Diabetes Game---More insulin and the small world....

Howdy from Santa Barbara,

I hope everyone is rocking! Life on the west coast is good. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love Atlanta, but being able to get anywhere in town in 5 minutes is quite nice. So I get out here, and it is 60 degrees and sunny, and like a fool, I go for a ride with new teammate/buddy Ken Hanson. Why like a fool? Cause I went out in shorts, and no leg warmers. The body is such a delicate thing, that having that extra chill, plus my whacked out position, caused a nice re-strain to the hammy. 3.5 hours that day. 15 units Lantus
Thurs am, go out for the group ride, and about 1 hour in, bam, that knife goes through my hammy. This time, instead of riding for 2.5 hours on it, I called my wonderful host Gina, and she came to Summerland to pick me up. I spoke with my Physical Therapist, Dianna Palmer, who could see me immediately. I head to Dianna's and she let me know that we caught it early, and all could be good. I did some ultra sound, stem, stretching, and walked out with some hot pink tape on my hamstring. You may have seen this on the Olympic athletes (not there yet:) but it helps to alleviate strain on muscles, and Dianna is a master at it!!!

At this point, I am pretty bummed to not be able to train. Last time, this set me back 10 days, and to be honest, I can't spare 2 days right now. That afternoon I met with Dr. Howard Zisser (research master) and we discussed some great possibilities to help people with diabetes round the world. I love brain storming with scientist! Howard asked me to come watch the game at his place. So I go meet the family, Howard, Kathleen, Noah, and McKenzie. His kids were brilliant, and great musicians. Watched the Gators stomp OU, and in the process learn Kathleen specializes in acupuncture. She could see me the next am. Now I am doing 15 units of Lantus.
High blood sugar in the night- Do I need more, or do I need a new vial??
Friday:
Wake up- work, 100 emails or so, head to acupuncture. Kathleen agrees there is a light strain, and goes to work with the needles. She also worked on my massive scars from the surgery in May.

Next ride with Tim to see Dianna- more ultra sound, stem, exercises, and getting made fun of, which is one of the main reasons I love going to see her. Ride goes well, with no pain, and then off to see Kim, who does my massage. He is the best of the West, and really helps get the kinks worked out.
New vial of Insulin, 15 units Lantus, high blood sugar at night.
Ride in am with Kim, Ken, and Tim, who all say my seat position is wrong. Kim helped me make some changes, and then Sunday I get to test. Yesterday Kim, Tim, and I went for 4.5 hours over some mtns, through some valleys, and a good steady ride. My sensor for Navigator came off during yoga (2 hours till expiration anyhow) and so I went off feel for this ride.

I woke up at 60 (correction in night) did 3 units of Apidra, ate 80 gms carbs, then 15 minutes before leaving I was 170, and 3 minutes before leaving was 156. Slight downward trend. So I jump down to the coffee shop, and eat a scone. Early part of ride, eating lots. Stop 2 hours in, eat another scone. I felt like I was bonking on the latter part of the ride, and eat more... Quite thirsty though. I thought my BS was too low, so I over corrected with food. I get home, and what do you know, 296. Scrub hands, and 302... So I dropped 9 units of Apidra in my body, and 20 minutes later downing pasta. This 1 hour after a ride is crucial for recovery, so insulin and food are a must. Ideally, I would be at 150 when I got home, but ideally doesn't always happen in diabetes... But with the right amount of insulin, I was 105 1 hour after ride, and still eating.

I had also been sick of high blood sugars in the middle of the night, so I decided to make a jump. Recall 15 units Sat night, with only 3 hours on the bike. I said "screw it" and jumped to 17 units of Lantus after a 4.5 hour tough day... Too much. I was a little on the low side this am. Today I do no exercise, and I am going to go with 17 again, and should be good.

Thanks for reading the longest blog post of all time. I guess I could have summed it up by saying SB is a cool place, because I saw 3 therapist, and a bike ride in 1 day, without spending more than 7 minutes in the car at one time.

Have a great day. Until next time:)

Philpott
TeamType1.org