I had a low-carbohydrate isotonic sports drink immediately afterward, plus a protein-enhanced yogurt shake and another of the sports drinks, then went out with Ms. NavHaz for Portuguese food: in my case, a small but delicious skirt steak, the best caldo verde I've had outside of Lisbon, yellow rice, a mixed greens salad with goat cheese, and two 300 ml non-alcoholic beers (more replacement carbs). We walked home and I took a blood-glucose reading. Holy ****: 66 ml/Dl, which is eat immediately territory and hope I don't need to speed dial the ambulance if it falls much further.... I had second dinner before going to bed and experienced nothing untoward. Mostly the point is that the 1227 calories I theoretically expended during the ride, plus the aftereffects of increased metabolism, represented a significant effort. 327 watts on an erg is 1422 calories/hr -- reckoned on the basis of a 165 lb person moving back and forth. Let's say I'm considerably larger....
2/21 I took the day off out of prudence.
2/22 I spent the morning in consultation with a new diabetologist here in Wroclaw (I shifted medical providers). I was quite impressed with her knowledge, and also her interest in me as an individual (and probably unique) patient. The short story is that thanks to the training and the dietary/lifestyle changes, my diabetes is in technical remission. That is to say, average blood glucose levels and other blood chemistry are below the thresholds where doctors normally formally diagnose the disease. That doesn't mean that the underlying problem has -- or ever will -- go away. But it does mean that I'm pretty successfully, and evidently quite exceptionally, managing the problems associated with excess blood glucose.
Indeed, my proximate problem these days is the opposite one from the usual diabetic experience: low blood glucose. The diabetologist and I talked over workouts, meals, hydration, and medication (among other things). I am going to try switching to eating smaller portions of food roughly every three waking hours in an attempt to flatten out some of the peaks/valleys a more traditional meal schedule tends to produce. I also now have a booklet from the Polish diabetic association on managing diabetes and exercise. It's in Polish, but I can read it. And it's full of useful recommendations regarding monitoring, diet and hydration before, during and after exercise (including serious efforts rather than the low-moderate levels of activity normally undertaken by exercising diabetics). I've already started in on them. I've also been switched to an extended-release glucose inhibitor that again will have the effect of flattening out peaks and filling in valleys during my day.
After the doctor's visit I managed 14 x 1' r20 on 30" rest:
I added 30 mins on the Technogym recumbent at a nominal 338 watts. And 20 minutes in the Jacuzzi
