First the motivation. My buddy Rich (pictured left) and I have a lot in common. We are both mid-westerners at heart, and met scuba diving. We also have tech backgrounds, and in fact my current job is his previous job. We also share a love for the same vices in life… Guitar Hero Wii and Scotch nights online have been known to occur. Recently he visited and his wife’s disapproval of our activities matched that of my wife… so in an attempt to get off her S*LIST and do something healty for both of us, I’ve managed to convince him to start running with me… the trouble is that he’s in PA - so we are going to use Nike+ as our virtual enabler. I have high hopes for it to become habit for both of us - and will be pushing hard for a 2010 Marathon for both of us once he gets hooked…. (It can happen Rich!).

Additionally, there’s some other motivation for healty habits that’s recently entered both of our lives… Wii Fit. I’m just 2 days in, but think it will help motivate me to see my BMI (as artificial as it may be or not) regularly. I find the games and fitness activities pushing me to a sweat, and feel the effects afterwards, so I’m going to give it a shot along with a renewed commitment to running (which I’m sure you’ve all noticed has bee severly lacking as of late - in fact I’m now feeling like I love NOT running… SAD) But alas here we go!

On the Mickey front…. Interesting thing happened when we visited Tokyo Disneyland Resort… Upon entering, our bags were checked, and the security guard wanted me to open my diabetic “kit”. I did, and the questions ensued. It was fine that I was diabetic, and okay that I bring needles into the park (even though I’m on a pump and wouldn’t be needing them). BUT he told me under no terms was I to use a needle where ANYONE could see me! It wasn’t Disney-like to see someone “shooting up.” I agreed, but thought things would be different if Mickey had a bad pancreas and didn’t make all his money selling cotton candy and ice cream. Ah well, I still love Mickey, and all things Disney, even if he is a hater!

Screw Mickey, I just got Rich!
Jamie, The Diabetic Runner

Wow, and the gadgets just keep coming… From the minimed site:

Great news! U.S. customers who currently own a MiniMed Paradigm® REAL-Time System (522 or 722 insulin pump models) or a Guardian® REAL-Time Continuous Glucose Monitoring System can expect to automatically receive a OneTouch® UltraLink™ Meter at no charge before June 30, 2008.

So here it is, the new meter option for Paradigm Pump users:

So cool that it’s going to be free to existing users - these guys are really getting it right with their Carelink USB, and now meter. Plus, I already use the OneTouch UltraSmart, so the strips I already have will work with this new meter…. Two great companies here doing something really great for us - now if they could just stop treating the disease and CURE IT!

Still no automatic UPS notification, but can’t wait,
Jamie, The Diabetic Runner

P.S. I got the Nike+ SportBand on Friday and have tried it out…. still saving my opinion - but looks okay so far…

Got my latest test results back today, and my current A1c is….

6.1

Kinda bummed (well not that bummed really - 6.1 is still respectable), because I was hoping for a 6 or less, and it is UP from my last test, but I’ll take it. This number suggests an average BG of 123 over the past few months. While this is 0.1 higher than my Dr. & I want it to be, it’s still quite an accomplishment.

…and I still have low LDL cholesterol,
Jamie, The Diabetic Runner

No, not that kind of ITBS!!! It seems that I have recently experienced my first bout of Iliotibial Band Syndrome (ITBS). (I’ve been dealing with the IT BS in the picture for years.) A few weeks ago on some of my longer runs, I noticed a “twinge” on the outside of my left knee. This is my “good” knee, as in not the one with a surgically repaired ACL. The few times it happened, I wrapped up my run at that point, stretched it out and called it a day - with no lingering effects (thankful that the few times it did happen, I was on a treadmill and could just stop without worrying about getting back home). Yesterday evening, I was near the end of a 10-miler, not on a treadmill, and it resurfaced. I stopped to walk, did a couple quick stretches, and resumed running. It would reappear shortly afterwards, so after trying the walk-run thing a few times, I caved in and walked the last .25 miles home - glad that it had waited until the end of this run when I was quite close to home.

This is a new one for me - and I’ve got a lot of learning to do to figure out how best to heal and prevent it from reoccuring, but I’ve found a TON of information on this since it appears to be one of the most common running injuries out there. So, why me, and why now. There are many thoughts on why this occurs, one of them being related to weight lifting, and muscle imbalance. Since I’ve been running for quite some time without suffering this sort of injury, I’m inclined to think that it has to do with my new strenght training - since the symptoms started around the same time as some of my new lower body workouts. Time now to talk with the trainers on some specific exercises and stretches, and talk with my Dr. that I am scheduled to see on the 29th anyway. The really good news is that I’ve caught this thing quite early, so I’m hopeful that I can deal with it without missing a ton of the training season. The bad news is that cycling isn’t recommended, so I may pass on the Tour de Cure this year - given my lack of training recently on the bike, it’s probably not a bad thing anyway. Will post when I have more info to share on this one.

So, the pump funny… Well, last Tuesday my sister was over, and as you know she uses the Paradigm Pump and CGMS just as I do. Usually one of our pumps will start the chirping, and we both reach to see who’s it is. This night I heard the beep beep beep of a Low Reservoir Alert, but instead of reaching for my pump I proclaimed, “Your pump speaks Texan!” You see, the pump doesn’t let you adjust volume for the beeps, just length, and my sister set hers to the medium length, where mine is set to the short length. So, while the chirps were recognizable, they seemed to come out with a bit of southern drawl to them. Anyway - I guess this joke is sort of like a VW commercial - “own one and you’ll understand.” But at least now we know who’s pump is lipping off!

Final thought - I haven’t abandoned the post-run BG spike topic - I’ve just been doing a bit more research, including adjusting my basals to test my theory. Hope to get back to that in the next week or so.

Full of IT, BS, and now ITBS,
Jamie, The Diabetic Runner

Kerri at SixUntilMe.com started something cool, the Raise Your Voice, Type I Diabetes Awareness Day. Be sure to stop by her blog and see what others are doing to raise their voices.

Over here, I am raising my voice, so listen up (and cover your kids’ ears, cause it’s about to get a little crazy in here):

I AM DIABETIC

They said I can’t eat sugar: 6 Krispy Kremes in 60 seconds, and still kicking
They said I can’t scuba dive: 100+ dives and not dead
They said I can’t run a marathon: Completed, and gearing up for a 70.3 triathlon
They said I can’t have a baby: errr, ummmm
They said I’ll go blind: I can see clearly that they were wrong
They said I’ll be impotent: Bob Dole can keep his pills
They said I’ll die of complications: BULLSHIT
They said a lot of things, and you know what, They were wrong!

I AM DIABETIC, AND BETTER FOR IT!

Irreverent rant over, but that was kind of fun,
Jamie, The Diabetic Runner

I received my Carelink USB on Monday, and had to call Medtronic for help getting the driver to install with Windows Vista, but they (as always) had the answer, and in no time I was uploading my pump data wirelessly with my new little friend. At any rate, if you haven’t ordered yours, you should, and if you have and need a hand getting it running with Vista, here’s what I did to get it going.

Quick Note Before We Start: don’t insert the new USB device until asked by the software to do so.

1. First you’ll need to TEMPORARILY change a setting in “Internet Options”: Open the “Internet Options” control panel (Start Menu: Control Panel: Internet Options). Click on the “Security” tab. Now uncheck the “Enable Protected Mode” option. (When you are done, don’t forget to go back and re-check this!) Now click “OK”

2. Next you’ll need to close your web browser (all open windows of it). Now we need to start it again as Administrator. To do this, right click on the web browser icon (IE or Firefox for example), and select “Run as administrator.” (You’ll then have to allow the program to be run, since you launched it, you can trust it.)

3. The browser now open, log in to your carelink account, and click the “Upload” tab. Next select “MiniMed Paradigm Insulin Pump.” Click “Next.” Click “Next” again, and then verify that the serial number is that of your pump. Click “Next” and then select “CareLink™ USB” and click “Next.”

4. You should now be prompted to plug in your CareLink USB - so plug it in, and then (if I recall correctly) you wait for a bit (I had to be a bit patient here) and the driver installs itself. I think it then says that the CareLink USB is ready, and you click “Finish” to begin the upload.

Great, you’ve now uploaded your data with your new device… BUT WE’RE NOT DONE YET!!!

5. Don’t forget what I mentioned in step 1… You’ll need to go back to your “Internet Options,” click on the “Security” tab, and re-select the “Enable Protected Mode” option. ¡Es muy importante!

From here out, you don’t need to change that setting, and you don’t need to run the browser as Administrator. In fact, I would quit the browser, and relaunch it as you normally do to make things safe again.

Hope my successful experience is helpful to someone who just can’t wait to get started… You can always call Minimed for assistance should you need it. Drop me a comment if this works for you, or to let me know if I’ve left something out - it’s been a few days since actually doing it.

Pumped,
Jamie, The Diabetic Runner

More Cool Stuff - is it Christmas already?

Medtronic has introduced a wireless USB key that facilitates uploading CGMS data from the pump - thereby bypassing the (crappy) BD Meter and (poorly designed) cable. Check this out:

From the carelink.minimed.com site (after logging in, you’ll find a link on the bottom)

Get Your Complimentary CareLink™ USB Today!

The new CareLink USB upload device wirelessly sends data from your MiniMed Paradigm® Insulin Pump to CareLink Personal software. It delivers important advantages:

* No wires, no cables! The CareLink USB is not only convenient and easy, but also sleek and compact.
* It is fast and no batteries are required.
* It makes uploading information from your insulin pump to CareLink Personal Software easier than ever! Simply connect the CareLink USB directly to your personal computer’s USB port, and then upload all of your insulin pump information to your PC.

* Limited time only. One product per customer. For U.S. customers only

Soon-to-be Wireless CGMS uploader,
Jamie, The Diabetic Runner

Like most of you diabetic runners, I am in a constant state of learning and refining my protocol for good blood sugars during my runs. I’ve gotten much better at it, even realizing that sometimes you have to trust your gut instinct, since no two day are the same leading up to a run. Occasionally I have a bad run, and occasionally I have a perfect run - most fall somewhere in the middle, but boy, oh boy, last Wednesday night I had a really well controlled (from a BG standpoint) run that I wanted to share…. It looks something like this:

My BG stayed between 80 and 120 during the entire run, and by bolusing 2U towards the end of the run, I avoided my usual post run bump up. Lately, I’ve added a bolus at the end of my run nearly every time - though again, sometimes the gut instinct overrules. Feeling pretty good about this run - and have an upcoming post specifically about the post run bumps - so stay tuned…

Endorphins not BGs make a runner high,
Jamie, The Diabetic Runner

I was reading a friend’s blog today and found this interesting post on it. Those of you that know me know how much I love Medtronic’s pumps and CGMS, but WHOA!!!!…. this is kind of upsetting. Give it a read and think about what message they are trying to send to their Hero wannabes.

From Marcus’ “Sweet Victory” blog:
http://certainintelligence.blogspot.com/2008/03/medtronic-sucks.html

Jerry and Marcus, you are both D-Heros in my book!

---

he·ro
–noun, plural -roes; for 5 also -ros.
1. a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities.
2. a person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal: He was a local hero when he saved the drowning child.
3. the principal male character in a story, play, film, etc.
4. Runners 40 years and older, who have had diabetes for more than 15 years

---

OUTRAGED,
Jamie, The Diabetic Runner

1). Was pretty sick early last week, and as a result did only 1 workout (a 7 miler on Friday) the entire week.

2). Had this SCARY episode last Friday as I was driving down the interstate. I’m okay, and am now sporting 4 new tires.

I guess the wheels fell off my exercise and car this week!

3). I’m working on a cool new service I’d like to make available to everyone. It will merge run data and CGMS data. I have big plans for including various devices (Nike+, Garmin, Minimed CGMS, Dex 7 etc), but will start out with just Nike+ and Minimed CGMS. If you use these two devices and are interested in participating, please send me an email, and I’ll let you know when I’m ready for people to start playing with it: DiabeticRunner@gmail.com

4). Got a cool story of a diabetic’s first marathon I want to share with you. It was written by fellow diabetic runner & blogger Ryan Nichols. He’s recently begun blogging HERE, stop by and say hello, and look for his story here soon.

5). Funny story to share from a run with my sister, yet another diabetic runner, the other day. We were talking about infusion sites and CGMS sensors, and how people like to stare at them when we are at the gym. She mentioned that during a trip to her gym a lady asked bluntly, “What’s that?” To which she replied, “I’m diabetic and it’s how I give myself insulin,” or something like that, and the lady replied, “You’re diabetic? You don’t look THAT fat.” Of course my sister, (who is far from fat BTW) was pissed! What did she mean “THAT fat?” We kept talking about it and I had to point out - you never really see FAT type I diabetics, and I hypothesized this is why: If they are in control of their BG, and actually getting the sugars they eat, they are likely into taking care of themselves in general, exercise and all that goes with it, so keeping weight in check is part of their (often) obsessive behavior. If on the other hand they aren’t in control of their BG, then they are probably peeing out all the sugar, and not gaining weight anyway. Sad but true… but on the bright side, we can medicate to eliminate the effects of diabetes, while the woman at her gym is screwed - she’s stuck with her ignorance.

6). Oh Yeah - there are 10 more Diabetic Runner Challenge Rockstars to check out:
Kevin Bonks
Bill King
Brett
Caitlin Field
Russel Hiatt
Mike Lawson
Dave Shack
Paul Funk
Kim
Kate Makinson

Way to go, and thanks again for signing up!!!!

Got some “skinny” on a story you want to share? Hit me up,
Jamie, The Diabetic Runner