Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by jm on December 21, 2011 at 9:59am

dude, you can do this with no problem, with a dexcom or without a dexcom...you are wearing an omnipod, so you will have some insulin going in...just figure out how many carbs you need per minute, me personally is about 1.4g when i do long distance races like triathlons, at a certain heart rate...so i will turn my pump down to about 70% 1.5 hours before, and then make sure i eat or drink 1.4 g of carbs/per minute at the rest stations ,..if you wear the dexcom, then you will be alarmed when something is going wrong, such as your tubing is clogged,insulin is hot, air bubbles that you cannot see, adreline rush, etc...the dexcom is they best tool for athletic events, will not do a long race without this tool

Permalink Reply by jdoc70 on December 21, 2011 at 11:40am

Thanks for the response! The problem is that in these sort of races, there are 15-20 obstacles, some involving crawling under barbed wire through mud/ water, wading through swamps and being blasted with water cannons, so the dexcom isn't an option. The last race I did, my omnipod ripped off while crawling through the mud.

Permalink Reply by IMVic on December 21, 2011 at 11:59am

Doable - I know several of us have done Ironman events where we're off the pump during the swim (1 - 2 hrs) - still here to write about it. Others do Lantus/Levemir for basal and then use pump/pod/pen for bolus. How are you training currently (carbs, insulin)? Assume there is a spot where you can stop and test along the way (and bolus, intake fuel, whatever is needed). I know a couple T1 folks signed up for the TM event in Denver, but not sure that they're on this site.

Permalink Reply by jdoc70 on December 21, 2011 at 1:02pm

RIght now I wear my dexcom while I train, mostly crossfit. I've never been much of a runner, but I am forcing myself to incorporate more running into my training. I don't do more than 5k typically in training and by the end of my workout, my bg is dropping. For races I usually start with my bg beween 140-160 and eat half of a protein bar just before the start and keep the other half in my pocket and eat it about halfway through the race. I guess what I need is a glucometer small enough to put in a ziplock bag and carry it in my pocket so I can stop and test when necessary.

Permalink Reply by IMVic on December 21, 2011 at 1:23pm

one touch ultra mini - your doc should be able to provide one, I've also tried the ones that have strips inside a vial that you can test on the top - not as confident with those (and the meter froze during one of my marathons. Consider what's in the bar (Cliff seems to work best for me). Are you dialing the insulin down (temp basal) before during workout (similar to what JM described)? Realize 5k doesn't last that long, but even a little bit can help dial things in. Going longer you may want a gel or two vs. protein bar.

Permalink Reply by jdoc70 on December 21, 2011 at 2:38pm

Thanks for the advice, I'm still tweaking my training all the time. Had a nasty tib/fib break in a race last year requiring lots of screws and a plate, so working around that and figuring out when to schedule the next surgery without interfering with hunting, snowboarding and races! Thanks again!