Wholefoods CEO Is An Idiot, But So What?

Those who follow diabetes dust-ups intently (I'm not one of them) have been pointing out an Op-Ed piece by Wholefoods CEO John Mackey in which he said, "Most of the diseases that kill us and account for about 70% of all health-care spending—heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes and obesity—are mostly preventable through proper diet, exercise, not smoking, minimal alcohol consumption and other healthy lifestyle choices."

Reaction from the diabetic community has been predictably unfavorable, particularly from the Type 1 diabetic crowd, where we are the lottery "winners" of an autoimmune disorder and have no ability to prevent anything.

I've found that diabetics don't like getting blamed for the disease and there's no reason we should, since there's nothing that would've prevented it. And while it's true that stupid editorials from guys like Mackey don't help the public understanding of the disease, here's the thing: it will have zero effect on how I manage my diabetes today. I will eat the same, exercise the same and bolus the same, regardless of what Mackey says, thinks or writes, and regardless of what any of his readers come to believe about the disease.

It's interesting: in my high technology job, there have been many writers and so-called "experts" who don't get aspects of our product line and write things as incorrect as what Mackey wrote. I call these morons on the carpet for it publicly 100% of the time. And yet, I have absolutely do interest in doing that to Mackey. Here's the difference:

When someone writes something incorrect about the industry I'm in, it has the potential to directly harm my company. Potential customers can read these fallacies and use them as a basis for not doing business with us. That's bad and that's why I nip it in the bud every time. But John Mackey has no power of the control over my diabetes. He can say whatever he wants to. Hallie Berry can make her claims to cure Type 1 diabetes. While all of these things certainly screw up the public perception of the disease, they do nothing to affect my personal "battle" with it, which is actually more like a "marriage," but I digress.

For those who might say that Mackey's stupidity can affect public opinion to the degree that it would affect legislation that affects diabetes, perhaps I'm overly optimistic, but I'd like to think the diabetes lobbyists (who know infinitely more than Mackey) wield a bigger stick in congress than some half-cocked CEO who forged Yahoo comments a few years ago, but I concede the point is valid. Incorrect information is never a good thing, but allowing it to affect your own personal viewpoint of the condition - even for a second - is even worse.

If It's Good Enough for Lance...

After last Sunday's 22 miler, I'm now in taper mode, which could also be described as "voodoo" mode for me. Over the next 20 days, I'll be taking every supplement I come across that offers promises of enhanced performance (not THAT kind - I've got enough spam about THAT), but the kind that might help me shave exactly three minutes off my marathon PR so I can get to Boston.

One of the substances I'd been curious about is FRS, which I first learned about when I clicked on a banner ad with Lance Armstrong a few months ago. Think of that: I don't click on many banner ads, but Lance Armstrong's face was enough to make me curious enough to stretch my mouse a few pixels and click.

While the website was interesting and believable, the fact is that at $2.50/serving, it ain't cheap. The market for something to believe in might be infinite, but my budget isn't.

But over the weekend, three things happened:
1.) I stumbled across this article in Men's Journal about FRS, which explained how the product might be the world's first "real energy drink." It also talked about the product's ability to boost VO Max.
2.) I had a miserable 10 mile effort on Saturday morning. I was unprepared for one of the most humid days of the summer and rather than doing 8 miles at marathon pace, I managed only 4 (though I did complete the full 10, albeit slower). In my last peak weekend, I had my first failed workout of the season. I was upset and frustrated and desperate: a marketer's dream.
3.) Armed with the Men's Journal article, I went to GNC. The plan was to buy enough FRS for a week or so, at which time I thought I might buy more if I thought it was working. Amazingly, though, the local GNC had a ton of the stuff at 80% off - about 35 cents a serving. Why? It turns out it will expire, but not until the end of October!

I cleared out the shelves of all the discount product, giving me almost enough to get to my marathon, for $21! I was stoked.

I drank my first FRS the next morning, before my 22 miler. The 22 miler went awesome. Now, it could be because my blood sugar and Perpetuem danced like lovers for 3 hours, leaving me with a level blood sugar you couldn't make flatter with an iron, or it could've been because the humidity was lower Sunday, or it could've been because I had some extra left in the tank after Saturday's poor workout.

But then again, it could've been the Lance-juice, my latest weapon in the battle for Boston.

The Cayenne Pepper Experiment: Mixed Results

About a month ago, I started The Cayenne Pepper Experiment.

In an earlier post, I discussed how one of the things that hasn't gone well with this particular marathon season is that I'm 4 pounds heavier than I was last season and 8 pounds heavier than I was 2 years ago when I had a 3:18 PR.

While this still puts me at an "ideal" BMI, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that carrying extra weight around during a marathon isn't ideal for PR's.

At the same time, my diet is mostly-somewhat-reasonably healthy, so outright "dieting" when I was running 50 miles a week didn't seem to make sense.

However, I remembered that when I went on my insulin pump eight years ago, the more efficient use of insulin changed my total daily dose from 60 units to roughly 42. When I did that, I lost 15 pounds without changing anything. This caused me to conclude that if I could lower my average insulin dosage further, maybe those 4 pounds would just slide away.

About that time, a diabetic I know mentioned to me his use of cayenne pepper. In a nutshell, cayenne pepper is reported to do a lot of things for you. In regards to me, however, there are reports that it will increase insulin sensitivity and act as a natural stimulant. Seemed like a plan to me.

Here's what worked:
The cayenne pepper worked pretty much as advertised. Though I can't say my body felt incredibly stimulated, it definitely felt warmer, particularly during the first week. Also, almost immediately I required less insulin. My average daily dosage went from 42 units to 35 - a drop of 20%!

However:
During the same month, I didn't lose any weight, other than a pound or two which found it's way back on within a day or two. In short, the process worked, but the results didn't come.

Adverse reactions:
As you can see from the attached link, cayenne peppper is healthy stuff and common sense says I should probably continue it. However, what I didn't like was how directly responsible it was for affecting blood sugar. In other words, if I missed a dose (and the plan is to take it with every meal), my blood sugar would be immediately affected in the hours afterward. It seemed that the cayenne was only as effective as the last dose. Moreover, on some days I would try to sneak in some after the meal if I forgot, and my stomach wasn't able to adjust to that.

With my marathon less than a month away, I'm abandoning the cayenne pepper so that I have plenty of time to re-align my basal and bolus rates.

Conclusion:
Cayenne pepper did increase my metabolism and decrease my insulin requirements. However, there's a less direct relationship between insulin requirements and weight than I once thought (particularly if you're not overweight), so it's not a way that I was able to shave a few pounds.

First A1C on the Dexcom...

After 62 days of wearing the Dexcom, my A1C is either 6.2 or 5.8, depending on which chart you believe.

According to both the Dex and my labs, my average blood sugar for the period was 131. (More on this in a minute.)

According to this chart, that converts to a 5.8. According to my lab paperwork, however, that's a 6.2.

I don't know why that is, and I also know that 6.2 is good - in fact probably the best A1C I've had in 25 years with diabetes. But dammit, I expected a 5.8, so something that starts with a 6 kind of bugs me.

That being said, my Doc seemed a little worried that my actual blood tests per day had dropped from 4-5 to 2-3 and that I was trusting the Dex so much. But I'd say if the Dex says my average blood sugar is 131 and so did the labs, I think it's reliable enough.

I also talked to the doc a little bit about trying Apidra. When I look at my Dex wave, my meals have a habit of taking me quite high (220-250) and then it's a good 2.5 hours 'til I'm normal again. Some people say Apidra works faster. Less time over 200 means a lower A1C, I'm thinking.

All of that being said, it was a good appointment, and all my other labs were pretty good. That's something I think about a lot during these 50 mile weeks - making sure other pieces of me aren't falling apart.

If you've moved from Humalog to either Novolog or Apidra, though, would love to hear your thoughts...

Best day, today. Six tomorrow, 12 Sunday, and then 1 more hell week until the taper begins...

Perpeteum & the Long Run

I've done a lot of things different on this marathon plan, but one of the most important has been switching from a wide variety of less expensive fueling systems to Hammer Nutrition.

Hammer had first been recommended to me by a local Ironman athlete who joined me for a few long runs last year. At the time, it was too late in my training to risk adding something new to the mix, but I've been using HEED and Hammer Gel for several months now.

(Side note: My Ironman friend told the about reading that Hammer was formulated well for diabetics. I found it a little strange that a non-diabetic would know this until I became a Hammer customer. Simply put, Hammer sends copious amount to education to their customers. While the material is always marketing their products, there's gobs of research and education in the newsletters. Impressive stuff.)

Until this past weekend, though, I'd never tried Perpeteum, which is the specific Hammer product for events greater than two hours. While HEED's dynamite stuff for up to 90 minutes, I was curious to see what Perpeteum would do for me.

Following the instructions on the canister, I made myself a multi-hour bottle of Perpeteum and took one sip every 1.5 miles. I supplemented this with a 16 ounce bottle of water, every 5-6 miles. The idea here was to put together a plan that would work for my upcoming marathon, where I won't have a road crew.

One of the things that I learned, though, was that mixing Perpeteum with other gels with simple sugars could be tough on the GI system, so I made myself a flask of Perpeteum in case my blood sugar got low. This worked perfect - my blood sugars hung out at 150 for most of the run, until they took a quick dip down to 80 near the end. I warded off the low by taking the flask and finished the run at 156 without using any fuels other than Perpeteum and water.

Most important, though, was my energy level, as evidenced by the graph. No lie: I've never felt better on a long run. Dave and I went to 21, even though the plan called for 20. The stuff's not crack, mind you, and I was tired by the end but I've got no doubt that Perpeteum is special stuff for going extra long, and I'm pretty stoked about my nutrition plan heading into these final weeks.

What Non-Runners Know About the Boston Marathon

Let's face it: this obsession with Boston is something only runners understand. To most of the non-running community, saying you're running the Boston marathon doesn't mean much. Half the time, you'll get the, "Oh a marathon.. how far is this one?" But very few people outside of us idiots know what it takes to get there.

Even so, I wonder about the standards a lot. For me, I love them: they were made for a guy like me who on a good day, with a good plan and a good tail wind might get there. Yet at the same time, I read a lot of running blogs. Some of the writers (these two come to mind) would be embarrassed if all they could say was that they qualified for Boston. These guys don't get out of bed for anything slower than a 2:50. A slothly 3:15 would be a tremendous failure in their world. And that's not a bad thing: it's just how their world is.

Meanwhile, guys like Steve Walker are the epitome of the word "runner," yet - and I think he wouldn't mind me saying this - will never qualify for Boston. (note: Steve runs Boston every year via the marathon's charity program) Not because they don't have the heart or the dedication, but because their particular genetic brew simply had a little too much of this and not quite enough of that.

All that being said, I am lucky. 3:15 is attainable for me. It's not an automatic (otherwise I wouldn't have failed twice already trying to get there!) but I know that on September 13th, I'll be close enough to go for it. The good news? My non-running friends won't know what it means if I trip up again.

Boardwalk Running Analyzed

While at the beach last week, I enjoyed 4 of my 5 runs on the boardwalk. I use the word "enjoy" somewhat loosely, though I was certainly entertained.

To the buff guy who raced me for a mile at 6:30 pace, only to suddenly stop and call it a day while I still had 3 miles left, I say, thanks for the company.

To the kid on the bike who drove like he needed a breathalyzer test, I say move it over.

And to the girl who ran every day in a bikini and loafers, I wonder: were you Jenn Shelton? I'm pretty sure you were but couldn't think of a way to ask without sounding creepy.

Vacation 20 Miler

Summer vacation 2009 is history. As is typical, I spent the time either drinking more expensive beer than usual, consuming gut-busting amounts of seafood, assuring my children that despite what shark week says, the surf is safe... or running.

The day after arriving in Ocean City, I went for what was supposed to be my first 20 miler of the marathon season (which has 3 total). This was basically the course I had in mind. While the course was 19.25, I knew some places I could pick up the difference. In the end, though, I cut it at 19.6 because I was whooped. Other notes:

1) If you wish to copy this course, be forewarned you're not supposed to run on the Route 90 bridge. There is a decent sized lane, but you're not supposed to do it. Also, if a car were to swerve, your only move is to vault over the railing into the bay.
2) Fortunately, there's not a ton of traffic when I went over it at 7:30 AM.
3) If you want to get off Route 90 onto Ocean Parkway, keep in mind, this isn't an intersection. It's sneaking through woods and over guardrails.
4) Ocean Parkway is easily the prettiest road I've run in Ocean City
5) Ocean Gateway is easily the ugliest highway I've run in Ocean City
6) This course has plenty of mini-marts if you need to refill your water bottle and I hit most of them.
7) Two hours into the run, I accidentally ripped out my insulin pump. Thankfully, I was actually trending a bit low for most of the run, and though the heat, humidity and miles did a ton of damage, my blood sugars stayed low.

After the 20, the rest of the vacation was a cut-back week, which meant lots of recovery runs on the boardwalk. Good times all around. Now I'm back and have another 50 mile week planned this week.