# Running A Marathon - Diabetic Advice



## satch7 (Jan 4, 2011)

New member hear and a rather long post to start with!!!!

Right, I made the crazy decision to run the London Marathon last year and although I missed out on a ballot place I managed to get a place on the Diabetes Uk team (just need to rasie ?2k sponsorship!!!!)

Having had Diabetes for 30 years you'd think I would know how to handle blood sugars but since doing my training they have gone wild.

Sometimes 5.5mml just after i run then 2 hrs later it goes up to 18 (or higher). My legs go really stiff and that's is not just because of the running

No idea how to combat this. I usually check my blood before and if it is lower than 13 I take that as good sign that I have enough fuel on board for a short 4 miles jog.

Anyone else running/run a marathon and balance their diabetes. Any tips would be grately appreciated. I am a DAFNE graduate so i should be able to control things better.

I don't want do the training, run the marathon and find myself in hospital 1/2 way round or after with DKA.

My blood suger always seems to go sky high after every run even though I don't eat that much before hand or go wild with lucozade of dextrose tablets.

Very frustrating


----------



## shiv (Jan 4, 2011)

Hi satch, welcome to the forum!

Have you tried this site? http://www.runsweet.com/ it's aimed at people with diabetes. I haven't used the site myself though so can't promise how good it is!

Sometimes the reason people see themselves shoot up after exercise is because there isn't enough insulin on board to get the glucose into the cells, where it's needed. So it just hangs about in the blood stream.

I'm sure Northe (god/admin) will be along soon to help you out - he's also a marathon runner!


----------



## Steff (Jan 4, 2011)

Hi there satch and a warm welcome to the forum, i cant help on the marathon side of things but theres a handful of people on here who run marathons etc etc so they will be able to give you some good advice.


----------



## Northerner (Jan 4, 2011)

Hi Satch, welcome to the forum  I haven't run a marathon since diagnosis but I have run a couple of 10 milers and am hoping to step up to halves and a full one this year. I was running marathons for 25 years prior to diagnosis without a care for BG levels, so it came as a bit of a shoch trying to work out how to get the levels right in training and a long race.

The first thing I did was get a copy of The Diabetic Athlete's Handbook, which is really good at explaining the science and potential strategies. This helped me a lot to understand how to approach training.

I found it very tedious to begin with - testing before and after short runs, and every half hour during longer runs. I discovered that I was OK starting a 5-miler at around 8-10 mmol/l and not needing any extra carbs. Above 5 miles I need one or two jelly babies per mile (5-10g/mile).

Regarding levels going up after finishing - some people need to have a small carby snack soon after to prevent their levels climbing, partly to do with the liver releasing extra glucose into the blood to restore the lost muscle glycogen reserves. Of course, with diabetes, this isn't always the case. You might need to eat and bolus for it as well.

Have you looked at runsweet? http://www.runsweet.com/ - lots of info on there.


----------



## Northerner (Jan 4, 2011)

p.s. you also have to ensure you have enough circulating insulin otherwise your levels will just climb higher. Muscles can work to a certain extent without insulin but not for a prolonged time as in distance running


----------



## MIsmail (Jan 4, 2011)

With Northener on The Diabetic Athlete's Handbook. Helps to focus on specific aims and specialised diet and insulin adjustmemts.

Haven't done a marathon before, but I think consistant training and plenty of fluids help a lot.


----------



## Johnnyroyale (Jan 12, 2011)

Hello, I have run a couple of marathons and am still alive - and still running. I have type 1 and take my basal (lantus) at night. If I run in the morning, around five miles or less - assuming my blood sugar is normal - I have a normal breakfast but only take about 30 to 50 per cent of my normal bolus dose. If the run is over 5 miles but less than 10, I have breakfast and my basal insulin keeps my sugar low. Afterwards I eat something and again, adjust my insulin to about half. 

If the run is over 10 miles, I have a normal breakfast, no insulin and along the way have one jelly baby for every mile (as well as water of course). I find this usually works out well. I have had spikes in my blood sugar occasionally and if I don't take extra insulin for it then I get dehydrated - as my kidneys are trying to flush out the extra sugar - and this eads to extra stiff legs. So I take a shot of bous to level me out and don't do anything like drive for a couple of hours, as a hypo sometimes comes on. I find a hypo is preferable to haveing locked-up stiff legs through dehydration. 

If my blood sugar is a little high (10 or above) then I add an extra unit before the run. 

For the marathon itself, I took 8 units of Humulin I with an extra big bowl of muesli a couple of hours before the race, ate a jelly baby every mile and drank the lucozade at every station. I finished each race in around 4 and a half hours, but the more pleasing aspect for me was that both times my blood sugar was around 6mmol/l

Hope this helps a bit!


----------



## Northerner (Jan 12, 2011)

Hi Johnny, welcome to the forum - thank you for this  I am different to you in that the exercise seems to have a delayed effect on me so I have to reduce my subsequent bolus doses rather than the one before. I'm going to try a bit more experimenting this year as I step up my distances - would love to be able to just go out and dependon my basal but haven't been brave enough to try yet!


----------



## Johnnyroyale (Jan 12, 2011)

Ah, forgot to say, after the runs I reduce the bolus that night by about 1 unit for every two miles I run. So on a normal day I take 23 units, but after a four or five mile run I take 20 units -and after a 10-miler I take about 18. I found it was kind of stepping into the unknown at first - as is with most things concerning this pesky condition - but I went against what most doctors say and erred on the side of caution, knowing that the fact I take regular exercise would counteract the odd night or day of hyperglycaemia. There have been times where I have gone out for five or six miles with no bolus and come back normal - there have been others where I have come back nine or 10, at which point I just took a unit of bolus to balance things up. The important thing was not to carry on with my blood sugars high, because that was uncomfortable the next day. The best thing about going running - and I know I sound like an evangelist here - is that it is fun and the good you get out of it far outweighs the effort and time you put in.


----------



## Northerner (Jan 12, 2011)

Johnnyroyale said:


> ...The best thing about going running - and I know I sound like an evangelist here - is that it is fun and the good you get out of it far outweighs the effort and time you put in.



I'm with you on that one! Useful to compare notes Johnny. Do you have any marathons planned for this year?


----------



## Johnnyroyale (Jan 12, 2011)

Ummm... kind of. I am trying to run a marathon(ish) distance on my own in the spring as training for an ultra later in the year. It's all a little daunting at the moment, hence my joining these forums...


----------



## Northerner (Jan 12, 2011)

Not sure if you've come across this - videos and article from a Type 1 Ironman contestant:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f13z_DdiNEc

http://www.diabeteshealth.com/read/2005/08/01/4152/ironman-jay-hewitt/


----------



## Johnnyroyale (Jan 12, 2011)

I hadn't thanks. I'll have a look once my daughter is fed...


----------

