2010 Hunter Marathon

In my previous posts I have tried to provide a bit of background information about diabetes and how to take the first steps to getting fit with diabetes. Now we can get to the good stuff. My posts from now will look at my running and physical activity. (I’m not sure this will interest anyone however it will be a good way for me to reflect on what I have done)

There is so much I could say about my very first marathon, which I ran in the Hunter Valley. First and foremost it was fantastic to finish (4h 36min 48sec). I cannot describe the pride I felt when finishing such a challenging event. So many people helped me get all the way to the end, they would chat and encourage me as we were running. I forgot how supportive the running community is. I want to thank everyone who took the time to have a chat, you have really motivated me to make marathon running something I do more often.

Secondly while my finishing time was a long way off my goal time of 4hrs, I was very pleased with my run considering the many mistakes I made along the way. My first marathon was always going to be a steep learning curve. Seeing as I had a short preparation for the run I felt satisfied with my efforts to finish. I was very happy with my half way time of approximately 1h 45mins but this may have been my downfall. Going too quick in the first half did not leave me a lot for the challenging second half and this is where my mistakes became evident.

I started the race at 7am with a blood sugar of 9.3 mmo/l and felt good after a decent breakfast. Standing at the start line with my homemade Hypo pack around my waist and emergency contact details pinned to my shirt I felt ready and like nothing could stop me. I was feeling nervous when they asked all the first timers to raise their hand. We all looked at each other and raised our hands, then the rest of the runners gave us a round of applause and the gun went. This is where I made my first mistake - I felt strong and took off overtaking the people around me working my way to people who were running at a good pace.

I did not even think that I have to keep this pace for another 41km. I call this schoolboy error 1. I kept the strong pace up for a good 6km then begun to feel fatigued and tired. Throughout the next 4km other runners slowly began to pass me this was where I knew I had made a mistake. I not only tired out my legs because I had pushed myself more than I needed to, I could not use them to gauge if I was low or not. Normally when I run I get heavy legs quite suddenly now I was not going to be sure what my levels were without testing and guess what I had plenty of sugar supplies but no glucose tester. This was schoolboy error 2. I decided I had only one option and that was to treat myself as if I were low. In my hypo kit I had a packet of glucodin tablets some jellybeans; space foods sticks and roll ups. I decided I would try some glucodin tablets and see how they worked.

I was at the first of many hills so I thought it was a good time to have a little walk and ate my glucose tablets while going up the hill. I had read a tip that if you are fatigued it is best to work your way slowly up a hill or incline to conserve energy so I felt this was worth a try. After having the glucodin tablets my legs felt better and I was off again. In hindsight I should have ate a space food stick at this point to get some long acting carbohydrates into the body.

Running through the wineries is amazing and I highly recommend the Hunter Valley course to runners who want a scenic and challenging course there are a lot of different landscapes you run through. The best is running through the gardens at the half way mark. At this point I felt confident but I did tell myself once you go through the gate for the second lap there is no stopping . . . for a few moments I did think I'm not sure if I will make it but I decided the second lap looked good and went on.

Not long after this I ran past my wife who was waiting at a viewing point for me, I felt good. She was asking me "do you want me to test you?" I said I felt fine she then said are you sure? I said “no I’m all good!” This was schoolboy error 3. If someone asks if you are all right you most probably aren't, even if you feel good. I kept running down the track. And again ended up hypo. I had not been sticking to my eating plan through the race.

I had been eating more than I had planned at each of the drink and fuel stations leaving myself a bit short on supplies. Now I was at the 28k mark with a few jellybeans and glucodin tablets again I felt I needed to eat something as I had an unusual hunger pain. I thought this is probably a hypo symptom so I had my remaining bits of sugar. At the next drink station I had a premixed PowerAde with extra glucodin added to it waiting. I just needed to get there before I dropped anymore. I made it to the drink station and downed the PowerAde, and a few extra cups.

Event staff was handing out bags of jellybeans and bananas I was feeling pretty good but knew I was out of sugar supplies so I took a bag of jellybeans. This was the smartest thing I did all day. I thought as a diabetic it is probably not a smart thing to turn down any sort of sugar when taking part in an endurance event. It was not like I was aiming to win. It was all about finishing and the bag of jelly beans would help me finish.

Turning at the drink station meant I was on the long home straight. I was about to learn all about the pain of the home straight and poor preparation. Because I had been low for quite a while my glycogen supplies would have been used up very early and now is the time my body would normally be using it if I were not diabetic. Approaching the 30km mark my quads and calves cramped with every step I took. My legs became like concrete, I thought I could feel the muscles moving over each other, they were so tense. I was still trying to move forward but in a world of pain.

I immediately jammed a handful of jellybeans into my mouth and the cramps settled down. I walked for a bit and loosened up as much as I could then I started to jog again. I got a few kilometers further then I was cramping worse than before. I felt shattered because I thought my run was over. I had completed 34kms and I did not know how I was going to finish. I kind lady saw me in pain and told me that no matter how much it hurts I need to jog gently . . . I had no idea how that was possible but I gave it a go and It worked little tiny baby steps and I was on my way again and the pain was easing off. I made it to the 38km mark where my wife was waiting and this time I took her up on her offer to test me. My blood sugar was 1.6 mmo/l. I waited and ate more jellybeans until my sugars got up to 8.0 mmo/l then I took off to complete the course.

Finishing was a magic moment, I had made it hard for myself but I had done something I consider remarkable. This may be egotistical but I think I was able to complete something only a small part of the population will do in their lifetime and something even fewer diabetics will do. I was so proud to finish regardless of the time.

I will definitely do another marathon because of the experience I had in the Hunter Valley. I will need to research more about marathon running with diabetes as I made many mistakes along the way. I am looking forward to my next big run. I have written this blog as a narrative hoping people may read it and be able to provide me with some tips to improve for next time.

After my Hunter Valley effort I spent sometime looking online for tip about training for marathons. I found the information below very useful you can check the website out at -http://www.sport-fitness-advisor.com/marathon-training-program.html

Foundations of a Marathon Training Program

There are many principles of training - some unique to marathon training. You're probably already aware of at least some. Here are few key considerations we need to take into account to build an effective marathon training program

Over-Training
The fitter and more capable an athlete becomes, the more likely he or she is to over-train. The false logic goes that because they are fitter, their bodies can cope with greater and greater demands, more and more miles. But in actual fact, as mileage increases, the longer the body needs to recover - even for experienced athletes. And because the speed and intensity of each run increases this doubles the importance of adequate rest. Avoid performing long runs at race pace. Leave this for shorter, more intense sessions.

Periodization
Periodization is the preferred method for designing any kind of intense training schedule. Quite simply it means to break the overall plan into smaller cycles or chunks, each with their own specific outcome. The opposite - a progressive marathon training program would simply have you run more and more miles at a faster and faster pace indefinitely. Instead by breaking the plan up into smaller periods or cycles, training intensity and volume looks like a series of peaks and troughs...

Adjusting Training Load
To expand on our explanation of periodization - week 1 of the program might start relatively easily, gradually increasing at week 2 and week 3, then week 4 sees a decrease in training volume before stepping it up again in week 5 and week 6. These 6 weeks could be classed as one cycle. To take it step further, each week (a mini cycle) would also vary intensity and volume. This approach is one of the best methods for avoiding over-training.

Tapering
Closely related to the above two points is tapering. This is simply a planned reduction in training volume and intensity as the weeks and days draw closer to the actual marathon. Even for many experienced runners, tapering equates to a day's rest before the 26 mile run. That's not enough - not if you're run a 20-miler within the last week. In fact, as you'll see below running distances close to marathon length less than 3 weeks before the race can be disastrous. It can take that amount of time to fully recover. Aim to peak (in terms of training miles) 4 weeks before the race. Avoid runs of more than 10 miles during this time.

Hitting the wall
You've heard the phrase, you may have even experienced those energy-sapping effects 18 miles in affectionately known as "hitting the wall". The weak legs, light-headedness and strong urge to stop are caused by a depletion of glycogen (carbohydrate stores) and an almost complete reliance on fat for fuel. While fat can power a runner for days in theory, it can't maintain the same speed and intensity as carbohydrate. Couple that with dehydration and it can bring you to a sudden and grinding halt. Fortunately, there is an effective weapon against the wall...

Nutrition
Understanding how nutritional status affects the body during exercise is something you would also benefit greatly from. And it's not just about race day. Eating the right foods at the right time, before during and after long training sessions will compound to make your overall marathon training program that much more effective

DIABETES AUSTRALIA - http://www.diabetesaustralia.com.au/