I thought I had it all figured out about how many more carbs I would need when I started my swim, but lo and behold, this was not the case. I am a carb-burning-crazy-woman
I must be swimming harder, bc this glucose burning machine is requiring a lot more fuel than ever in the past (almost) 3 years. I really should have timed my laps today, but I was too busy trying to manage relaxation techniques .
with just 1 minor glitch, here are todayās stats:
1pm bg 99 (2 hours of ZB)
1:20 bg 102 took 2 gtabs and jumped in
1:55 bg 50 took 3 Gtabs and waited 15 minutes. bg went up to 96 and I took another Gtab and jumped back in
3pm bg 99 bolused 2.2 units for 4 hours of ZB
3:30 bg 107 bolused 1.4 units for 32gms carbs refuel shakes
I canāt believe that despite all the carbs at the start of my swim that I went from 102 to 50 in only 30 minutes of swimming while on 3 hours of ZB !!! well, one thing is for certain: I am very pleased that I showed some patience and waited out the low. I was able to get back in and finish my swim, and that was well worth it!!!
well tomorrow I will up the ante and really carb up like crazy before jumping in. And, I am very curious to see how my night goes.
signing off,
DM
PS: a big shout out to Eric for the link to the Amazon site where I can buy some serious fast acting carb fuel!! Isnāt he just the best !!!
Thanks again, Eric, for the link. I just placed my order for 2 3packs. I see that it comes in strawberry, but I couldnāt find any other flavorsā¦like chocolate, for example maybe I can chase it with some banana jelly bellys.
I donāt think they (Transcend) has any other flavors. There are other brands that are basically the same, but I have not tried those so I donāt want to recommend them. I would only want to recommend something I have tried.
You might try them and find they are fine.
I think Walmart sells a Reli-On brand of the same type of thing.
The Transcend gels are fast and 15 grams on top of your ZB would let you get right back to it.
DID I OVER-DOSE ON GLUCOSE OR WHAT ? EXPERIMENT #1:
had a difficult time getting my BGs up today, even on 2 hours of ZB. but finally at 12 noon, I was up to 77 and felt I would be just fine getting into the pool. when I got to the pool, before jumping in, my finger stick was 111; I took 3 gtabs (1 more than yesterday) thinking that this would surely do the trick as far as crashing or not was concerned. however, when I got out of the pool to test again, my BG had slid down to 52. OMG.i ate 3 more tabs and waited 15 minutes. but when I tested again, my BG had only come up to 70, so I ate 2 more tabs. waited another 15 minutes and my BG had come up to 81 and, being fed up with all the waiting, poolside, I jumped back in to finish my swim. I landed softly at 76. nice, right? but 30 minutes later, my BG had sky rocked to 148!! I really thought I had goofed up with the carbo loading. but then, within another 20 minutes my BG came right back down to perfection target range. Yay. so my guess is that my spike was from a cortisol reaction post swim due to its intensity, and probably had nothing to due with the carbs. who the heck knows? (Eric, certainly !!! ) either way, it was a great swim, and I am totally endorphined out and very satisfied with my performance today.
one of the really nice things that happened to me today was that when I was back in the locker room, there were two elderly women changing out of their suits and one of the women noticed my pump and cgm. she asked me if I was diabetic, and it started an entire conversation between the 3 of us.
then, out of nowhere, one of the women stated that she couldnāt believe how fast I swam and how beautiful my breast stroke was. then the other woman chimed in and agreed. (we had shared lanes both today and yesterday) WOW, did that make me feel wonderful!!! Sheer Heaven for my ears and my heart I felt so much better about myself after the complements!!! But, I mean, who wouldnāt .
I have had this happen to me before and its so simple that I donāt know how or why I over-looked it: the importance of the pre-bolus when I turn off my pump. Duh!!!
when I turned off my pump this morning my bg was 81, so I only pre-bolused .2 units. if I had to do it all over again, I would have been more aggressive. Cāest la vie. it was still an awesome swim, and I landed nicely at the end.
here are todayās stats:
1pm bg 133 walked to pool 1/2 hour early to ward off a further spike
1:30 bg 168 swam my heart out
2pm bg 154
2:30 bg 110
3:15 bg 91
bolused as usual for replacement basal and my re-fuel shakes.
(Iāll pause and think twice tomorrow before I turn off my pump)
Hard to say, but did you double check that 148? If you have a 148 nestled between a 76 and target range, and it is only 50 minutes apart, it might be that the 148 result was suspect?
Just a thought.
That is great! You are awesome! Iāve known that for a long time!
TRYING OUT A STRAWBERRY GLUCOSE GEL PACK ( 15GMS) EXPERIMENT #1:
so after having a few annoying lows during my swims this past and last week, I decided that there had to be something faster working than Gtabs and Jelly Beans. Eric suggested these strawberry glucose gels that he claimed worked instantly (no wait time, even on a low BG) so today, I tried one for the very first time. I must say, it worked like a charm now I am highly recommending these to all others who need that instant glucose replacement. They are made by Tanscend, and you can find all of the relavent info a few posts up on this thread (Eric posted it). I swam with a nice flat line without any crashing today!!!
I had one cortisol spike after my swim, but it came right back down on its own after about 1/2 hour. both Eric and my Endo agree that perhaps I should have a my insulin pool-side so that before I finish my full swim, I take a shot in order to ward off the spike. Iāve been swimming hard lately, so this idea I might just have to test out. weāll see.
it was crowded in the pool today, but I didnāt get kicked by any passing swimmers, so I would call it a good day in the pool
here are todayās stats:
1pm bg 91, walked to pool
1:20 bg 109 sucked down a strawberry Gell pack of 15gms of instant carbs
1:50 bg 102 took 2 gtabs
2:20 bg 78 took 1 gtab (probably should have taken only 1/2 )
2:50 bg 93 bolused for 4 hrs of ZB 2.2 units/ 3:25 bolused 1.4 units for re-fuel shakes
3:35 bg 90 drank Boost Shakes
Hoping everyone has a wonderful weekend. Iāll be back in the pool on Monday and put out my report as usual
Great, so here goes: I was put on a new medication this week and I am getting used to it; one of its side effects is tiredness/exhaustion.
well before my swim prep this morning, I drank some (caffeinated) coffee to pep me up. and, now my hands are shaking and my heart is palpitating. I can hardly breath. I hope it is worth it 'cause Iāll be in the pool in about 1/2 hour.
SWIMMING WITH A GROIN INJURY AND A KICKBOARD EXPERIMENT #1:
okay, so today I learned a valuable lesson: watch out for the powerful punch of the glucose gel!
I went from 83 to 202 in just minutes. OMG, right??? LOL. I guess bc lately I have been going low in the pool, I thought that the extra gel shot would just help keep me afloat. it really blind sighted me.
I was swimming with a groin injury, so I dellagated myself to using the kick board for 90 minutes. all was going well, until, POW!!!
I wonāt be doing tomorrow what I did today! you can count on that
here are todays stats:
1pm bg 102
1:20 bg 104 took 1 gel shot (15gms)
1:50 bg 94 took another gel shot (my big mistake)
2:20 bg 83 had 3 jelly beans
2:50 bg 156 bolused extra hard for missed basal and correction
3:30 bg 202 took an IM shot in my thigh of 1 unit
4:10 bg 123 drank 2 refuel shakes
thank goodness for the magic of the IM shot! gotta love it.
signing out,
DM
and PS: tomorrow is another day, and I will be more mindful of the necessary carbs.
Ohhhhh the pain!!! I spent last evening with my legs elevated and a giant bag of frozen peas on my groin. I took some Advil, which really didnāt help much. it hurt just to walk.
well, when I woke up this morning, and I was still in considerable pain, I knew I would not be swimming today . so sad but not wanting to exacerbate the injury. better to err on the side of caution.
I will be doing as much walking as I can today without over-doing it. and I will be home the rest of the day with the āice packā of peas on my groin. ugh. hopefully, I will be back in the pool tomorrow.
STILL SO MUCH TO LEARN ABOUT MY BODY EXPERIMENT #1:
I am trying to figure out how to use these darned 15gm gel shots. they donāt seem to work the same way as taking the same amount of carbs that are in in a GTab. they act much faster, but then they linger on for a while. I am certain that Eric will have an answer for me, but if any of you other guys have some experience with this, I am totally open to suggestions!!!
SOS for the gel shots!!!
here are todays stats:
1pm bg 93 leave for pool
1:20 bg 89 take 1 gel shot (15 gms) jump in
1:50 bg 50 take another gel shot and wait 15 minutes till bg is 76
2:25 bg 123
2:50 bg 121 bolus 2.4 units for replacement basal (plus .2 units for correctionā¦if this was at all necessary, I havenāt a clue)
3:25 bg 84 bolused 1.4 for 32 gms refuel
it was a slow and easy pace today bc I didnāt want to re-injure my pulled groin muscle. I felt fine throughout the swim. wanted to swim harder but didnāt want to push it and then be stuck out of the pool with some long lasting injury. I think I chose well.
wonāt be in the pool tomorrow ( hair appointment in the City ), but Iāll be back in the pool on Wednesday and for the rest of the week.
so after getting tired of crashing after my first length, I decided to increase my carbo-load before I jumped into the pool, even though I was starting my swim on the āhighā side. I took 1 gel shot along with two extra gtabs. it worked like a charm. I stayed completely flat. I really didnāt know what would happen, but I thought it was worth trying out, so I swung high with the sugars before jumping in, instead of waiting for a crash and having to climb out of it and waste my time poolside instead of being in the pool swimming.
I am glad that I will be swimming again tomorrow, bc there is a little fine tuning I would like to do: before the second leg, if my BGs are over 100, I will only take 1 gtab, not 2, bc it seems that this tab doesnāt kick in until the last leg, thus leaving me on the higher end than when I originally jumped into the pool. I would like to end my swim at least Even Steven. shooting for perfect is crazy, I know, but I like creating these little goals for myself; it makes the swim just a little more interesting. know what I mean?
here are todays stats:
1:15 bg 113 took 1 gel shot and 2 gtabs
1:50 bg 105 took 2 gtabs
2:20 bg 103
2:50 bg 110 bolused 2.3 units for missed basal
3:25 bg 84 bolused 1.4 units for 32gms of refuel.
it was a fantastic swim. the pool was practically empty today. ( I think bc it was so miserably cold outside that no-one wanted to leave their home for the outdoors.) I just layered and layered and bundled up and speed-walked back and forth. (I think it made the water seem warm .)
.
I felt so much better about myself after the complements!!! But, I mean, who wouldnāt .
I guess bc lately I have been going low in the pool, I thought that the extra gel shot would just help keep me afloat. it really blind sighted me.
. so sad but not wanting to exacerbate the injury. better to err on the side of caution.
), but Iāll be back in the pool on Wednesday and for the rest of the week.
