don't forget to hydrate

Last Sunday it was time for me to try the first "longer" 21km (half marathon) of the season. I was building slowly, being careful not to put too much stress on the knees and other joints. After my first 10k run outside, I had some gentle signals being sent by my left knee that it wasn't ready for outdoor running yet.

The run itself went very well. It was also the first time I tried tempo running within a long run (elevated speed for half the run). I was happy with the results of the tempo changes.

Even though it was quite warm out, for some strange reason I only took 1.4 litres of fluid with me. I have read a lot about nutrition, hydration and sodium replacement and I've always been a good follower of all the rules. But on that day I definitely went out short. Half of what I took was Gatorade and I also had two gel packs with me. I did the 21k in 1:51, but in the last half hour I was out of fluid. The weird thing is that the lack of fluid seemed to have an accelerating effect. As I drank the last few sips I still felt good and I thought it would be no big deal. But as I was running the last 5k I was getting thirstier and thirstier. I could still keep my speed up, so the illusion was that I would be okay. But when I got home, I was so depleted I over-hydrated to compensate. I couldn't resist drinking water.

For the next hour or so, I had all kinds of strange feelings. While eating my recovery snack, it was a big effort to chew and digest. Then I was still thirsty, but I didn't want to drink anymore because I felt like lots of fluid was already sloshing around in my stomach. So I laid down and tried to rest to let my system recover. But I had to get up to do something and I was all weak and dizzy - I felt like I was going to pass out. So I sat down and rested some more.

After about an hour and a half, I started feeling well enough to eat and had regained my wits (relatively speaking). I know that it had nothing to do with my BGs, because I had good numbers during the run and recovery time (all between 6 / 108 and 8 / 144).

In retrospect, when I think back on that incident, I'm sort of glad that it happened. I got to really understand what your body goes through with even such a small physiological imbalance. It's one thing to read about under-hydration, but a totally different thing to experience it firsthand. It will definitely make me more vigilant in the future.

you know you're from ontario or michigan when...

I know it's been awhile since I've posted here... perhaps that's because I had to wait until my fingers warmed up. Did I mention that we've had some chilly weather this spring? And speaking of chilly, I'd like to give a special shoutout to all my Triabetes teammates who train and race in tropical climates. By tropical, I mean water temperatures that sane, ordinary folks would venture into.

Fast forward to this morning, when a group of us met up at Island Lake Recreation Area in Brighton Michigan. This wasn't an organized event - just 22 crazy triathletes in training that figured today was as good as any to start some good, solid training.

We left home at 8:30 to make it over the bridge and there by 10am... the weather seemed promising - 48 degrees outside and the sun was shining. I had to chuckle when the customs officer at the bridge looked at me kind of funny - not sure he really believed I was going to actually swim today. By the time we all got settled into our wetsuits ( I was the lucky one to also have "booties") and dipped our toes in, the water temperature was somewhere around 52 degrees. Good thing adrenaline kicks in fast!

Some did sprint distance, some, like me did OLY distance, and some improvised their own version. For my first time doing all three this season, it was a great day. I've never been to this place before and was happy to be riding on hills that are probably very similar to Madison. I'll definitely be training here more often. It was also my first triathlon as a diabetic, so I was eager to see how my BG was going to hang on.

At the start I was 5.9 (108), so I had one gel and headed in for the swim (with another gel tucked in my arm sleeve just in case). After the swim I was 6.5 (117). I had a strong bike leg, considering the hills and wind. I did a little extra sipping on Gatorade and at the end of the bike I was 9.8 (180). On the run I reduced the Gatorade, ran about 37 minutes and drank only 1 bottle off my fuel belt. I was 5.6(100) by the finish.

All in all, sugar-wise it was an awesome day and I was very pleased with the fitness side of it. I've been doing a lot of running over the last nine months and I can see that it's really starting to pay off. I'm able to maintain good speed off the bike without spending a lot of mental energy to fight the fatigue.

Oh... and did I mention that I did all this in my spiffy new Team Triabetes jersey? Fits like a glove, and I'm sure it had a lot to do with the good vibe today - all that positive energy coming from the team.