Training, other training and a race plan

So, a few weeks ago, I set out some rough guidelines for a training plan, something like 1 x weights or yoga per week, 1 x speed work, 1 x long steady and two other floating sessions (not literally), and by and large I’ve stuck to it.  The major change I’ve made is to include a cut back week every fourth week, shortening the weekend long session back to an hour or so. 

There’ve been a few weeks where I’ve struggled to hit the targets just with sheer pressure of work – working till midnight and then waking at 5:30 does not make for a quality training regime. I’ve also been trying to get a bit more time in on the bike where I can, which has been quite difficult with being away a lot over the past few weeks, and won’t be letting up before Christmas, in fact there’s more work than I can shake a stick at, at the moment. 

That said though, I’ve always done the yoga and the speed work, and I think the speed work is paying dividends.  With a target for the new year’s eve 10k of 42mins, I was quite surprised on a tempo training run of 2k-6k at target race pace – 2k, to break my current PB, coming in at [INSERT TIME HERE].  The 6x 800s are going well as well, with the last time I din them, coming in on the last one at 3:53 pace for the 800, with a target of 4:00-4:10 – I always try and do 5 at target pace and then the last one as fast as I can; so far so good.

The long steady stuff is going well as well, with the last Sunday club ride coming in at around 85km, with good control throughout and only one minor mishap when I sprinted ahead to test and lost contact with the pack until the café stop. 

The old adage of not having enough time to post is probably going to get even worse from now on.  I’ve been enrolled on a new one-year training pan at work, for those with the potential to eventually go on an make partner level in the business.  When you look at it, we are trying to double the size of the business in 5 years, with our current model of so-many staff per partner, and a limit to what any single individual can do in terms of work, that implies plenty of new partners needed and plenty of opportunities. The only drawback is a three-day introductory training session and at least 2-3 days per month of additional effort for the next year. That might not sound like much, but when I’m lucky to have a week per month at home at the moment, I can foresee a bloody busy period ahead.  Still, if it helps get me where I want to be, it’s all part of the circus balancing act isn’t it?

One thing I have found though, doing this training is that although I knew morning speed sessions are essentially evil, they are truly sent from Satan when combined with a windy, rainy Oxford morning following a night out with a load of colleagues from all over Europe and Africa, but that’s no more than we deserve for that kind of behaviour, and if we can complete the session, then it’s even more useful.

So amongst all of this, how has the diabetes management been going? To be honest I really can’t complain too much at all.  I’ve had far more good days than bad overall, but I have had a few erratic readings and days starting to creep in.  The one thing that continues to help me maintain a degree of predictability and consistent sensitivity to both carbs and isulin is exercise.  I’ve had very few exercise related issues, and really seem to have generally got the hang of that bit.  Where, I’m still struggling though is with a few key foods that I just can’t seem to either assess the carb content of, or assess the effect of those on me.  Number one is boiled white rice, number two is white bread.  They just seem to shoot my blood sugar way up with no predictability and the last three high readings I’ve had have all been due to those two foods.  By contrast, the last few lows I’ve had have all been down to low GI foods like porridge oats or sour dough rye bread, which take a while to digest and spike the blood sugar.

One thing I’ve been genuinely surprised at amongst colleagues and clients is the general lack of squeamishness of my testing and injecting, with most people having very little knowledge of the condition, but interested to learn.

That’s enough of that, now down to the real business, the year’s races.  This year I’m going for quality over quantity, with a purpose.  Next year I’ll be 40, so it seems a good opportunity to do something useful and raise a bit of money for a couple of charities; JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund – type 1 diabetes research) and Highfields Special School fund for a new minibus.  I’ve got a few key races in mind, all of which I could PB at, so the plan is to open a couple of just giving pages, raise a shedload of money and contribute myself to the tune of £100 per PB.

The races are

1) 31/12/13 – New Year’s Eve 10k – last year, 108^th overall, 21^st MV35 - Entry in
2) Sunday 1^st June - The Yomp Mountain Challenge – a 23 mile Fell race – last year I did this in 4 hr 25 three days before my diabetes diagnosis. Run from my parents’ town and hopefully my cousin will come and join me again. Last year’s position, 35^th, 32^nd male. - Entry in
3) 1^st August – 40 mile Ultra at Grimsthorpe – 40 at 40, third time lucky I hope
4) September – Road half Marathon, another local one and flat.  Should be good for a fast time.
5) New Year’s Eve 10k – back to the speedwork again, may be stretching it to get another PB here

With them nicely spread out like that, it should give me enough room to tailor the interim training for each, and hopefully get a good cycling TT season in amongst that.

Watch this space – the page will be announced in all good time.

Watch this space as well, for another shoe review – my new Inov-8 FLite 195s

Good news at the Docs, new shoes and a new PB

I've had a new post in mind every week for about the last four week, there's been that much going on, but finally gotten to it, amongst all the other stuff that's been keeping be busy.

The wine is still going strong, the 5 gallons of apple are subsiding now after their furious initial ferment; and just this week, I've started off some elderberry, which makes a lovely deep red wine, much like a merlot as long as you keep the light out, otherwise the colour fades.  The good thing with it though is that after you've strained the fermenting must off the berries, you can use them again and make a rose wine as well, so two for the price of one.  I think that's probably it for now as I have limited space and limited glassware to keep it all in. 

Otherwise, I've had my first visit to the consultant since my diagnosis in June, and overall it was bloody good. My HbA1c, a measure of overall blood sugar control has gone down from 129 to 46mmol/l, or 6.4%.  Effectively, this means that my risk of long term complications at that level is no higher than the average non-diabetic, so bloody good going.  BP, liver function, kidney function all good as well, RHR still in the mid 40's and you won't get much better than that outside of a professional athlete. 

BP was slightly up, but that was mainly because I'd used the train and bike rather than car to get there.   I attribute this to three things
1) fitness, and a habit of exercising
2) a good clean diet, avoid the shitty refined carbs
3) discipline, I've got 30 years left if I'm lucky and only discipline will get me there healthy

Overall I've also been going well in the exercise front.  Two weeks ago I did my first long run since my failure at the Grim Reaper, I'd been holding off until now partly for psychological reasons as I didn't fancy the idea of my knee going tits up on me again. Half hour blood testing worked well again, with 30g carbs every half hour, BG was 5.7, 6.3, 6.7, so drifting up slightly, then with a post run bolus and reduced insulin, it went up as high as 9.9 before being back down to 5.7 at lunch.

Last week I went out on the Sunday run with the cycling club, with the principle that 45 minute tests were OK, but I would have to sprint ahead of the pack and test, then catch their back wheel as they went past me.  All worked well until we were heading towards Newmarket for a cafe stop, I sprinted ahead, tested, they didn't appear.  I turned round and chased as hard as I could, but didn't catch them.  I arrived at the cafe about two minutes after they had, so not a bad chase.  Overall 99km on the clock for the day's riding so pretty happy with that.  BG behaving as well at 7.0, 7.5, 7.9 then having taken soem carbs just before and had a date and oat slice at the cafe, up to 10.4 but then back down again to 7.5 by the next test after setting off again.  This time I avoided the post exercise low again, but at the cost of running high later in the day at just under 10 when I went to bed.

In both cases, I'd followed the same strategy of half basal dose and one unit bolus at breakfast before, and a reduced bolus at lunch afterwards.  My overall sensitivity still seems a little variable though, settling down near to 15g carbs per unit at dinner and lunch, but breakfast is not so easy.  Some days near 15, but this morning I applied that and promptly had myself a hypo.  Not ideal when I was planning on riding into town with my daughter for shopping.

Finally, on the exercise front, I've started training for a New Year's Eve 10k race, including some interval and tempo sessions, with some experimenting for BG management as well.  Last Tuesday I did a tempo session, 2km easy-6km at target race pace-2km easy.  I only went and had myself a new 10km PB, in training, by 25 secs. Cool.

So, shoes, or more specifically running shoes.  Can you have too many?  Is this too many?

Anyway, even if it is, I've now got these as well FLite 195.  Very comfy around the house and will have a test tomorrow on the road.  Looking at them, they'll be good for roads in wet and dry, plus dry trails and grass. I'll report back later