Ultra running with diabetes type 1

Have a search for roddy riddle - he's fairly active on Twitter.

@philwoolfall . Sorry can't advise but nonetheless I'd just like to wish you luck.
Such races without "D" are a huge challenge. Hope someone can offer tips.

iv never ran further than half a marathon but iv done a few 100 mile plus cycles 130 being the longest i find i need very little insulin during its so easy to go to low also i think being diabetic increases the risk of dehydration i could be wrong there.
running 100 miles would be very impressive

I've absolutely no idea how you'd manage food/insulin, but wish you good luck!

philwoolfall said:

Hi, I’m type 1, don’t have a pump and self fund a freestyle libre. I inject both basal and bolus insulin. I’m entered in a few races of up to 100 miles in 2018 and these will be my first races above marathon distance. My previous marathon plan has been to reduce basal by about a third the previous night and then not inject in the race but I’m not sure this can work, especially for 100 miles, as will need to have solid food on the way as well as gels or similar. Any advice from others in a similar diabetic situation who’ve done races of 50 miles or above much appreciated.

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I don't have the experience to advise, but I'm wondering if you have read "the Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Performance" by Jeff Volek and Stephen Phinney? Unfortunately it is not addressed to diabetics, but it does include testimonials from low carb athletes who claim to be able to compete in long events with little carb intake. I have bought the book but don't quite know what to make of it. Given that it is quite cheap on Amazon, it might be worth a punt. I also Googled and found some interesting looking entries: diabetes LCHF athletes

I've done a few 400-600 km audax cycle events in recent years.
After a bit of trial and error, I found reducing basal by 50% keeps me reasonably level for rides up to 33hrs.

They generally involve checkpoints every 50-100km. Between checkpoints I generally eat a few biscuits, or flapjack on the go to keep me ticking over and at the checkpoints test blood glucose etc and do some proper eating 80-120g of carbs (usually in the form of sandwiches, cake bananas etc...). all of this is done without the need to take any fast acting insulin. Only if I have a blood glucose reading greater than 12 will I take any insulin (and only half a unit, which under those conditions is enough to lower blood glucose concs by ~9mM (so has to be partially counteracted with a few sweets about 1hr later).

On this type of regime I've managed to go 33hrs just on 50% doses of my usual twice daily basal insulin.
It took me five big rides and a few mistakes to get this right. Once I'd gained the confidence of not using any fast acting insulin for such long periods whilst partaking in what is effectively an uncomfortable eating competition, the trick was tailoring the basal insulin levels that would be enough (but not too much) to keep me in reasonable range.

philwoolfall said:

Hi, I’m type 1, don’t have a pump and self fund a freestyle libre. I inject both basal and bolus insulin. I’m entered in a few races of up to 100 miles in 2018 and these will be my first races above marathon distance. My previous marathon plan has been to reduce basal by about a third the previous night and then not inject in the race but I’m not sure this can work, especially for 100 miles, as will need to have solid food on the way as well as gels or similar. Any advice from others in a similar diabetic situation who’ve done races of 50 miles or above much appreciated.

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Hi, good luck with your challenge.

I ran my first ultra marathon last year and a am doing my first full Ironman this year.

As for nutrition I tried cutting back on my insulin race day it almost cost me my place at 52km point I was cramping and dehydrating, when checking my BG I was 27mmol I had just been storing any gels or food on the go for the second half I increase my insulin ratio with the obvious large injection at 52km to get me back on the straight and narrow, unfortunately my second half was slower due to poor fuelling and bg management in the first half but still a completion.

All the best with your training and your run

Izzy

Hey I am type one and have run lots of ultras including a handfull of 100s.

However I was only diagnosed April 2017 so post diagnosis I have run only one hundred mile race and a handful of 30 and 40 milers

Everyone is different so what works for me might not work for you however I reduce my base insulin from 16 units to 10 units the night before the race and then don't inject any fast acting insulin during the race. However I did inject some more base insulin as I entered the night section of the hundred miler.

I test regularly during the racesr and if my bloods had gone high I would of injected fast acting.

I am leading up to a mountain race in the Alps in August so trying to get as many races I can in beforehand to see how my body reacts.

Which 100 mile race are you doing?

Gav

I guess it is difficult for you guys to run on fat in keto like some T2s and those with no insulin issues?
D.

lindisfel said:

I guess it is difficult for you guys to run on fat in keto like some T2s and those with no insulin issues?
D.

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Its not just people with Type2 doing keto, it is VERY common with ultra distance running, sometimes having a little carbs for a race but at no other times.

Bloody simple to go keto as a T1, you just need to train to do it, you can't switch in on for race day and hope it will work.

I've been up to 50 miles running using both basal/bolus and pump. Injections, I took half basal the night before, half a unit basal the day of the race and half a unit bolus with a breakfast of about 30g carbs. NO MORE insulin was required, and I halved my bolus for the post race meal, and still went low. There are other carb transport mechanisms than insulin, and you'll be more insulin sensitive as well.

You need to accept that BG willl be higher pre-start, but drop pretty quick. Keep testing regularly, I go about 5km running on ultras, about 25km/1hour on audax (up to 200km so far), and eat as required to keep the BG steady - I can normally manage 5-6 throughout an event with about 20g carbs per hour. I've worked to be fairly well keto adapted.

On the pump much easier, I set a TBR of 20% of normal 4 hours prior, and for the duration of the event, that does the trick for me

Perhaps you may find Dr Keith Runyan's blog helpful...he is T1D and a triathlete on keto.
https://ketogenicdiabeticathlete.wordpress.com/

This might intrest you

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/spor...1-diabetes-by-people-with-tickets-44320827789