Mike Lawson is a self-proclaimed social media junkie and a doctor-proclaimed type 1 diabetic. Since his type 1 diagnosis, Mike has used the Internet and social media to connect with other people living with diabetes and to receive help with staying healthy. His YouTube series, “My Life As A Pin Cushion” is a positive, comedic way for him to share some of the lessons he has learned living with diabetes and to spread the positive message that a diabetes diagnosis doesn’t mean that you have to stop living. Mike is also documenting the training for his first marathon at MikesMarathon.com.
What inspired you to start training for a marathon?
Mike: I’ve wanted to run a marathon for years. I have friends that run and it’s always seemed like an accessible super-human strength that I could acquire if I just put my mind to it. Running 26.2 miles is currently way outside of my abilities, and at the place I’m sitting right now feels almost impossible and scary. This past March I cheered on friends that were running in a marathon and I was overwhelmed with a feeling of jealousy. Why was I just sitting on the curb with my Starbucks instead of running? That night I signed up to run the Oakland marathon on March 22, 2015.
Do you have fears or frustrations around managing diabetes during your training and your future race?
Mike: Running is so foreign to me right now and I’m just slowly picking up my pace. Today, my blood glucose levels are not interfering with my short runs too much. I’m worried, however, what long runs will look like. I’ve been trying to take a read-before-doing approach to training, and so far most I’m just reading books from marathoners…not marathoners with diabetes. I’m worried about how to carry glucose. I’m worried about stopping to test. I’m worried that diabetes might get between me and the finish line.
How do you use diabetes technology to help manage your diabetes while training?
Mike: I currently test my blood before and after a run. I’m also using a Dexcom Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) that will alert me if my blood glucose level gets too high or low.
Understanding how Dario works (connecting you more directly to your doctor, tracking all your meals, doses, BGs, etc.), how do you imagine a smart meter could help you train? What features—whether data analysis, integrations, community tools, or something else—would help set you up to succeed?
Mike: I would love to find a way to connect the dots a little better. I want to find the patterns. Right now I need to go to one place to see when I ran and how far I ran. Then to another place to see my BGs before and after. And then another place to see how much insulin I had on board and when my last meals were. It would be nice to know that, for example, my blood glucose level starts dropping around a particular mile in a run. Or that I tend to avoid hypos if I eat a banana before a workout.
I’m tracking my training at MikesMarathon.com with videos and written blog posts. I’m certainly not an expert marathoner—I’m just documenting the journey.
Thank you, Mike! Good luck with your training!
Did you know that the Dario glucose meter and app helps you manage your diabetes together with your physical activity and even integrates with your Runkeeper! You can read more here or download the app here.