Training Schedule Week of April 25th to May 1st

The rain is back, and it looks like it's staying for the week, so I'll be back indoors for most of my workouts. Here is the tentative schedule for this week. 

Monday ~ Yoga / Cycle 30 minutes, fast

Tuesday ~ Yoga / Run 60 minutes, pace

Wednesday ~ Cycle 60 minutes, moderate

Thursday ~ Snowshoe 2 hours, moderate

Friday ~ Yoga / Run 70 minutes, easy  

Saturday ~ Run 40 minutes, pace

Sunday ~ Cycle 3 hours, moderate

Shoutout to the DOC

Just a super-speedy shoutout to the DOC:

My son has had type-1 diabetes since 2005, yet I am still new to the social networking community of diabetes advocacy. I have always been an advocate for my son, and for diabetes, but, until recently, it was more on a community level, with my local JDRF chapter. Since jumping into the DOC scene via Twitter, Facebook, Wegohealth, TuDiabetes and the many other social networking sites, I have been absolutely amazed at the level of dedication, compassion, and support displayed by DOC members. This is a truly wonderful community and the more I get to know about it, the prouder I am to be a member.

Since joining the "DOC" community, I have discovered a renewed sense of passion and optimism about diabetes. I think that for a while I was experiencing a certain amount of diabetes burnout. Every year I would get out and fundraise, I've headed up a parent group at JDRF, I've ridden across my province to promote diabetes awareness, but my actions were all solitary. I didn't have a group of type-1 individuals or parents that I felt so connected with. Strange considering I've never met any of the "DOC" clan, yet I feel like I'm getting to know so many great people.

So thank you, DOC members, for creating and maintaining such a terrific support system for the thousands of us living with type-1 diabetes ourselves, or via a loved one.

Dental Problems and Type-1 Diabetes; Is There a Link?

Monday afternoon I took my type 1 son to have 2 cavities fixed and we're back there again tomorrow to have another 2 cavities dealt with. 4 cavities at the last cleaning, and 2 at the cleaning before that. It seems that every time we go to the dentist, my 10 year old has new cavities, and yet his brother and sister do not. So it got me thinking, is there a connection between type-1 diabetes and increased dental problems?

We all know that type-1 diabetes can lead to a number of pretty scary side effects, especially if not controlled well, but in all my D reading over the years, I can't recall ever seeing a direct connection between type-1 diabetes and cavities. So I decided to do a bit of research on the web, and found that while there are countless articles on increased risk of gum disease in diabetics, there doesn't appear to be a definitive connection with diabetes and cavities. 

All 3 of my kids have basically the same dental care routine. None of them are perfect, but they're good enough for the most part, and yet only my type-1 child is prone to cavities. Perhaps he doesn't brush as thoroughly, or maybe he's simply just got "bad" teeth, if there is such a thing. But it's really got me thinking now, is there a direct connection between type-1 diabetes and increased cavities?

The Ultimate Jambalaya Recipe

About once a week I like to include a recently tested recipe in my blog, and I do this for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, I love to cook and I especially love trying new recipes. My family knows this, so they are always ready to try something new, knowing it might be "a keeper," as my 7-year-old daughter says, or might never be served again. Secondly, as a mother of a child with type-1 diabetes, I pay attention to what my son puts in his body and I like his food intake to be as healthy and balanced as possible. Finally, as someone who likes to participate in endurance sports, such as running and cycling, I'm always on the lookout for recipes that have great nutritional value, or a good carb-fat-protein ratio.

Last week I tested a recipe I had been eyeing for a few weeks; a slow cooker recipe for Jambalaya, a cajun all-in-one meal that I adore, but have never made in the slow cooker. This recipe (below) is unique in that it is as close to a complete meal as I have seen for Jambalaya. It's low calorie and low fat, especially when it comes to saturated fat, and yet still high in fiber and protein. Plus, for those of us cooking for a type-1 diabetic, this meal is relatively low carb with only 35 grams net carbs per serving (or less for someone with a smaller appetite). Throw in a glass of nonfat milk to round out the meal, and it's still only 47 grams of carbs. And for those who are cooking for picky eaters, there are lots of possible substitutions with this meal; you can substitute chicken for clams or shrimp, change the chorizo to a regular sausage, or even add a low fat sirloin steak, without really changing the taste or nutritional value of the meal. 

So here it is:

Ingredients
1 large onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, sliced
1 sweet green pepper, chopped
1 sweet red pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 package (10 ounces) frozen corn kernels, thawed
1/2 pound chorizo, in 1/2-inch pieces
1 can (6.5 ounces) chopped clams, rinsed & drained
1 can (15.5 ounces) red kidney beans, rinsed & drained
1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
1 can (14.5 ounces) stewed tomatoes
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
1.5 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
0.5 teaspoon salt
1.5 cups instant brown rice
1/2 pound small shrimp
3 scallions, thinly sliced 

Directions
1. In 5- to 5 1/2-quart slow cooker, layer onion, celery, peppers, garlic, corn, chorizo, clams and beans.
2. In bowl, mix broth, stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, seasoning and salt. Pour into slow cooker.
3. Cover slow cooker; cook on high heat for 5 hours.
4. For last 10 minutes, stir in instant brown rice and shrimp.
5. To serve, garnish with scallions. 

Nutritional Information (Based on 8 servings per recipe)

Amount per serving: Calories 360, Total Fat (g) 13, Saturated Fat (g) 4, Cholesterol (mg) 70, Sodium (mg) 980, Carbohydrate (g) 43, Fiber (g) 8, Protein (g) 21.

Training Schedule Week of April 18th to 24th

It's looking like it's going to be a terrific week. The weather forecast is for sunny skies all week, so all of my runs and cycling can be done outdoors. Yippee! It is a 4 day weekend too, giving me much more time to workout. Here is the tentative schedule for this week. 

Monday ~ Cycle 45 minutes, fast

Tuesday ~ Yoga / Run 60 minutes, pace

Wednesday ~ Cycle 60 minutes, moderate

Thursday ~ Run 70 minutes, easy / skiing

Friday ~ Cycle 6-7 hours, easy

Saturday ~ Run 35 minutes, pace

Sunday ~ Run 90 minutes, easy

From the non-Blog Archives: "Team Dylan Intent on Finding a Cure"

As our family gets set to launch this year's fundraising campaign for the JDRF TELUS Walk to Cure Diabetes in Vancouver on June 12, 2011, I've been looking back at some of the walk/fundraising highlights of the past 5 years, and I stumbled across this article, featured during our fundraising campaign in 2008. I was reminded of how powerful and helpful the media can be in getting out a message and how, as diabetes advocates, we can never underestimated its ability.

This article appeared in my local community paper after I sent a brief email to the paper telling them about Dylan and the upcoming JDRF walk. A reporter responded, inviting us to come in the news office for an interview and she ran the story the next week. Super easy.

From the North Shore News, May 20th, 2008:


"Team Dylan intent on finding a cure
With the help of his family and friends, a youth ambassador for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) is leading the charge to raise funds and awareness for children who share his diagnosis.

With the help of his family and friends, a youth ambassador for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) is leading the charge to raise funds and awareness for children who share his diagnosis.


North Vancouver resident Dylan Thomas, 7, a Grade 2 student at Queensbury elementary, was diagnosed with juvenile (type 1) diabetes, the most severe form of the life-long disease, three days before his fifth birthday. More than two million Canadians have some form of diabetes and more than 200,000 have type 1.



For two years Dylan was given three insulin injections a day along with three blood tests to check his blood glucose levels. Six months ago, he began wearing an insulin pump to better control his blood glucose. Today, he fully monitors the pump himself, with the exception of every three days when it's time to change the infusion set which his mom Jen Aragon helps him with. According to Aragon, while the change has certainly made an impact on Dylan's life, it's far from a cure. To support research efforts, for the last three years, their family has participated in the JDRF's Telus Walk to Cure Diabetes, and this year is no different. The family-oriented event is intended to increase awareness about juvenile diabetes as well as raise funds to support research efforts.


Aragon is the team captain of Team Dylan, which is currently comprised of 31 friends and family intent on raising a minimum of $10,000 for the cause through their participation in the five-kilometre walk. Aragon says she expects the team to grow to 50 members by event day.


The local walk is being held Sunday, May 25 at Burnaby's Swangard Stadium. The national event attracts more than 45,000 Canadians annually. In 2007, $6.5 million was raised and organizers hope to increase that total to more than $7 million this year. The JDRF is the leading charitable funder and advocate of type 1 diabetes research worldwide.


Aragon, who is also a member of the walk organizing committee and volunteers as a mentor through the foundation to newly diagnosed families, says Dylan's diagnosis came as quite a shock. "I didn't know anything about diabetes before he was diagnosed," she says. "No one in my family has ever had it." Dylan got extremely sick quite suddenly over a weekend and they initially thought he had the flu. He was drinking a lot of fluids, going to the bathroom constantly and was still dehydrated. He was tired and pale and he lost five pounds over 48 hours. A subsequent blood test showed Dylan was diabetic. "He had a blood sugar reading of 51," says Aragon. "His target range is between five and eight, so anything over about 12 is considered dangerous. They figured he was within 24 hours of going into a coma."


Two years later, Dylan's health is regulated and he's very much your average, active little boy, yet his diabetes constantly has to be monitored making it something that's always on his mind.


Dylan's 11-year-old brother Josh, a Grade 6 student at Queensbury elementary, also thinks about diabetes a lot. "If his blood sugar gets too low, he can have a seizure," says Aragon. This has happened to Dylan twice, both times in the middle of the night. The brothers share a room, so Josh tends to sleep with one eye open, she says.


Dylan and his family have issued a call to all community members to participate in this year's walk. "It's fun," says Josh, who adds he enjoys the event as it helps his brother and others with the disease. It's loaded with tons of kid-friendly activities making for a great day, in addition to a great cause, says Aragon. Registration gets underway at 8:30 p.m. and the walk starts at 11 a.m. For information or to become a participant visit www.jdrf.ca/walk." 

Dylan talks about his diabetes. Accu-Chek Mobile, Real life moments.

The following video features my 10 year old son, Dylan, and I, talking about the new Accu-Chek Mobile meter, which was released for sale in Canada today. We had the pleasure of testing the meter before it went on sale to the public, in exchange for providing honest feedback to Accu-Chek for marketing purposes. Neither I, nor anyone in my family, is an employee of Accu-Chek, nor were we provided with any script or guidelines on what to say. The views expressed in this video are purely our own.

I am in shock as to what a difference this meter has made. Dylan has always had good blood sugar control, but with this meter he tests more often because it's so easy and convenient to use. The result: his readings are more consistent, and in the "normal" range most of the time. I love it.