I didn’t want Andrew to be alone here so thought I’d join this group. I’m not running a full marathon, but have two half marathons scheduled for this year – The Half (Dallas) on 11/4 and White Rock (Dallas) on 12/9.
So if you’re so inclined, post what races are you training for, your previous running experience, and what you are discovering during your training.
Will 8 5K’s or 4 10K’s count as a marathon? I am hoping for a 1/2 marathon and we’ll see about a full marathon after that. One day at a time.
Ken – I think that should count! I’m going on the 2 halves = a whole theory myself. Ran my first 10K race in Dallas this morning…the Tour de Fleurs. Was fighting high BG’s since about 1:30 am, but managed to get things in line enough to run. It was a pretty big race including a 10K and a 20K simultaneous start. I think there was some prize money, and it was fun to watch the elites start. They just seem to float along, something a plodder like me can appreciate, but not immitate! Garmin says 6.33 miles in 1:00:42. Was hoping for and hour or less, so I’ll be curious to see what my official chip time is. Either way, it was good to get to race after chasing those high BG’s! So what are your upcoming races / goals / etc.
There’s a 5K/10K next month in my area, but I haven’t signed up for it yet. I’m not sure if I’ll be in town or not. If I don’t make that one, then my next race would be a 1/2 marathon in early June. I did just complete a “virtual” 5K race against other desk jockies like myself who use the Nike/iPod pedometer, but that’s not quite the same. I got in at 26:30, so I felt pretty good about that (my previous best, out of lifetime total of 2 timed 5Ks) was 28:05.
Great time on the “virtual” 5K! Likely you could do even better than that in a live race with all the accompanying excitement. My goal for this 10K was 65 minutes, and I beat that last week on a training run of 63:51. Today’s chip time was 60:00:33, and I credit that to the excitement of the race. Dang, just missed the 60 minute mark, but something to shoot for next time. Training for a 1/2 has been challenging but has helped my running overall. Betting it will do the same for you.
Wow! Cool you guys are awesome. I am glad to see that there are other (there seem to be a lot) of diabetics running. I think this is great and could not be happier. By the way, I just finished the Quebec City Marathon in August. It was great, and I very much recommend running it if you can. I have noticed that once my training has ceased my sugars have been much more difficult to control. I did not have any problems at all during training, and am now seeing consistent fluctuations in my levels. Not a good sign, but good to know how my body is effected by my training runs.
I’ve run about 6 marathons, but currently am not training for one since I broke my foot! I went from never running to signing up with my sister to run the Kona Marathon in Hawaii for the American Diabetes Association about 5 years ago. That was a killer race in the heat and running thru lava pits-out and back so it was kinds of self-defeating! It took me about a full year to train to the point where I could finsih! I followed Hal Higdon’s running schedule for the novice runner www.halhigdon.com Since then I have run in WI, Chicago, the Country Music Marathon in Nashville, TN, New Orleans, but my all-time favorite marathon was the Dublin Marathon that I ran for the ADA in 2003. The people were fabulous and I sprained my ankle at mile 8 but managed to finish the race (it took me nearly 7 hours though and was the longest and hardest race ever!) My best time was 3:37 in Nahville which qualified for the Boston Marathon, but I soon was pregnant (high risk with type 1 diabetes) so I never ran in Boston-maybe someday though! I hope to recover from this foot injury and at least start training for a 1/2 marathon sooon. (My doc advised me not to run anymore which is even more incentive for me-don’t ever tell me I can’t do something, I’ll prove him wrong!!!)
With intense physical exercise (such as running long distances) I have found that my bloodsugars (contrary to what one might expect) tend to run high, so I have to run a low basal rate during training and marathons. I"ve found this too with swimming, but don’t wearmy pump when I swim. Sometimes afterwards I’ll go low, but usually my sugars spike-I think it’s all the intense stress on the body. WHile intenesely training for runs I too found that my sugars were very hard to control. My doc said moderate exercise is the best, but I really enjoyed the challenge of the marathon training.
I agree, if it were easy why bother doing it? I could remain a lifelong 2 - 3 mile jogger, but that bores me to tears. Having volunteered for a local marathon (I sang karaoke along the route, motivating runners) the thought of actually doing it myself was inspiring. And overcoming the additional challenge of good BG control, makes it even more appealing.
Though I’ve not yet entered anything beyond a 5K, I’m now starting to think that my next “race” might be a full marathon. I was planning for the 1/2 next June, but I just ordered a quality treadmill, so I think I can keep my fitness level (my last long run was 8 miles) over the Winter and be ready for a full. We’ll see.