Superior Athletic Club Strength Challenge

The Superior Athletic Club Strength Challenge was a fundraiser I competed in yesterday. It was great to be able to compete only 30 minutes away from where I live. All the proceeds were donated for homeless teenagers. There were a few ups and downs, but most importantly it was a fun and great atmosphere. This was my third strongman competition. Hopefully this will put a spike in interest in strongman in my area. Strongman is for everyone. 

The first event was a yoke walk at 700 pounds for 80 feet. I made it 70 of the 80 feet. We were allowed one drop. This is the heaviest and furtherest I have done on a yoke. Blood sugars were great going into this event. I was sitting at 116. Afterwards I shot up to 168. Adrenaline can be a major hurdle with control. I bolused and gave myself a bit more than what my pump called for. 

The next event was a log clean and press at 220 pounds for reps in 60 seconds. I finished with 5 reps. I can clean the log fairly easy, but my pressing is not very good. My triceps need more strength. On my last rep I put the log on my toes. This resulted in a laceration on my big toe along with two breaks. I have to meet with an orthopedic surgeon this upcoming week to see if I require surgery. I expected a microwaved hotdog for a toe, but was pleasantly surprised with two breaks. This caused my blood sugars to shoot to 243. 

Next up was an axle deadlift for reps in 60 seconds with 500 pounds. I completed 4 reps. My grip strength failed me here. The blood sugars were dropping now. I manually bolused here a bit because I wanted to get to a normal range for the rest of the competition and worry about going low later. Probably not the best approach. Luckily, I stayed in an optimal range the rest of the day.

The circus dumbbell at 115 pounds was the fourth event. This event is what I was most nervous about. The last few years I have dealt with shoulder issues. Pretty much what it comes down is a lack of strength and mobility. I completed only three reps. My fellow competitors killed this one. My blood sugar was 120 afterwards. 

The final event was a stone over a bar at 236 pounds with no tacky allowed. My goal here was to get at least one rep. By this time in the day I was exhausted and getting really tight. I finished with two reps. Blood sugars were 143 afterwards. 

Overall it was a fun day. It was a first competition for a number of people. I was one of three in the "Elite Men's" category. There weren't any weight classes. I finished in second. It still always amazes me the commraderie amongst competition in strongman. Strongman is a great sport. 

My lessons learned:

Improve overall conditioning

Eat throughout competition

Don't drop heavy things on your toes

Increase tricep and upper body strength

BREAK DIABETES!

Bolusing and Barbells

I went to the doctor last week for results of bloodwork and a general appointment. My bloodwork was great with an A1C of 6.4. The practioner I see changed offices, so I was required to answer some new questions about diet and exercise. I had a difficult time answering some of them. 

The first question was to explain my diet. I did my best to explain how I carb cycle. On lifting days my carbs are a lot higher and non lifting days I keep the carbs to a minimum. My doc didn't get it. I have tried everything under the sun and have had good results with blood sugars from a bunch of different options. I am very thankful for my doc because she doesn't push a high carb ADA recommended diet.

With the carb cycling I am consuming carbs before and while I train. This has helped in a number of ways. I feel stronger, volume has increased and my overall mood has improved. My blood sugars post training have been improved as well. 

One of the other new questions was inquiring about my cardiovascular activity. I explained what I do for strongman. I was asked why I would want to do what I do. My response was that it's fun and rewarding. Lifting is what I enjoy doing. It's a grind and makes me feel like I can run through walls. 

Lifting and competing are very rewarding for me for a number of reasons. I have always enjoyed challenging myself physically. I think being type 1 gives a bit of extra motivation. Type 1 can be very consuming. When I train, I feel like a healthy disease free person. I have never really thought of my disease as a disability like others do. It's a part of who I am. 

This weekend I will be participating in a small local strongman competition. I am excited to compete. I haven't competed since August. There are only a few other competitors. It would have been great if more people would give it a try. Hopefully this comp can bring more interest for the sport of strongman in the Southern Oregon region. I have never found a more close knit community in any other sport. Not too many times in other sports will your competition help you out with advice and pointers. 

 

Whatever it is that you want to do, do it. Don't go half way, don't doubt yourself. Everyone has hurdles to overcome. Heart and character is what counts. 

Part animal part machine! 

Break Diabetes!

Family Support or Burden?

The relatives and loved ones of a type 1 can have a bit of extra responsibilty. Today for example, I gave myself a bit too much insulin and dropped to a blood sugar of 44. I was sweaty, mumbling and half naked on the kitchen floor. It was up to my wife to help me get food while also getting the kids ready for bedtime. I can't be more thankful for her. 

At times, I feel that my disease adds extra stress to my family. It adds me extra stress. If my numbers are off, I am a different person. I am not as patient and have a bad attitude. I am guilty of ruining a Christmas back in 1997 because I was low and didn't come out of it until noon. I was swearing at my grandmother and spitting food out of my mouth that my family tried to get me to eat. Luckily, that was the real wake up call to get my act together and take control of my disease. 

This disease is not a solo mission. My family helped me and still support me to this day. My wife is a saint for putting up with it. 

Financially, T1Ds is a major burden. We added up expenses for taxes over the weekend and I still can't believe how much out of pocket we spend. My Dexcom sensors are around $20 per sensor. A sensor can last one to two weeks. It's recommended that you change them every week, but due to cost I see how long they can last. The longest I have been able to wear one is two weeks. Some of the other expenses are test strips, insulin and my insulin pump supplies. Prices of these vary month to month. Test strips are normally $50-$70 once the deductible is hit. Insulin is around $70 per month as well. My pump supplies is normally around $500 for a few months. For the tightest control, all theses things are needed. 

T1Ds has forced me to rely on some very important people in my life. I am so greatful for all their support they provide me without making my disease my identity. It's a part of my life and they accept 100% of me.

Break Diabetes!

Bumps

Living with type 1 can be tricky at times. I am currently working through a rough patch with my disease. I seem to be more insulin resistant. I am needing more insulin than what I normally have required in the past. My insulin ratios probably need to be adjusted. 

With my activity level and my disease, I am perplexed on the best route to eat. I have done low carb with high fat, paleo, flexible dieting and everything else under the sun. Food is my enemy. My body doesn't know what to do with it. 

I should not be stressing over what to eat and how much I should eat. Unfortunately, that's my reality. Non diabetics won't get it. I am also sure that a lot of diabetics do just fine. If I don't have my food planned out, the results could ruin how I feel all day long. Some people give me a hard time about it and I just keep it to myself, but inside I get upset and frustrated. I can eat whatever I want, but the negatives outweigh the positives. The problem is if you stick some "forbidden" food in front me, I won't have any or I am killing most of the plate. Am I missing out on anything when I pass it up? I don't think so. Am I hurting myself when I dive into the "forbidden" food? Yep!

Sometimes I felt like it's robbed me of a lot. It's always a constant stress. I wish it was as simple as counting carbs, like so many believe. For children that are diagnosed with T1D, my heart goes out to them and to their parents. Life is flipped upside down. There shouldn't be any reason that a child should have to prick their fingers, give shots, carry supplies, carry food and be attached to devices. It's a heavy burden.

One of my safe havens is in my garage with weight on my back. I am not that strong with weights, but stronger than the average person. I won't be breaking any world records and that's just fine. What I am doing is funneling life's frustrations, mostly from diabetes into motivation. People don't get me and why do what I do when I train. I do it to fool myself into thinking that I am disease free. I get to control what happens. 

Even after 24 years with my T1Ds, things can get tricky. Some days are great and others are awful. Do I have hope for a cure? Yes. The problem is that T1Ds goes under the radar. 

We need to break diabetes!

Community

As a type 1 diabetic I have found that I don't really know others that are type 1. I never would have thought that social media would help me with my disease. I have found a community over the last year and it's the last place I would have looked. 

I have been involved in a group on Facebook called "Type 1 Diabetic Athletes Group". I am part of the admin team that I feel lucky to be a part of. I met the originator of the group because he traveled to a strongman comp I did. He won me over with that. He even created "Breaking Diabetes" shirts. I wish I could have spent more time with him that day. Hopefully in the future, there could be a meet up with fellow members. 

The group has members that partake in a number of activities. Whether it's CrossFit, strongman, yoga, running, lifting and other activities. Everyone seems to have the similar goal of living healthy and being active. We help each other out and respect our differences. 

For the longest time, I felt alone with my diabetes. Unless you live it, it's very hard to understand. There are too many variables that can play with your numbers. This can be frustrating, but having my online community to bounce ideas off of eases the stress. 

Thank you!

Please comment if you have suggestions or questions.

Facebook.com/breakingdiabetes 

Instagram: @breakingdiabtes

Email: breakingdiabetes@yahoo.com

Part animal, part machine. 

Break Diabetes! 

Deads

Deadlifting is an interesting movement to perform. Almost anyone can do it. For me, I love to deadlift because I won't require as much insulin for hours after I train my deadlift. 

I do make sure before I lift heavy that I bolus some insulin and have a small amount of carbs. I used to train fasted and my blood sugars would spike pretty high. Having insulin on board for strength training really helps with my post training blood sugars. If I were doing some type of cardio, I wouldn't bolus. 

It took some fine tuning to figure out what works best. About an hour before lifting, I will have 10-30 grams of carbohydrates and bolus normally for them. I wish I could have known a lot of what I know now back in the high school and college football days.

My favorite part of deadlifting or lifting heavy is I feel like I can run through a wall. I feel disease free which is huge. Type 1 can be very frustrating and feeling normal is something I have struggled with my entire type 1 life for the last 23 years. While I lift, I am Breaking Diabetes! 

Nutrition Battle

The one area of type 1 diabetes that has caused me the most frustration the last few years has been nutrition. I have tried everything under the sun. It seems like the more I know about nutrition and how the body works, the more confused I become. There are so many different approaches. There are books, the internet and other resources to sift through. Trying to find the ideal approach has left me questioning too much. There are high carb, low carb, no carb, Carb Nite, CBL, Paleo, the Zone, the ADA, IIFYM, traditional American diet and everything else. Ahhhh! 

A few weeks ago I was in the midst of a war on carbs. I was eating a lot of fat and protein. I was run down and tired. The blood sugars weren't doing that great either. I would be good for about an hour then the blood sugars would elevate and stay elevated for a few hours. They wouldn't get real high, but they hovered around 160-190. Lifting weights and training for strongman suffered as well. I needed to make a change.

I started working with a nutrionist that knows what is like to push the body. With her we setup a macronutrient breakdown of 40% carbs, 30% protein, and 30% fats. I did this in the past with decent results. 

 At first, I was scared of all the carbs. I have kept the carbs to fruits, veggies, and gluten free foods. I have been feeling pretty good and have had good control. My caloric intake has increased a bunch and I keep track and measure out my food now. This can be a nuisance at times. It truley makes me realize how much I was under eating. There's no reason I should have only been around or below 2,000 calories a day. No wonder I stalled so often with my strength numbers. 

It's only been about 2.5 weeks, but I have leaned out a bit and I have had more energy training. What needs to happen is that I stay the course for the long run with minor adjustments made here and there. Consistency is key here. I want to feel good and become strong.