate some more, and then at 8:30 I was sitting at 171 and flat lined on the FreeStyle Navigator. At 9pm I was sitting in the start house and adrenaline was pumping. If the race would have gone off at 9pm, or even 9:15, BS would have been between 200-220, but at 9:30 I was 225 going straight up. 260 on the start line. Did I eat too much? Was the adrenaline from 40,000 screaming fans and a front row start jacking me up? Who knows, and at that point who cares. All I could do was focus on the race, and know that I would not be going hypo. The gun went off, and it was madness. Full gas from the go, and I just stayed in the top 5, top 10 hoping to have a functional leg. The race began to get pretty hard, and the leg slowly died. About 10 laps in I was having trouble maintaining position, and jumping out of each turn with my right leg only. If the race would have eased up for a bit, I may have got through it, but that doesn’t happen at twilight, so I pulled the plug. I was pretty bummed, as this is practically a hometown race, and lots of friends were out watching, but that’s life. I got to see the end of the race, and 3 guys had snuck off the front. Ken Hanson and Aldo looked good, and came in 1-2 in the field sprint for 4th and 5th overall, which ain’t bad for Twilight. Followed this with a celebration on the town, and time to think about Roswell.
Also, big congrats to the Ladies, who animated the race with many attacks, and Jen McCrae who took 3rd place!!
Day 2, we did a quick ride in the morning, then drive home, and off to the race. John and I spent some time together, as did my mom and I. Then it was race time. Today, I had backed off the basal a bit, and got my meal about 3hrs in advance. 1hr before I was sitting at 90, but took a less drastic approach to raise the BS today. 20 minutes before I was at 170, and then on the start line I was 206 and flat, when the gun went off. Roswell is a completely different race. I knew to have a chance to help the team, I had to make it through the numbness. Vassili told me to chill for the first half, and then try to help. So for 40 minutes, I sat at or near the back, conserving as much as possible. Took in 1 gel 20 minutes in, and drank some sugar drink, and water. 40 minutes in there was a lull in the race, and I hopped up to the top 10, which was a tough run. It was much tougher to fight for position, and jump out of the turns on this one. I started losing power in my left leg, and began to go into survival mode. Ken and Aldo were flying out there, and Timmy Hargrave looked decent in a crit. So I drifted back to the back, and used the “Jason Snow” method to get through the race. With about 5 laps to go, I started to move up, and Vassili was telling us to try and win the sprint. There were 5 off the front, and with 2 to go, I snuck to the front, and thought I would give it a good drag for half a lap, to help Ken/Aldo, but then I ended up with a small gap. I went about as hard as I could for .5 a lap, and with .5 a lap to go got caught, and Mad Man Ken Hanson took over. He gave Aldo a leadout through the last turn, and Aldo blasted the sprint to take 6th.With the race over, I checked the Navigator, and was 170 headed straight down. Perfect BS for the race… The team is looking good, and if we can keep it together to the line, we have good shot at taking a W this week. Jen McCrae took 3rd again, and Monique and Morgan began to show the goods in the race. I did not get to see it, but I heard that the ladies kept the pressure on all day.
Out west Fabio spent many hours in the breaks, which helped to set up Darren Lill for the Win in Vuelta de Bisbee! Congrats guys!
I decided to come try and race this week, in hopes of lending a hand to the team. A big thanks to our Swanny: Sergey who makes everything off the bike perfect, and also to our mechanic Alex Banyay. He rocks the house, and our bikes have been flawless every time he touches em!
Bike racing and diabetes are very similar in that we are very dependent on our team around us to help make us succeed. If we have the right tools, we have a chance. Also, winning 2 race here will be a success, but that also means we will lose 5 races. After the defeats, if we learn, and do it better next time, then it was a lesson, not a loss… On the bike side we have Orbea bikes, Shimano parts/wheels, director, mechanic, souigneur which are all necessary for success. On the diabetes side we have sanofi-aventis, Navigator, Omni-Pod (for some,) dex4, endo, educator, and for each game we all depend on our family and friends to support us. When one is going good for me, the other typically is too.
Off to grab a nap, and get ready for the race tonight. Thanks for all the comments, and well wishes! Also, thanks TJ for making it out to watch!
Our schedule is on the blog off www.teamtype1.org so please come meet us if you can!
Have a great day, and thanks for reading
Phil
We are hanging out in the marshland these days, at a beautiful house compliments of Mr. Mike! Last check it was time for the crits. We cam in with a solid team, great staff, and motivated to get some results. First on the block for me was an MRA (MRI of the arteries) to see what is going on with my leg. I got that out of the way on Wednesday, then an easy cruise on Thursday, same on Friday in good ole Athens, GA! It really was great to be back, and good to see a lot of old friends in advance of Twilight.
Friday night we had dinner with the Team Type 1 ladies team, who were also motivated for some good results. Saturday am was an easy ride, and then some relaxation in prep for the race. The writer of my book (due out next June) John Hanc came into town to experience the race scene, and work on the outline so we can get the story straight. It was a pretty hectic day. With the race slated for 9pm, we went to get the last meal at 5:30, which was going to be my last shot of rapid until after the race. I did my 3 units for the All Star breakfast at Wafflehouse (usually 5) and was hoping to be sitting at 130 or so after the meal. Low (no pun intended) and behold I had a bit too much basal, and the metabolism was cooking, which kept me at about 90 after the meal. Then 2hrs before I made an attempt to get the blood sugar up, but no response. 45 minutes before I ate some more, and then at 8:30 I was sitting at 171 and flat lined on the FreeStyle Navigator. At 9pm I was sitting in the start house and adrenaline was pumping. If the race would have gone off at 9pm, or even 9:15, BS would have been between 200-220, but at 9:30 I was 225 going straight up. 260 on the start line. Did I eat too much? Was the adrenaline from 40,000 screaming fans and a front row start jacking me up? Who knows, and at that point who cares. All I could do was focus on the race, and know that I would not be going hypo. The gun went off, and it was madness. Full gas from the go, and I just stayed in the top 5, top 10 hoping to have a functional leg. The race began to get pretty hard, and the leg slowly died. About 10 laps in I was having trouble maintaining position, and jumping out of each turn with my right leg only. If the race would have eased up for a bit, I may have got through it, but that doesn’t happen at twilight, so I pulled the plug. I was pretty bummed, as this is practically a hometown race, and lots of friends were out watching, but that’s life. I got to see the end of the race, and 3 guys had snuck off the front. Ken Hanson and Aldo looked good, and came in 1-2 in the field sprint for 4th and 5th overall, which ain’t bad for Twilight. Followed this with a celebration on the town, and time to think about Roswell.
Also, big congrats to the Ladies, who animated the race with many attacks, and Jen McCrae who took 3rd place!!
Day 2, we did a quick ride in the morning, then drive home, and off to the race. John and I spent some time together, as did my mom and I. Then it was race time. Today, I had backed off the basal a bit, and got my meal about 3hrs in advance. 1hr before I was sitting at 90, but took a less drastic approach to raise the BS today. 20 minutes before I was at 170, and then on the start line I was 206 and flat, when the gun went off. Roswell is a completely different race. I knew to have a chance to help the team, I had to make it through the numbness. Vassili told me to chill for the first half, and then try to help. So for 40 minutes, I sat at or near the back, conserving as much as possible. Took in 1 gel 20 minutes in, and drank some sugar drink, and water. 40 minutes in there was a lull in the race, and I hopped up to the top 10, which was a tough run. It was much tougher to fight for position, and jump out of the turns on this one. I started losing power in my left leg, and began to go into survival mode. Ken and Aldo were flying out there, and Timmy Hargrave looked decent in a crit. So I drifted back to the back, and used the “Jason Snow” method to get through the race. With about 5 laps to go, I started to move up, and Vassili was telling us to try and win the sprint. There were 5 off the front, and with 2 to go, I snuck to the front, and thought I would give it a good drag for half a lap, to help Ken/Aldo, but then I ended up with a small gap. I went about as hard as I could for .5 a lap, and with .5 a lap to go got caught, and Mad Man Ken Hanson took over. He gave Aldo a leadout through the last turn, and Aldo blasted the sprint to take 6th.With the race over, I checked the Navigator, and was 170 headed straight down. Perfect BS for the race… The team is looking good, and if we can keep it together to the line, we have good shot at taking a W this week. Jen McCrae took 3rd again, and Monique and Morgan began to show the goods in the race. I did not get to see it, but I heard that the ladies kept the pressure on all day.
Out west Fabio spent many hours in the breaks, which helped to set up Darren Lill for the Win in Vuelta de Bisbee! Congrats guys!
I decided to come try and race this week, in hopes of lending a hand to the team. A big thanks to our Swanny: Sergey who makes everything off the bike perfect, and also to our mechanic Alex Banyay. He rocks the house, and our bikes have been flawless every time he touches em!
Bike racing and diabetes are very similar in that we are very dependent on our team around us to help make us succeed. If we have the right tools, we have a chance. Also, winning 2 race here will be a success, but that also means we will lose 5 races. After the defeats, if we learn, and do it better next time, then it was a lesson, not a loss… On the bike side we have Orbea bikes, Shimano parts/wheels, director, mechanic, souigneur which are all necessary for success. On the diabetes side we have sanofi-aventis, Navigator, Omni-Pod (for some,) dex4, endo, educator, and for each game we all depend on our family and friends to support us. When one is going good for me, the other typically is too.
Off to grab a nap, and get ready for the race tonight. Thanks for all the comments, and well wishes! Also, thanks TJ for making it out to watch!
Our schedule is on the blog off www.teamtype1.org so please come meet us if you can!
Have a great day, and thanks for reading
Phil
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Diabetes Game: Walking the line...
Howdy from HotLanta,
As always, it is great to be back home. We are heading into the crit series next, so I should have a steady influx of temp roommates in the house. First it was Daniel Holt, now Ken Hanson, but the guys are cool which makes it easy. Last I wrote, was after the test, and I was a bit down. Lots of work has been put in to getting faster, stronger, leaner to have a chance at success this year, and to find out the surgery was a failure really sucked. But, even with the semi-functional blood flow, I was still going ok, and the team was solid for Battenkill, so I went in ready to do my best for the team.
Saturday was a shorter race, at 80 miles. The weather was sketchy, in that it was nice and sunny at the start, but a good chance for rain. Normally I would have brought a rain jacket, and some arm warmers, but instead of having my bag go to Albany NY (on my flight) it went to Lafayette, LA. How this happened, I don't know, but Ken Hanson gave me a kit to race in. I was wearing Navigator, and 1 hour pre race was sitting at 150 flat line. Then there was a slight upward trend as we edged closer, and closer to the start. This is good, as typically at the beginning of a race is when the biggest drop happens for me. But apparently I either a) didn't have enough Lantus on board or b) ate too much before the start. But no way I am doing Apidra this close to the start. We started the race, and there was a solid climb at the start, and Dan and Ken made the break. They began to get more and more time on us, as the field rode a nice easy pace. There were tons of dirt roads on the course, and a lot of big rollers. It may be the coolest bike race course I have ever done. On the shorter hills, I am good, and was able to ride at/near the front. On some of the longer ones, the left leg would go numb, and I would have to gauge my effort very carefully as not to completely kill my leg. About 45 minutes into the race shortly after I ate a gel, I checked the Navigator and was 250ish. Then 30 minutes later 290, then 350... So it was water time. I quit eating food and gels, and just tried to stick to water. We then came up this 4km stair step climb. Steep at the bottom, then less steep, then more steep, for a while... 1km from the top I was unable to pedal with the left, so just went at a nice steady pace thinking my race was over. We made a left, and then down a long dirt descent. It was now raining, and I was freezing cold, so figured I would just pull out. Then I saw the group about a minute up the road, going slow, so I went a hard tempo to get back on. The blessing in disguise here was that we passed my buddy Johnny Sundt, who was just out riding, and he gave me his rain jacket. Thanks Johnny! Got back in the group, and we decided to pull the plug at the feed anyway. Dan had flatted out of the break, and Ken was trading attacks with the others up there, and ended up with a solid 3rd place. I got back and immediately gave a massive bolus, and after about 30-45 minutes started taking in calories again.
After that I was very sensitive to my Apidra, so was giving 3/4 boluses for food and snacks. Good BS's through the night, and after the high in race the day before, decided to stick with same basal instead of reducing. Mistake!
Day 2 was 200km (125 miles) on the same course, but with more teams in the race. It started pretty quick from the gun, and we had some good fights getting to the front for the dirt. Shawn Milne was our leader for the day, and we all felt good that we could rock it. I had a gel early, and then another, followed by some cliff blocks. I thought things were good, and made it through the tough parts of the course, gauging my efforts over the climbs carefully. As we got near the feedzone, I pulled out the Navigator, and saw 157 with an arrow Straight down, which gave me a quick alarm. So immediately, I downed 2 gels, more cliff blocks, and whatever sugar bottle they gave me. At the feed zone, I took 2 more bottles, downed another gel, and saw that I was 155 and flat. I thought I had avoided disaster, and was now 100% focused on the enxt dirt sections. Team Type 1 was well represented at the front, and we were constantly jostling for position on the dirt. We made it over a long gradual climb, and were bombing down the descent, when I heard the sound of air leaving my tire rapidly... Flat- happens all the time. I called Vassili on the radio, and started drifting through the line of 150 guys behind us. Alex gave me a quick wheel change, and was off chasing. So here I am chasing down the hill in the midst of a bike race induced dust storm. It reminded me of "Days of Thunder" and the cloud of smoke. I had a field to catch, so just closed my eyes (not really) and went for it, dodging cars, riders, and some rocks. It took about 20 minutes, but I got back on, dead from the chase, and at the base of a climb. Came off over the top, and then chased back again. It looked like it was slowing up, so I grabbed some bottles from the car to take to the guys. Then we began to go full tilt again. I was at the back, dying a slow death, but determined to get these bottles to the guys, as I could tell my race was coming to an early end. I managed to get Dan and Aldo feeds, just as my alarms began going crazy. I had already puked a bit of gel, and was sick to my stomach from the overload of carbs early, but still dropping. I guess the chase had me thinking of one thing and one thing only, which was to get back on. I should have been thinking get back on, well fueled, and help the guys. But for about 30 minutes of hard, hard riding, I forgot to eat a thing. When I saw 115 with an arrow going down, I knew I would have to take in about 75gms of carbs to have a chance, but couldn't even fathom a sip of gatorade. But, I got the bottles to the guys, and then Shawn went onto 4th place. He was nearly guaranteed 2nd, but a mis-timed flat ended our hopes of the podium. Scott Nydam (BMC) was off the front the entire day, and really deserved his win, and Karl-(10-Men)zies (Ouch) came in 2nd. All in all, it was a good day for the team. Our Orbea bikes were perfect for the fast stretches on the road, but also very good on the dirt.
What is the moral of the story here?? It isn't easy to nail the blood sugars every time. But knowing the # gives the power to deal with it accordingly. Had I not had Navigator on Saturday, I would have eated too much, and come home at 400, and on Sunday, I would not have been able to eat so much in advance of the low. Knowledge is power here, but no more so than off the bike. Check and correct, no matter where you are. It will help!
Then it was time to head home, and get ready for Twilight, and all the crits. I did my MRA, (which is an MRI of the arteries,) yesterday, and I will hopefully here from the surgeons at Emory as to what my options are. In the meantime, I have got some good advice from Tim Johnson, and a few others, so will continue to tweak things to make that leg work.
I really appreciate the support, and well wishes, and hope to see you at the crits. Please come say hey, and meet the team. Time to see big Joe turn on his speed, and Morgan Patton has a great chance at scoring her first NRC win this next week. I am real excited for the team.
Thanks for reading. Have a great day!
Phil
http://twitter.com/PhilSoutherland
www.TeamType1.org
As always, it is great to be back home. We are heading into the crit series next, so I should have a steady influx of temp roommates in the house. First it was Daniel Holt, now Ken Hanson, but the guys are cool which makes it easy. Last I wrote, was after the test, and I was a bit down. Lots of work has been put in to getting faster, stronger, leaner to have a chance at success this year, and to find out the surgery was a failure really sucked. But, even with the semi-functional blood flow, I was still going ok, and the team was solid for Battenkill, so I went in ready to do my best for the team.
Saturday was a shorter race, at 80 miles. The weather was sketchy, in that it was nice and sunny at the start, but a good chance for rain. Normally I would have brought a rain jacket, and some arm warmers, but instead of having my bag go to Albany NY (on my flight) it went to Lafayette, LA. How this happened, I don't know, but Ken Hanson gave me a kit to race in. I was wearing Navigator, and 1 hour pre race was sitting at 150 flat line. Then there was a slight upward trend as we edged closer, and closer to the start. This is good, as typically at the beginning of a race is when the biggest drop happens for me. But apparently I either a) didn't have enough Lantus on board or b) ate too much before the start. But no way I am doing Apidra this close to the start. We started the race, and there was a solid climb at the start, and Dan and Ken made the break. They began to get more and more time on us, as the field rode a nice easy pace. There were tons of dirt roads on the course, and a lot of big rollers. It may be the coolest bike race course I have ever done. On the shorter hills, I am good, and was able to ride at/near the front. On some of the longer ones, the left leg would go numb, and I would have to gauge my effort very carefully as not to completely kill my leg. About 45 minutes into the race shortly after I ate a gel, I checked the Navigator and was 250ish. Then 30 minutes later 290, then 350... So it was water time. I quit eating food and gels, and just tried to stick to water. We then came up this 4km stair step climb. Steep at the bottom, then less steep, then more steep, for a while... 1km from the top I was unable to pedal with the left, so just went at a nice steady pace thinking my race was over. We made a left, and then down a long dirt descent. It was now raining, and I was freezing cold, so figured I would just pull out. Then I saw the group about a minute up the road, going slow, so I went a hard tempo to get back on. The blessing in disguise here was that we passed my buddy Johnny Sundt, who was just out riding, and he gave me his rain jacket. Thanks Johnny! Got back in the group, and we decided to pull the plug at the feed anyway. Dan had flatted out of the break, and Ken was trading attacks with the others up there, and ended up with a solid 3rd place. I got back and immediately gave a massive bolus, and after about 30-45 minutes started taking in calories again.
After that I was very sensitive to my Apidra, so was giving 3/4 boluses for food and snacks. Good BS's through the night, and after the high in race the day before, decided to stick with same basal instead of reducing. Mistake!
Day 2 was 200km (125 miles) on the same course, but with more teams in the race. It started pretty quick from the gun, and we had some good fights getting to the front for the dirt. Shawn Milne was our leader for the day, and we all felt good that we could rock it. I had a gel early, and then another, followed by some cliff blocks. I thought things were good, and made it through the tough parts of the course, gauging my efforts over the climbs carefully. As we got near the feedzone, I pulled out the Navigator, and saw 157 with an arrow Straight down, which gave me a quick alarm. So immediately, I downed 2 gels, more cliff blocks, and whatever sugar bottle they gave me. At the feed zone, I took 2 more bottles, downed another gel, and saw that I was 155 and flat. I thought I had avoided disaster, and was now 100% focused on the enxt dirt sections. Team Type 1 was well represented at the front, and we were constantly jostling for position on the dirt. We made it over a long gradual climb, and were bombing down the descent, when I heard the sound of air leaving my tire rapidly... Flat- happens all the time. I called Vassili on the radio, and started drifting through the line of 150 guys behind us. Alex gave me a quick wheel change, and was off chasing. So here I am chasing down the hill in the midst of a bike race induced dust storm. It reminded me of "Days of Thunder" and the cloud of smoke. I had a field to catch, so just closed my eyes (not really) and went for it, dodging cars, riders, and some rocks. It took about 20 minutes, but I got back on, dead from the chase, and at the base of a climb. Came off over the top, and then chased back again. It looked like it was slowing up, so I grabbed some bottles from the car to take to the guys. Then we began to go full tilt again. I was at the back, dying a slow death, but determined to get these bottles to the guys, as I could tell my race was coming to an early end. I managed to get Dan and Aldo feeds, just as my alarms began going crazy. I had already puked a bit of gel, and was sick to my stomach from the overload of carbs early, but still dropping. I guess the chase had me thinking of one thing and one thing only, which was to get back on. I should have been thinking get back on, well fueled, and help the guys. But for about 30 minutes of hard, hard riding, I forgot to eat a thing. When I saw 115 with an arrow going down, I knew I would have to take in about 75gms of carbs to have a chance, but couldn't even fathom a sip of gatorade. But, I got the bottles to the guys, and then Shawn went onto 4th place. He was nearly guaranteed 2nd, but a mis-timed flat ended our hopes of the podium. Scott Nydam (BMC) was off the front the entire day, and really deserved his win, and Karl-(10-Men)zies (Ouch) came in 2nd. All in all, it was a good day for the team. Our Orbea bikes were perfect for the fast stretches on the road, but also very good on the dirt.
What is the moral of the story here?? It isn't easy to nail the blood sugars every time. But knowing the # gives the power to deal with it accordingly. Had I not had Navigator on Saturday, I would have eated too much, and come home at 400, and on Sunday, I would not have been able to eat so much in advance of the low. Knowledge is power here, but no more so than off the bike. Check and correct, no matter where you are. It will help!
Then it was time to head home, and get ready for Twilight, and all the crits. I did my MRA, (which is an MRI of the arteries,) yesterday, and I will hopefully here from the surgeons at Emory as to what my options are. In the meantime, I have got some good advice from Tim Johnson, and a few others, so will continue to tweak things to make that leg work.
I really appreciate the support, and well wishes, and hope to see you at the crits. Please come say hey, and meet the team. Time to see big Joe turn on his speed, and Morgan Patton has a great chance at scoring her first NRC win this next week. I am real excited for the team.
Thanks for reading. Have a great day!
Phil
http://twitter.com/PhilSoutherland
www.TeamType1.org
Friday, April 17, 2009
The good, the bad, the ugly (and unknown...)
Howdy from the Atlanta airport,
I hope everyone is rocking. Lots has happened since last time here. Last week followed up the with some real good training. Mountains, a 4 hour tough day, and some racing. As the week wore on I started getting more and more sensitive to the insulin. I was down to 13u basal, and less than that of rapid. Life was good, and metabolism moving. Did most of my training with Daniel Holt, and until last Thursday he was practically forcing me to ride. Weather was bad, and motivation not so high, but as the sun came out, I started getting really stoked to ride.
The Good:
Saturday came around, and it was race time in the Big B (Birmingham.) Joe's home town, and on a real cool speedway, so we were motivated to win. Joe, Dan, and I lined up with 50 others for the race. We were aggressive all day, and covering a bunch of moves from Cleve... Joe said he was feeling good, so we banked on a sprint for him. I got in some move for a few laps, and looked like we might stay away. With about 2km''s to go, we got caught, and Dan went straight to the front with Joe in tow. I stayed on the big man's wheel, while Dan kept things in check. On the last little rise 2 guys attacked, and Joe was on them like white on rice. Then came the kick to the line, and My boy Joe lit that sprint up to win by close to 5 bike lengths. It was the first time we had raced together in a long time, so to pull it off was nice. Real stoked for Joe. He has been knocking on the door for the past few weeks, and is definitely riding better than he has ever gone before. Expecting some good stuff from him come Speedweek.
The Bad and the Ugly:
So all this riding has been good, and my form was coming around nicely, but all with a little hint of doubt. During my last day in Taiwan my leg went numb for the first time since surgery last May. I was a bit freaked, so took 8 days off the bike, then every time I went hard since it has repeated. So I go in to the Vascular lab at Emory to do an ABI, or blood pressure in arm, relative to leg. At rest I am normal, 3 minutes after exercise I am normal. BUT, immediately after intense riding I have 33% less blood flow to my left leg than I should. Functional ABI is anywhere from .85-1.00 during exercise. Before surgery last year I was at .68, and at retest I was at .66. I am much stronger than last year, but still at a big disadvantage. I go in for an MRI of the arteries next week, which will determine if the surgery is recommended again, at which point I am unsure of what I will do.
I am a firm believer in the old "everything happens for a reason," yet I am also not happy about this at all. I had a problem, had surgery and a pretty brutal climb back, only to be standing at the same ledge again. Screw it though! I can still pedal, and still like riding my bike, so I am gonna race. This weekend is the Tour of Battenkill which will be a brutal 200km race with 30miles or so of dirt. Should be a real slug fest, with some of the best in the country. To get through it will be tough, but we have some guys going really well, and I want to do as much as I can to help set up another W Team Type 1.
Also, a quick thanks to all those who drive on Johnson Ferry that read this last week ... Dan, Colby, and I rode to the crit again on Thurs, and only got honked at 2x by people who weren't happy about where they came from, or where they were going... Maybe a honk free ride next week? Is it possible??
Thanks for reading, and I hope to have some good news to report next week, on a multiple levels.
Phil
http://twitter.com/PhilSoutherland
www.teamtype1.org
I hope everyone is rocking. Lots has happened since last time here. Last week followed up the with some real good training. Mountains, a 4 hour tough day, and some racing. As the week wore on I started getting more and more sensitive to the insulin. I was down to 13u basal, and less than that of rapid. Life was good, and metabolism moving. Did most of my training with Daniel Holt, and until last Thursday he was practically forcing me to ride. Weather was bad, and motivation not so high, but as the sun came out, I started getting really stoked to ride.
The Good:
Saturday came around, and it was race time in the Big B (Birmingham.) Joe's home town, and on a real cool speedway, so we were motivated to win. Joe, Dan, and I lined up with 50 others for the race. We were aggressive all day, and covering a bunch of moves from Cleve... Joe said he was feeling good, so we banked on a sprint for him. I got in some move for a few laps, and looked like we might stay away. With about 2km''s to go, we got caught, and Dan went straight to the front with Joe in tow. I stayed on the big man's wheel, while Dan kept things in check. On the last little rise 2 guys attacked, and Joe was on them like white on rice. Then came the kick to the line, and My boy Joe lit that sprint up to win by close to 5 bike lengths. It was the first time we had raced together in a long time, so to pull it off was nice. Real stoked for Joe. He has been knocking on the door for the past few weeks, and is definitely riding better than he has ever gone before. Expecting some good stuff from him come Speedweek.
The Bad and the Ugly:
So all this riding has been good, and my form was coming around nicely, but all with a little hint of doubt. During my last day in Taiwan my leg went numb for the first time since surgery last May. I was a bit freaked, so took 8 days off the bike, then every time I went hard since it has repeated. So I go in to the Vascular lab at Emory to do an ABI, or blood pressure in arm, relative to leg. At rest I am normal, 3 minutes after exercise I am normal. BUT, immediately after intense riding I have 33% less blood flow to my left leg than I should. Functional ABI is anywhere from .85-1.00 during exercise. Before surgery last year I was at .68, and at retest I was at .66. I am much stronger than last year, but still at a big disadvantage. I go in for an MRI of the arteries next week, which will determine if the surgery is recommended again, at which point I am unsure of what I will do.
I am a firm believer in the old "everything happens for a reason," yet I am also not happy about this at all. I had a problem, had surgery and a pretty brutal climb back, only to be standing at the same ledge again. Screw it though! I can still pedal, and still like riding my bike, so I am gonna race. This weekend is the Tour of Battenkill which will be a brutal 200km race with 30miles or so of dirt. Should be a real slug fest, with some of the best in the country. To get through it will be tough, but we have some guys going really well, and I want to do as much as I can to help set up another W Team Type 1.
Also, a quick thanks to all those who drive on Johnson Ferry that read this last week ... Dan, Colby, and I rode to the crit again on Thurs, and only got honked at 2x by people who weren't happy about where they came from, or where they were going... Maybe a honk free ride next week? Is it possible??
Thanks for reading, and I hope to have some good news to report next week, on a multiple levels.
Phil
http://twitter.com/PhilSoutherland
www.teamtype1.org
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