Why I SHOULDN’T do the Big Blue Test…

The Big Blue Test starts today, and I’m certain you can find numerous posts around the DOC telling you why you should participate.  But it’s Friday and I’m tired and cranky and probably need some more coffee (or a cocktail but it’s too early for that, right?).  So I decided to let my cynical narcissistic exercise-hating side take over and come up with some reasons why I shouldn’t do Big Blue Test.  Please read each lazy-ass excuse in the most whiney voice you can conjure up.

1. I can’t find any information on what Big Blue Test even is.  Wrong.  There is a whole post right here that does a great job of explaining Big Blue Test. It even has a video.
2. It takes too much time.  Nope.  It takes as little as 14 minutes.  That’s less time than a mid-day Starbucks run.
3. Nobody else is doing it.  Untrue.  More than 100,000 people have done Big Blue Test since it launched in 2010.
4. If so many other people are doing it, nobody needs me to participate.  Incorrect.  The goal this year is to reach 150,000 entries.  That is a lot, and every single participant matters if the goal will be reached.
5. There is no benefit to me.  False.  On the average, people doing Big Blue Test see their blood sugar drop by around 20%.
6. Okay, but there is no benefit to anyone else.  Erroneous, and also not very narcissistic, by the way.  The truth is, each Big Blue Test logged results in $3 donated to diabetes charities.  $1 each goes to DiabetesSisters, We Are Diabetes and Riverside Community Diabetes Collaborative.
7. It is way too hard to log the results.  Inaccurate. You simply answer the quick form found to the right of this page.  Or, you can download the Big Blue Test app to your mobile device for even easier logging.
8. I don’t have diabetes.  Okay, so obviously I do.  Even the cynical narcissistic exercise-hating side of me.  But if you are reading this and don’t have diabetes?  You aren’t off the hook.  Look at question 2.  If you answer Yes, fields pop up to record your blood sugars.  And if you answer No, you won’t see those fields but can still record your Big Blue Test participation.

Well, son of an expletive, it looks like my cynical narcissistic exercise-hating side has run out of reasons not to do the Big Blue Test.  There is no reason I can’t manage an entry a day from now through November 14th.  And the same goes for you, right??

#LaceUp4Diabetes . . . .

Humor me for a minute as we flash back to my college years.  (Disclosure:  This time period may involve any and all of the following: big hair, day-glo colors, large geometric prints, piles and piles of black rubber bracelets, and guy-liner long before it was known as such.)  A young version of me is late for class and frantically tying my Keds when a lace snaps.  In a hurry, I pull out both laces, throw them away and rush off the class.  And I decide I like these new slip-on Keds I’ve created.  And since then, each time I buy a new pair of Keds, the first thing I do is take out the laces.  I used to throw them away, but now they get hung on a hook to be used as K.C.’s cat toy of choice  (She loves a good string to swat at and it keeps her away from my yarn.)

So why are we strolling down memory lane (in our lace-less Keds)?  Because I now have a reason to put laces back in my sneakers, thanks to Novo Nordisk’s #LaceUp4Diabetes campaign and these lovely blue circle laces.



When these laces started popping up around the DOC a few years ago, I longed for a pair.  And last year I was fortunate to score them from Scott Benner.  And this year, I’m thrilled that Novo Nordisk has sent me the 6 pairs you see above to give away!

Why is this important to me?  Well, because exercise motivation is probably the portion of diabetes management I struggle with the most.  But when I actually do exercise, it’s so easy to see the benefits to my blood sugar,  my mood and my energy level.  And seeing the blue circle laces helps with motivation.  They remind me of those health benefits, but more importantly they remind me of all my friends in the DOC who have a regular exercise regime that I admire.  And although we aren’t actually exercising together, we kind of are in a virtual way.  And that helps get me moving.

So, would you like a pair of these laces to help get you moving too?  Simply leave me a comment and I’ll enter you into a random drawing.  I’ve also been taking entries from Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, so I’ll gather them all together and pick six winners on Friday.  Good luck!

Two Weeks . . . . .

Yesterday marked two weeks since my terrible 5K.  And, quite honestly, they haven't been good - from a health or a diabetes perspective.  Before that 5K I had gotten myself into a pretty good routine.  Pete and I ran two or three times a week.  I wore my Fitbit every day and tried to hit 10,000 daily steps.  I was drinking 72 ounces of water a day and logging all of my food and calories.  I had lost a little over 8 pounds.

But that 5K really defeated me.  I didn't want to run anymore and took off my Fitbit.  I stopped logging my food.  The pounds are creeping back on.  If I drink 24 ounces of water it's a good day.  I just stopped caring and stopped trying.  I came down with another cold.  And even now that the cold is gone, I'm still not feeling great.

I think if there is one thing diabetes has taught me in the past 34+ years, it's that times like these will happen.  Something will take the wind out of your sails, burn-out will hit, and you just won't care for a while.  What seems to help me the most is to go ahead and roll with it - but not for too long.  So yesterday, I started to think about all those running goals Pete and I did hit - things we thought we'd never be able to do but did, and how great it felt when we high-fived each other after a great training run.  I started looking for some new healthy recipes to try out.  I am ready to start over a little bit at a time until I get myself back to that routine I was following two weeks ago.

Today I will start logging my food and calories again.  I will have healthy smoothies for breakfast every day this week and see how that goes.  (The idea of breakfast smoothies has never appealed to me and I've been happy with my organic cereal bars, but I want to try something less processed and not pre-packaged).  Maybe I'll try to log a few workouts on the Wii this week.  And next week, maybe I'll pull my Fitbit out of the drawer and give that a go again.

Breakfast smoothie in a martini glass?  Why not? Martini glasses make anything seem more appealing!!

So thank you, diabetes.  Thanks for teaching me that one failure isn't the end.  That it's okay to feel burnt out and take a break.  That it's okay, as long as you remember to start over again and never give up.

My Worst 5K . . . .

Sunday I ran my absolute worst 5K ever.  And diabetes was (mostly) to blame.



I will admit that we’d slacked a bit on training over the past few weeks.  We tried to train on our cruise, but it just didn’t work.  And then I got sick when we got back, and then life got busy.  It sounds like a pile of excuses, and maybe it is.  But the bottom line is that we knew we wouldn’t set any PRs during this race and we were okay with that - we just planned to go and have fun.  Unfortunately, I really didn’t have any fun at all.

I think the problem all started the day before.  We spent most of Saturday redecorating the living room.  We hauled away our old couch (in pieces, because otherwise it wasn’t going anywhere) and carted off other old furniture and carried in new furniture and rearranged and reconfigured and basically were busy all day.  I found myself fighting low after low after low, and it was no surprise when I woke up Sunday morning to a lower blood sugar than I liked.  I drank my coffee but skipped my coffee bolus, made sure I had plenty of gels in my running pack, and grabbed an apple sauce to eat before the race.

Once we got to the race site I ate the apple sauce, still with no bolus.  Ten minutes before the race I checked my sugar again, and I was still lower than I liked.  Figuring out what to eat was a little tricky though.  I’m used to running with a bit of insulin on board from breakfast, but Sunday I hadn’t bolused a thing.  So I wasn’t quite sure how much to eat to hit that fine line between being high enough to run without crashing, but not so high as to feel a sluggish, syrup-in-my-veins crud.  I decided a Clif Blok should do the trick.

Things started out fine.  At about a mile in my CGM hit my high threshold (set at 165) and showed two arrows up.  Usually that’s pretty perfect, because it’s about the time the exercise is starting to kick in and level the spike out.  Usually, but not on Sunday.  We hadn’t even gone another half mile before I started getting that fuzzy feeling.  I slowed to a walk and tested and was only at 90.  So I ate a couple more Clif Bloks.  At the two mile mark I wasn’t feeling any better, so when we spotted a little fence I could lean on and test again, we stopped.  I was even lower.  Pete handed me a gel and as I sucked it down we noticed the safety van that follows the runners.  It pulled up behind us to collect the cones marking the run route. 

“Are we the very last runners?”, I asked Pete. 
“Yes.”
“Wait, there’s nobody behind us?’
“No.  Don’t worry about it, baby.  It doesn’t matter  Take another minute to rest.”

But to me, it sure did matter.  We were going to come in dead last and I still felt low and I was really frustrated that diabetes was making me a loser.  And that is precisely when the tears started.  I began walking that last mile and I cried.  Sprinkled along the route were people cheering us on - telling us we were doing a great job and that we were almost done.  The more they cheered, the harder I cried.  The harder I cried, the more embarrassed I felt.  Which in turn make me cry even more, which then made me absolutely humiliated.  I knew it was the low making me overly emotional but there was nothing I could do to stop it.  I was mortified and I wished more than anything that I was back home.

We were almost to the three mile mark when I started to get angry at diabetes.  I wiped away my tears and ran the last few tenths of a mile.  I gave a half-hearted smile to those who cheered as we crossed the finish line, and then I asked Pete to take us home.  Our official race time was our slowest 5K ever, and a full 5 1/2 minutes slower than the one we ran in September.  As it turned out, one person finished after us, about 7 minutes later, but that didn’t really matter to me.  And I can’t help but wonder what his story was.  Did he have an injury?  Was he sick?  Did a chronic condition mess with him?  And did he feel completely discouraged and frustrated too?

Notes to Self . . . .

Note to Self:  Taking a few days off from a CGM sensor in order to insert a fresh one right before a trip is fine.

Note to Self:  On occasion, if blood sugars are in the “pre-run happy place”, it’s okay to leave the meter at home for a quick mile or two.

Note to Self:  A snack before a run is a good thing.

Note to Self:  Running with no meter and no sensor is NOT OKAY.  Even if it’s just 2.25 miles, and you had a snack because your pre-run blood sugar was only 86.  Do you hear me?  NOT OKAY.

Note to Self:  When running without a meter or CGM (but don’t ever do that!!) AND feeling low, for goodness sake, LISTEN TO YOUR HUSBAND!  Stop and eat the Level Life Gel he’s trying to give you.  Insisting you will be fine for the last 15 minutes of the run even though you feel like you’re made of Jell-o is NOT OKAY.

Note to Self:  Yes, you finished your run and it all worked out okay, but come on.  You know better.  Stop being so stubborn!  (Although I did agree to eat the gel before finishing the run.  Point in my favor??)

Do you ever make “Notes to Self”?  And do you actually listen??

What’s That Wednesday - Just Keep Swimming . . .

Back in 2010, Pete and I ran a few 5K races.  I was slow and I took a lot of walking breaks, but I really did enjoy it.  But then we took a four year break.  (I don’t know why, but we did).

This year we’ve been training again, and our first 5K of the season is on Saturday.  I’m not quite ready, but I’m doing better than I did in 2010.  I can run just over 4K without walking.  My plan is to have fun and do the best I can.  We’ve also signed up for another 5K in September and my goal is to run the whole 5K for that one.  And if I do meet my goal I can apply for my Athletes with Diabetes medal!

Oh, and why did I call this post “Just Keep Swimming”?  After watching Finding Nemo a few months ago, I’ve taken to singing this when I feel like I just can’t run anymore, and it works!!

Being Less Efficient . . . .

I asked for, and received because I’m spoiled, a Fitbit for my birthday on Monday.  Since then it’s been riding along with me, clipped beside my insulin pump on my waistband.  And what it has been telling me from the start is not really surprising.  I don’t move enough.

I hit 10,00 steps easily on Monday, but it was my birthday and a holiday so that made it easy.  Sure, I had a lazy morning with breakfast in bed and a chick flick.  But the sun was shining and my Fitbit was calling, so Pete and I went for a run by the ocean.  And before going out for dinner, we took a nice long walk on the beach.  Bam, goals reached, thank you very much.

Then Tuesday hit and the normal weekday routine kicked in.  Long walks on the beach are replaced by long hours with the laptop.  And the step goals?  Not even close.  So I cut all goals in half, as a start, and will take the advice I read about increasing them by 5% each week.  Even though I cut my goals in half, I still didn’t meet them on Tuesday.  So I’m learning ways to be more active during the day.  And part of that seems to include being less efficient.

I’m a wiz at efficiency and multi-tasking.  But my new goal is to knock down my efficiency in order to take more steps.  The recycling gathered in a neat pile to be brought to the basement at the end of the day?  Well now I’m bringing each item downstairs immediately.  Belongings gathered on the main floor landing to be taken up in one trip?  Nope - each thing gets whisked upstairs and put away immediately.  On the upside, my house has never been cleaner!  Straightening up adds steps.  Vacuuming adds steps.  Wiping down counters and scouring out sinks adds steps.  With a little more cleaning and a lot less efficiency, I’m learning how to work more movement into my day.  10,000 steps still might be a tough one to crack, but I’ll keep trying to add 5% more steps each week and see if I can make it work.

Do you find an activity tracker is helping you move around more?  What are your secrets for working in more steps?

The Plan vs. The Compromise . . . . .

I'm absolutely great at making a plan.  I can nail it down to the last detail.  The follow-through?  Yeah, that’s the part I need to work on.  Especially where exercise is concerned.

Pete and I have, once again, started training to run some 5Ks.  It’s the first week that's always my hardest.  Exercise hasn't become a habit yet.  It’s too early to see any progress to help spur me on to continue.  The rewards are few and, on top of that, pesky persistent lows which always accompany the start of my exercise plan are a big concern when training alone.

My plan for today was to make a quick stop at the post office and then continue up the street to the gym for Day 3 of my 5K training.  And here I sit, still in my house, willing to do just about anything besides going to the gym.  (Anything includes making a batch of home-made pudding, which is now chilling in my refrigerator.)  Some days, the best I can do is a compromise.  So maybe today, if I do my training on my home treadmill I can put off going to the post office until the weekend.  Is my treadmill as good as the one at the gym?  Nope.  But is it better than skipping the workout all together?  You bet!

Do you sometimes find a compromise is enough to get you headed in the right direction?

Wordless Wednesday - My New Workout Pal

While chatting at Government Day last month, my friend Barbara mentioned she uses Clif Shot Bloks during her workouts.  Although she doesn’t have T1, I believe she said she’s hypoglycemic and I know she enjoys doing long, intense workouts.  She mentioned that these Bloks are great for fueling her through her routine and that each individual Blok has 8 grams of carbs.  She suggested they might work for me too, so when I saw them at Whole Foods I decided to give them a try.

Yesterday as I left for the gym I tested at 147.  I was nervous after a pretty bad low at the gym over the weekend, so I ate one Shot Blok.  Post workout number? 107!!  WIN!

Thanks for the great tip, Barbara! 

*Yes, yes, I know, this post isn’t even close to being Wordless.  Oh well . . . .

Excuses, Excuses . . . . .

“Regular” people (aka: people without diabetes) can have plenty of reasons for not going to the gym.  Busy schedules, poor sleep, feel like they’re getting sick, or don’t want to disturb the cat on their lap.  (By the way, I’m totally going to start using that last excuse!!)

Clearly she is thrilled that she has to skip the gym because there is a cat on her lap!

When I add diabetes into the mix, I can come up with about a million other reasons not to go to the gym.  For the past couple of weeks the main excuse I was fighting was one that was actually a first for me . . . .

Going to the gym makes me high.

Now I know weight training can push your blood sugars up.  I also know strenuous workouts can push your blood sugar up.  But, for the first time ever, moderate cardio was pushing my blood sugar up (and keeping it there) instead of down.  And I found it frustrating!!

I will give myself a little bit of credit.  I refused to let the fact that going to the gym would lead to an afternoon in the 200s deter me.  I tried upping my basals after my workout was done.  (Didn’t work.)  I tried adding a post-workout bolus into the mix.  (Didn’t work.)  But most importantly, I reasoned it out.  Is it good to spend an afternoon stuck over 200?  No, of course not.  However, is it better to be a couch potato with in-range numbers, or be an active fit person who is working on taming some post-exercise highs?  I decided the second definitely wins out (even if I don’t exactly qualify as active and fit yet).

So the gym is happening.  It’s hard - both physically and “diabetically”.  But it’s happening.  And after my last trip I felt awesome and managed to stay under 200 . . . . .  so I guess I’m getting there.   I’m absolutely determined to keep it up this time.

You know, unless I’m stuck under a sleeping cat or something.

Diabetes at the Gym . . .

After much debate, budget analysis and waffling (and probably because we both like eating waffles), Pete and I finally decided to join a gym yesterday.



This is definitely a good thing.  At home, there are too many distractions and temptations and reasons to put off a workout until later.  Then later turns into tomorrow, which turns into next week, which turns into never.  I’m excited to have more options than my tired old workout DVDs and Wii games.  I’m excited to be able to use a treadmill I can actually run on, since my home treadmill is built for walking only.  I’m excited to try a range of exercise classes and see what suits me best - zumba, yoga, pilates, boot camp, there is bound to be something I like!  I’m  very hopeful that I can finally get into some sort of workout routine, because I really do need it.

Believe it or not, this is my first ever gym membership.  So I’m not quite sure how to toss diabetes into the mix.  Those of you with gym experience, I can sure use your advice.  Obviously I’ll keep  my meter and some juice with me at all times and hopefully I’ll be able to handle any lows on my own.  But that little voice in the back of my brain keeps whispering “But what if you need help?’.  Yes, what if I do need help?  Do I have a quick chat with the desk attendants before my workouts, letting them know that diabetes shouldn’t be a problem but that they should be aware just in case?  How do you handle diabetes at the gym?

Wordless Wednesday - Weigh In #1

I know the first week is the easiest . . . . . but I’m still kind of proud.

The only thing constant is change . . .

Well, okay, actually diabetes is constant.  But I have to wonder if Heraclitus had diabetes too, because sometimes I feel like the only consistent thing about my diabetes management is that I have to constantly adjust and readjust and . . . . change!!

For the past couple of weeks I’ve been working hard on redoing our dining room.  After some intense physical labor, it’s about 93% done and looking fantastic.  But combine that extra activity with a monthly hormonal swing and a cold /  flu thing that hit yesterday?  Hello, epic lows.


For more than 24 hours I went no higher than 111.  And that graph reflects both a pizza dinner and a slice of cheesecake.  Even that didn’t bring me up.  Of course, today I've got a stuffy nose, a sore throat, and some stubborn germy spikes.

What’s a girl to do?  Well, temp basals to the rescue.  My latest post at The Loop is all about temp basals!!  Dial ‘em down for those epic lows, dial ‘em up for those germy spikes.  Head on over and check it out!

** My Medtronic disclosure can be found here. **

WILDfit Update - Week 5

It’s been a couple of weeks since I posted about WILDfit.  I suppose there is a reason for that.  All of that stuff I wrote about getting the most out of my investment in the WILDfit program and being motivated by the changes I’m seeing and blah blah blah?  Well, maybe not so much.

I’ve definitely back-slid into some old bad habits during the past two weeks. I’ve been pretty busy working on a big project in my house and as a result I’ve missed a few workouts.  I did set up a complete diabetes logging system and did really well for a few day, but then slacked off on the logging too.  Sigh . . . .

It isn’t that I don’t like the program.  I really really do.  Last week one of our assignments was to try something new, so I pulled out a Wii Zumba disk that I had tried only once before.  The last time I tried it I quit after about five minutes because I didn’t know what I was doing.  This time I did the whole Zumba workout.  I still didn’t know what I was doing.  I have never felt so uncoordinated in my entire life!  But you know what?  It was a lot of fun, and I’ll be doing that Zumba workout again and again and eventually I will even figure out the steps.

This week my goal is to get back to it.  I will get my logbook back out and start logging everything again.  I’m still busy working on the house, but I will make it a priority to take the time to do my workouts.  I know my pace won’t be where I had hoped it would be by Week 5, but I need to learn to be okay with that.  I need to stop letting myself quit because I’m not doing as well as I want to be.

So, here’s what I’d love to know from those of you who exercise regularly.  What are your tips for  making time to exercise when you feel like you are just too busy?  How do you motivate yourself to workout when you feel like there are other things you need to be doing instead?

Wordless Wednesday - Distractions

When I’m huffing my way through a tough run, it’s really helpful that I can be distracted by this view.  #thankful

I am an Athlete (???)

A few weeks ago I decided to finally get serious about exercise and signed up for WILDfit.  I’m just beginning my third week, and I’m really loving the program.  Okay, okay, I’m kind of hating it too - but hating it in a good way, because it’s definitely challenging!!



Basically, WILDfit is a 12-week program to get you in shape and to give you the mindset of an athlete.  The main message is that all of us, even people with diabetes, can be athletes.  There are weekly mantras to remind ourselves that “I am an athlete”.  I’m working hard on that one - although I haven’t quite convinced myself yet.

For Week One I started off strong!!  Although honestly, when I first saw the exercise schedule I was fairly taken aback.  It looked  much more intense than I had anticipated for the first week and I was sure I wouldn’t be up for the challenge.  But I read through all of my training materials and watched my training videos.  These gave me guidelines and information not only for the exercise itself, but also for diabetes and nutrition.  And to my surprise, I was able to complete all of my workouts without much of a struggle at all!!  I.  WAS.  PROUD!!  For the structured workouts (three days where you are given a specific workout to complete) we have the option to walk, run or combine walking and running.  I was able to “run” (sloooowly though)  for all of the segments, which really surprised me and gave me my first revelation.  Why have I struggled so much when training for 5Ks in the past?  PACING.  I never really knew what pacing was or understood how to use it.  The first week of WILDfit gave me a solid understanding of pacing and perceived exertion, which allowed me to complete my training.  Yay!!

Week Two didn’t go quite as well.  I partially blame the weather.  I need to be able to do my structured workouts outside because I don’t have a gym membership and my home treadmill is not built for running (aka: inexpensive manual treadmill that works great for walking but won’t withstand a run).  So rainy weather on the days I needed to do two of the structured workouts caused quite a problem.  I thought about what an athlete would do - and I decided that I would adjust and do the best I could.  I ran in place in my living room.  I matched the “Perceived Exertion” goals, but I still felt like I was cheating a bit.  Luckily on Saturday, the rain was gone and I did my last structured workout of the week outdoors.  However, I didn’t make it through my last run segment.  Okay, I did finish . . . . but I didn’t run the entire segment.  I was crushed.  I hated that I had to walk for several minutes during the middle of my last segment, and I felt like a total failure.  That kind of thinking is something I know I need to work on.  This is a process.  This isn’t supposed to be easy.  It needs to be a challenge if it’s going to allow me to improve.  So, as long as I am truly trying my best, I need to cut myself some slack.  (Hello, easier said than done!!)  I also know I learned more about pacing - specifically that I ran too hard in the first two segments, which is why I was unable to run the entire last segment.

The other thing I haven’t quite gotten down yet is our assignment to (ugh, here it comes . . . . . ) log.  Oh logging . . . . I used to be so great at it, but those days are long gone.  I’m supposed to be logging everything.  Blood sugars, insulin, food, and exercise.  I know this is helpful.  I know I need this information for many reasons.  I just haven’t quite gotten into the swing of it yet.

And here I am.  Week Three of my 12-week program.  Today is a structured workout day involving training on a hill.  I thought about where I can find a hill that meets the workout requirements - I have one in mind but I’m  not sure it will exactly fit the bill.  But I’ll give it a shot and do my best.  I’m motivated by the changes I’m already seeing in myself, both physically and mentally.  I’ve also found that another great motivator for me is the cost of this program.  At $150 for the 12-week WILDfit program, I definitely think it’s well worth the cost.  On the flip-side, it’s a larger investment for exercise than I’ve made in quite a while, and that’s a good thing because it’s driving me to make sure I get my money’s worth.  That is something that lies completely in my own hands, and I am determined to do every workout, read every newsletter, watch every training video, and use the program to it’s fullest.

I am an athlete?  Well, I might not be completely convinced yet . . . . . but I think I’m on my way.

Wordless Wednesday - Getting WILD

After acknowledging and blogging about my diabetes slump, I took the first step towards turning over a new leaf.   So excited to get started next week!

Afraid of Exercise . . .

I’m really really good at coming up with lame excuses not to exercise.  If I could excel at exercise the way I excel at avoiding exercise, I’d probably have several Olympic gold medals!!  But last weekend, I found a new excuse not to exercise . . . . and for once, I felt like it was a very legitimate one.  I didn’t workout because I was afraid.

Last weekend’s trip to DC for the TCOYD conference meant arriving at my hotel late last Friday afternoon. The first thing I did was check out the layout of the hotel.  In the basement was a pretty good looking gym setup.  Getting a workout in before dinner would have been nice . . . . but all I could think about was what might happen to my blood sugar after a late-day workout.  Sleeping alone in a king-size bed sounded kind of nice - with no snoring husband and no cat whose favorite sleep spot is stretched out across me.  But sleeping alone if a bad low hit?  That sounded very scary and brought a huge wave of homesickness over me.

What do you think?  Have you ever let the fears of how exercise might impact your blood sugar deter you?  In a situation like this, is it better to be cautious?  Or is it worse to let diabetes derail the opportunity for a good workout?

Being Able - D Blessings Week Day 2

I’m not shy about sharing how much I despise exercise.  I know it’s important.  I know it’s good for me.  I know it will help my blood sugar.  But I still don’t like it.

I’ve tried time and time again to get motivated for a regular exercise routine.  Sometimes it lasts for a few months.  Sometimes it lasts for a few weeks.  And yes, sometimes it only lasts for a few days.  I still haven’t quite figured out how to make exercise a lasting part of my life.

But here’s the thing.  I hate the way I look.  I am fat.  I see pictures of myself and cringe.  Over the past several years, weight has crept on steadily.  I’ve been talking about losing weight for quite some time now.  As with exercise, I start strong and quickly sputter out.  But every pair of pants I have is unbelievably tight.  I am NOT going up yet another clothing size.  And so, I’m starting over.  Yesterday was Day 1 - and I did pretty well.  I pulled out Your Diabetes Science Experiment and looked over my notes from last time I was working out.  I went to the store and stocked up on healthy foods.  I put in 45 minutes on the treadmill and I made good food choices all day long.  This morning, I did 50 minutes.  And it didn’t seem like a struggle.  It seemed like a blessing.

Yes, I have a chronic illness that makes diet and exercise a bit more tricky.  But I am blessed to still have a strong body that can move.  I am blessed to have the tools I need to navigate a successful workout.  I am blessed that although I’m unhappy with how I look right  now, I have the power to do something about it.

A whole lot of BLUE!!

Its another Blue Friday and I’m all in blue today.  My favorite bit of blueness??


 That would be blue hand-knit socks, of course!!

Speaking of blue, have you done the Big Blue Test yet??  If you haven’t, go do it now!!!  If you have, go do it again!!!  And then get everyone you know to do it, whether they have diabetes or not.  Why?  Because each big blue test logged results in a life-saving donation to someone in need.  The goal is 8,000 tests logged by the end of World Diabetes Day - which is this Monday - and there is a long way to go to reach that goal.  So let's get moving this weekend and get that the Big Blue Test progress bar filled in!