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Training Log – Week #1

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So, here’s what we have so far, by the numbers:

25.4 miles run on the road.  7.1 miles on the treadmill.  And 3 hours on the trainer.

4 days of two per day workouts.  1 day of 1 workout.  2 rest days.

Average Blood Glucose: 118

Pattern of low blood glucose: Between 3:50am and 10:45am.

No significant pattern of high blood glucose.

Shiv-Workout

 

So, first things first.  I have GOT to make a change to my basal rates so that I don’t go low at 4am.  Waking up to the CGM has me tired and I drastically need to get better rest.  My only complaint about the workouts is that I am tired.  But I won’t be as tired if I am not getting up to treat lows.  Also, my body will be getting the rest it needs, and I’ll be better prepared for the next workout.

Second, I must adjust my basal rate for the evening between 6pm and 9pm.  5 of the 7 days, my trend has me dropping between those hours, and 2 of the nights I started workouts with my blood glucose dropping.  Well, it wasn’t dropping, really, its just that there was a slight down trend (not arrows) and as soon as my workout started, I was dropping like a rock.  This just about ruined these workouts.  If I’m going to take this time from my family and work out, I need to make sure that every one is efficient and I get out of it what I need for performance.  Otherwise, its just wasted time.

So what’s coming this week?

Multiple 2/day workouts.

Intervals, Sub LT’s and long runs/rides

Focus on Fueling (for performance & recovery) – My wife said she’s bringing back the Kale and Beet Juice Smoothie……what did I get myself into?  I thought steak was the recovery meal?

Stay tuned to see who wins….

The Thanksgiving Plan

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As a boy, I always enjoyed Thanksgiving because I got to see my extended family…..Aunt, Uncles and Cousins.  Growing up in Western PA, we didn’t see them often, but Thanksgiving was one of those times when we went to visit my Grandparents and the family in Eastern PA.

I looked forward to these vacations every year, and the smell of roasted turkey in the oven takes me back, no matter where I am.

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Ironic, yes, that I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease the day after Thanksgiving, and it is my favorite holiday.  That part hasn’t escaped me.

It all started the day after Thanksgiving, 1982, and every year, I try to celebrate the fact that I am alive, and living healthy.  This year was no different and I celebrated with a group ride with my wife and some of our friends. I celebrated with a family fun run at the Haddon Township Turkey Trot.  I celebrated with a stop at the local bike shop (more about my stop at Action Wheels later).  I celebrated with a little family skate at the local rink.  I celebrated with an impromptu 2nd Thanksgiving dinner with some of the family members I had dinner with on Thursday night.  It will long be known as the “Pie and Ice Cream Milk Shake” Mexgiving.  (Some of us had black bean burritos and the others had left overs).

There were significant conversations this weekend about blood glucose levels and specific insulin requirements (especially for said milk shake).   You see, everyone who lives with T1D, conducts biochemical experiments multiple times a day that will lead to success or failure of that day.  Every person is different in terms of biological make up, and then throw in their own personal preferences and lifestyle decisions surrounding food and activity?  Yeah, not exactly predictable.  So, how does someone living with T1D come across predictability in their life?

I use exercise.  Best prescription a doctor could give me.  I believe some form of exercise is good for everyone.  Move it or lose it.  Find something that makes you happy and go out and do it.

Feet

Here are my reasons for exercise:

  1. I like it
  2. I like the way it makes me feel
  3. I like doing things outside with my family
  4. It helps me deal with my potential “milkshake problem”
  5. It helps me increase my sensitivity to insulin
  6. It helps me deal with my multiple pre-dispositions to cardiovascular disease
  7. It helps me “feel” normal (non T1D)

I am thankful for the T1D wisdom that has been shared with me from the time of diagnosis to my recent conversations with my JDRF Ride to Cure buddies and my Hope on 2 Wheels Team.  The stories and management techniques they have shared have been incredible.  However, it is a knowledge base that is tough to document.

I believe that we need to find a cure.  So, Breigh and I organize a 5k run to raise money to fund research for a cure, and better treatment for those living with T1D. (You can follow us on Facebook here:  https://www.facebook.com/mikesmiles.jdrf?fref=ts )  We participate in the JDRF Ride to Cure with the South Jersey Ride Team as part of this effort.  You can find out more about the JDRF Ride to Cure program here: ride.jdrf.org

I believe that those living with T1D need to be inspired.  So, my friend Scott Kasper and I, started Hope on 2 Wheels to inspire those living with T1D to challenge themselves with the goals they always wanted to achieve. (You can follow us on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/hopeon2wheels , Twitter: https://twitter.com/hopeon2wheels , or on the WWW:  http://ridingoninsulin.org/teams/hope-on-2-wheels/ )

I also believe that those living with T1D need to hear the stories and the information.  How is it done?

Except, that a middle aged man’s life isn’t normally all that exciting.  So, it’s time to turn the screws a little and make it more fun.

2014 – 70.3 Triathlon goal (1/2 Ironman distance)

2015 – 140.6 Triathlon goal (Full Ironman distance)

So, for the foreseeable future, I will be writing about my training, racing and living with T1D under a non-typical lifestyle…… training for triathlons.

Why would I make this investment in time and money?  Great question.  Let’s first review the hurdles I have to face:

  1. I am 37 years old.
  2. I have a full time job.
  3. I am married with 2 children.
  4. I have exercise induced asthma
  5. I live with Type 1 Diabetes

These are significant hurdles.  I will need to balance my time and responsibilities.  However, the information I will gain will be invaluable.  Information such as: how far can I push myself, what do I need to do to manage blood glucose levels through the extreme training conditions, what style of diabetes care works for the different events, what types of devices work best for the different events, etc. etc. etc.

The effort is worth the information.  You may have seen previous blog posts regarding my children’s likelihood of developing T1D.  I especially want this information so that I can be prepared for helping them manage T1D the best they can as they face whatever challenge they decide they should.  With T1D or not.

And awaaaay we go.

2010 Philadelphia Marathon

2010 Philadelphia Marathon

Thanksgiving – My Favorite Holiday

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It has always been my favorite holiday. The meaning is just……right…..

Ok, ok, there seems to be some lack of clarification about where and when modern day Thanksgiving started, and why. However, its really simple, as far as I’m concerned.

Thanksgiving is just that. A day set aside to GIVE THANKS.

(My dad always told me to keep it simple)

I remember the days when I was young and my family would get together for the holiday. Sometimes we were fortunate to have my Mom’s side of the family travel to see us and spend a couple of days. We didn’t see them much, so the constant movement in the house of Mom, Aunt Pat and Gram making dinner was always the basis of the excitement for the weekend. The smells would fill the house and provide for an aromatic environment which I loved.

Thanksgiving 1982 was one for the books. It’s where my family life got real, real quick. The day after I was diagnosed with T1D at the age of 6.

My family’s reaction?

Mom: I’ve heard of this before, what do we do?
Dad: what is this and what do we give him to get rid of it?
Older Brother(Age 10): thanks for getting rid of him for a while.
Younger Brother (Age 2): well, his age speaks for itself.

The atmosphere in the family changed. Both of my parents were tense, my older brother was walking on egg shells and me? I don’t know, I was home sick for the first night, but after the nurse brought me a snack, I settled right in.

The month of November is Diabetes Awareness Month, but for me, it’s a month of giving Thanks. I’m thankful for having the parents that treated me like a normal kid and forced me to love successfully. They sacrificed many things so that we could afford the healthcare I needed.

I am thankful that I had access to healthcare and was fortunate to have a top notch endocrine taking care of me. From the RN’s, CDE’s and Endo’s, I was well educated and had info when I needed.

I am thankful for the JDRF, and the many volunteers who have sacrificed time, energy and significant dollars to fund research since 1970. This changed the landscape for care, management, lifestyles and long term health outcomes for those living with T1D.

Without all of these, I would not be a healthy adult with a great family. I don’t know where I would be, what I would be doing, or what I would be capable of doing.

I am Thankful.

November is Diabetes Awareness Month, so starting the day after Thanksgiving, on my 31st anniversary of diagnosis, I will begin sharing my story of living with T1D. Not the pretty, painted picture I want everyone to see, but the truth……

The good and the bad. The truth.
Through daily living, working, working with my wife to raise our kids, training and chasing my athletic dreams. Try to set a good example for our kids and trying to manage T1D all the while…..so that I can see my kids grow up and enjoy retirement with my wife.

So stay tuned, we’re gonna learn a little and have some fun while doin’ it.

“No one ever finds life worth living – one has to make it worth living.” -Winston Churchill

Lets make somethin’

TrialNet – Prevention Stage Begins

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The box came in the mail the other day.  It needed to be refrigerated and the study coordinator was a little anxious to know when I had received it.  The truth is, I didn’t want it, or to have to think about it.

But I knew I had to open it, and prepare myself to have the conversation with my daughter.

IMG_4938The box of bottles of pills, either the placebo or the active drug, the instructions and a pill box. It was really that simple.  Keep them in the fridge, take one every day, and let us know if your child gets sick.

But the emotion tied to this is much greater.  While I have never really been upset that I live with T1D, I don’t wish it upon anyone else, and I certainly don’t wont my daughter to live with it.

But that is what parenting is all about.  “Manning Up” to the things your kids need you to.  “Stepping Up” to the plate when your kids need you.  Doing what you can to protect your children.  My emotions, weaknesses and fears don’t count here.  They don’t mean a thing. The only thing that matters is whether or not Abby is ok.  That’s it.

So, my wife and I had the conversation with her, and it went something like this:

Me: “Abby, your study is a little different from Jake’s”

Abby: “Aww man, do I have to go for more blood work already?”

Me:  “No, your study requires that you take a pill once a day.”

Abby:  “Oh, that’s it?”

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And it was that simple.

One step at a time, one pill a day.  Immeasurable amount of HOPE here at the Chadwick house.

A Parents Biggest Nightmare

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Reply

We knew.  We knew it was a possibility.  For either Jake or Abby, one or the other.  Or both.  And both is still not out of the question.

We intended on participating in the TrialNet study, with my old friends from Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, because we wanted to give back, we wanted to stay aggressive with our kids IN THE EVENT something were to happen.

The TrialNet study (http://www.diabetestrialnet.org) is a prevention study that is broken into two phases:  1. Observation, and 2. Active Prevention.

Abby has been in the study since 2010 and gets annual blood work to test for the Antibodies that are known to kill islet cells and cause T1D.  The antibodies are called: GAD65, ICA, ICA512, and MIAA.

As a child of someone with T1D, your chances of developing T1D is 4-5%.  Once you produce two (2) of these antibodies, your chances go up to 50%.  Both of my children have been developing two (2) antibodies for the last couple of years.  At this point, Abby’s body is attacking itself.  The immune system is producing four (4) antibodies that are very successful at killing islet cells.

It is not a matter of if, it is a matter of when.  What do you say to your 7 year old daughter about this?

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Reality –  There’s an incredible amount of emotions that my wife and I have experienced over the last month since we received the results.  And she hasn’t even been diagnosed yet.  It could happen in the next day, or not for 10 years.  The likelihood is that it will happen sooner than later, but there is no way to know.

The reality is that my wife and I have the ability to get our head wrapped around the idea of her living with T1D.  We are not going to be surprised by the diagnosis, and we can plan (as much as one can) for the day when it happens.

The reality is that there is better information and better technology than when I was diagnosed in 1982.  Outcomes for those living with T1D are fantastic.

The reality is that none of this matters to a mom of a T1D at 2am when they are testing their child’s blood glucose levels.  None of this matters to the child with T1D when they just want to fit in.  None of this matters to a women with T1D who wants to have healthy children of her own.

Parenting a T1D:

I have had a unique perspective, living with T1D for the last 30 years.  However, I have not had my mother or father’s experience.  I have never had to go to work after being up half the night worrying about my child’s high or low blood glucose levels.  I have never had to have a conversation with my daughter about how to talk to their coach about having T1D.  I have never had to support her as she wonders if boys will ever ask her out on a date.

Truth is, my wife and I have a lot of parenting to do.

The Prevention Part of the Prevention Study:

TrialNet’s active prevention portion of the study randomize’s Abby into one of the two groups in the study: active drug, or the placebo.  It is double blind, so we will not know what she is receiving.  The drug is oral insulation, and taken orally every day, has shown to have the ability to postpone diagnosis up to seven years.

Oral insulin supposedly acts like a vaccine to temporarily keep the active antibodies from destroying the islet cells.

I HOPE that this is all for naught, and my daughter is the 1:1,000,000 (I’m making this number up, as I hope there’s a chance it won’t happen) that doesn’t get the disease.

I HOPE oral insulin is a good answer for my daughter.

I HOPE I am prepared to help my daughter navigate the world of living with T1D as my parents did for me.

I HOPE for a cure.  As soon as we can get it.  But until then, we will fight to fund the research needed to improve care, and possibly prevent the diagnosis for all those who are diagnosed or will be.

5k2ndPlaceAbby