24k of Type 1 Endurance

Stride after stride I felt stronger & quicker; glancing at my Dexcom monitor strapped on my upper left arm: blood sugar 67 & falling double arrows.  Arms swinging like a pendulum; I took a big swig of water & glanced at my other vitals on my watch: pulse 110 / 39.01 minutes / 4.3 miles into a 5 mile race. On the outside, I was calm, powerful & a running Diabadass passing runners in the final stretch. Inside, my sugars were depleted, pulse quickening, & dry mouth; (Hypoglycemia) for me! I realized I needed to finish this race fast or.................



 in 5 minutes this Chewey Bolt would be in major Hypoglycemia trouble (below 40 for me) & I would probably not make it to the finish line.

The above happened in less than .02 seconds & 5 strides; at the 2017 Snowman Stampede 5MILE Race on Feb 18, 2017 at Hudson Gardens in Littleton, Colorado. I went on to finish this race in 42:03 minutes a new (PR) Personal Record for me in a 5 Mile / 8k Race. 5th in the Age 35-39 Div; 86th overall. These are the scenarios that I endure, face & thrive on as a daily Type 1 Runner. You’re thinking eat, recover & head home! Yes! Eventually! But not before more Orange Juice, Water, Warm Ups & Race #2 17k, now the 24k of Type 1 Endurance begins:

The starting gun sounded & resounding trumpet bellowed out! I started out from the middle of the race pack. Within the first 10 seconds; I surged into the lead group. This was my second race of the day; I was running like a man possessed; Chewey Bolt unleashed!  I rocked my Yellow JDRF Jersey; Black Beyond Type 1 hat  (for the first time ever & running back to back races for the first time ever & at my longest distances strung together ever) knowing that it would require a herculean effort. I threw up a fist pump & the “1” sign for Type 1. The photographer on the ladder took notice & aimed his camera at me. I knew these photos were money & #thedropspotted had a definite unique picture & one of my new personal favorites! Type 1 Runner leading the charge at a longer distance race!

I charged through Mile 1 at a 8:36 pace (7:56 pace/ 1st race); Blood Sugar 82 / Pulse 74. 10% of the race in; breathing steady; legs feeling good; music good; Chewey Bolt good; Chewey Lam good! At this pace; I was at new record pace (90:00-100:00) but I knew there was a long distance to go; warmer temperatures, hydration, fatigue, body/various medical conditions,  mental toughness, experience &; Type 1 would all factor in at some point in the next 14.4k / 9 miles.

Mile 2:   8:48  feeling great / ran on dirt as well to ease impact.

Mile 3:   8:58  passed one of my pacers from a previous weekend distance race. Sugar = 99

Mile 4:   9:17  My water bottle is 50% empty; we still good? On pace! Blood Sugar = 84 /

Mile 5:   8:34  I learned & payed dearly for this fastest mile of this race; made several “rookie un-Chewey Mistakes; I panicked chose to continue my quest for speed & took Gatorade at the drink station instead of water (my blood sugar= 79 falling) at 4:00 mark of this mile.  My pacer from the weekend before (I passed early Mile 3) side by side conversing about my record race pace / currently top 15% in field. For someone (me), new to distance running; I was putting in major experience & he asked how my body medically was holding up. He was amazed thus far that I had run back to back races & my fast times & how I was holding up even also after 2 weekends of brutal runs as well. We stayed together until Mile 6 & Type 1 took over.

*Mile 6:   12:34 Slowing down, Sugar = 187; Sugar=87; Sugar=112; Sugar=78; dehydration;

*Mile 7:   16:39 Cramps; dehydrated; water bottle on “e”; Dexcom beeping at me! Must Move!

*Mile 8:   16:48 People pass me, I don’t care; just move. I’m Type 1 Strong; I can do it! A few people gave me the thumbs up; say kudos for being Type 1 & doing the 10 mile; they see my Dexcom CGM on my arm. I even am told a few brief insulin stories along the way. Chewey Bolt is Boltless right now but the Platte River beauty is serene. One of the few times, I’m able to see the ripples & admire the beauty of nature during a race. This is Type 1 reminding me that it still takes charge at times. 

*Mile 9:  13:00  jog/shuffle/shuffle/jog. Okay, I got the sugar valley pattern down for this race. I have NOT given  up. Slug, conserve my remaining water supply; don’t stop. We finishing this in under 120:00 *Gulp*. I am the captain of my pace, race, these shoes. I see a race volunteer from earlier; it’s not a hallucination or is it?  I need to finish this race. Damn heat is getting to me. I’ve been outdoors or runnin for nearly 3 hours today in two taces! Yikes…... 

*Mile 10: 12:00 Late last surge, damn my blood sugar/body, I bolt pass a few runners that passed me in the last mile & saunter pass the finish line in 119:48 minutes right by the first responders table. I’m handed my bags; my Medal; gulp down my Orange Juice; devour my Cinnamon Pecans; Gallons of Water. The First Responders Aimee & Dulcee check me out; we’re all good. I made it. It wasn’t pretty; I ran my best ; my worst; my grittiest; my deepest; most graceful; all in the same day.  

Being Type 1 should not stop you from doing things; you just have to prepare & plan ahead more! First back to back running/race events ever for me. Future Goal of running the Run Colfax 1/2 Marathon in May Sub 2 Hour Time Team JDRF!

On this day, Type 1 along with other various conditions wrestled, fought, peaked, valleyed & volleyed stride for stride with me over the race distance of 24k / 15 miles / 28,000+ steps / 2 Hours: 41 Mins: 15 Seconds  in 2 races. Each day is different. As much as we try to perfect or steady our 24 hour blood sugar chart; there will be spikes. 19 races strong approaching 200k of race distance in 6 months has been such an invaluable asset outside of  my daily life . I share  this to all  that the odds maybe long, challenging, in what you are facing. It's okay to panic some, but don't let it control you. I made several mistakes in Mile 5 taking Gatorade (my body doesn't react to Gatorade well/dehydrates it/I was already dehydrated); Temperatures were rising & so was my body heat. I consumed tons of water in this mile, I ignored that & had picked up speed; my bottle was below 50%; I've run 19 races- I know my body.  All these cascaded to my cramps & eventual blood sugar peaks & valleys over the next 2-3 miles. I was able to regroup , focus & in Mile 8 came with up a plan on the fly to finish the race in under two hours.  

 When these two events were over; I didn't feel the runners high or even a Diabadass right away. I felt like I had let myself & those around me down. After talking with a few respected runners & Type 1's;  I realized- the feat I just pulled off was nothing short of Type 1 Endurance! When I do something  I set high expectations. I don't let Type 1 or my conditions define me. Yes, I made several mistakes in the second race that cost me chunks of time & Iearned from it. However, Type 1's make real life decisions like these that don't occur in races on a daily basis (how much insulin to give / when to administer / when to eat / social or no / activities / etc) & Thankfully; having 13+ years of Type 1 Experience & lots of trials/errors have shown me successful daily diabetic lifestyle strategies.     

Point is Type 1 is a storm in itself. Never give up! Regroup, find your support, embrace it! running, jogging, walking continues to teach me so much about Type 1 lifestyle; life in general. Be the anchor, the calming force in your daily storm,
  

Until My Next Adventure!

Race 2: 10 Mile: #thedropspotted Beyond Type 1 Hat that's me in the JDRF Jersey!

Race 1: (5 Mile) Homestretch; C-Bolting down the last .5 mile to a new record 42:03!