Sweet Victory

I had 4 low blood sugars, yesterday. Or more specifically, I had 2 VERY low blood sugars yesterday; the kind where you have the type of snack that normally would swing you back to normal land but this time was merely like pumping the brakes on the sliding BG and required twice the amount of sugar to bring me back to the magic 100. The first one was late afternoon. The CGM alerted me about 5 minutes after I knew it was coming on. I had a pack of peanut butter cups (probably my favorite "diabetes doesn't have to suck" treat), but 15 minutes later, I knew that I was still falling, so I doubled down with somewhat healthier and almost as yummy Clif Mojo Bar. 43g of carbs later, I was 115 and level. And then just before bed, the same thing; a low that I just knew wouldn't be averted by a simple pack of fruit snacks. So I doubled down with a Kashi bar and some delicious chocolate babka. Again: twice the amount of carbs to bring me back to normal. The same snack that on...

The summer can be an interesting time for runners; particularly those of us who run year-round. The winter for me tends to be a build toward spring races. In this case, it was arguably my best build ever toward the Boston & Cleveland Marathons. Unfortunately, PR attempts were thwarted in both cases by global warming. In the end, all I had to show for it was a 5k PR. And as you hit late spring and the temperatures climb, the paces on your workouts do the same. You feel sluggish and look at the race calendar, knowing that if you race, the heat won't allow you a time you'd want to brag about. But summer running is extremely valuable for another reason: it is the build that leads into fall, and for that reason alone, it's critical. It doesn't matter so much exactly how fast your workouts are as it does that you are doing the workouts. It's funny - I tend to do the same thing every June. I run just as much, but I get less religious about keeping my running lo...