“It's all about managing my insulin vs. carbohydrate intake vs. Exercise,” says Alex. “Exercise and insulin push my blood sugar down, eating carbs pushes it up.”
He explains that the short term problem is low blood sugar. “It’s like 'bonking'. I'm pretty good at preventing it. If it happens I just eat something sugary, go slower for bit, feel flat - and then after 10-15 minutes, I'm back. This can be avoided with steady eating. It rarely happens to me in races.”
Alex has briefed our team on what to do in an emergency situation. If his blood sugar level gets crucially low he could slip into a coma. “I’ve never come close to that, but we should be aware,” he explains. Simple sugars, like Coke and sweets work best to deal with low blood sugar; and for emergencies he carries a glucagon kit. Glucagon is the hormone that facilitates the release of sugar into the blood from the liver. “You’ll have to inject it into my butt,” he adds.
What about high blood sugar? “It isn’t a big problem in the short term. When I'm 60 my kidneys and eyes might not work too well, but that’s only if I have long periods (like weeks and months) of high blood sugar.”
Within the sporting environment diabetes can be easily managed and over the last few years, as he has moved into longer distance events, Alex has learned to manage his blood sugar and to recognise the signs of low blood sugar early. Indeed, racing is actually a diabetic treat. “I generally avoid sweet stuff and junk food because of my diabetes, so I enjoy opportunities to eat sweet things. After the race I'd really like a donut.”
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