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| Entry for August 03, 2008 |
| Today was an interesting walk, with focus still very much on THE TOE. It was also a reminder why it is so important to test and train with the equipment I'll be using during the event. Today, after how many walks and how many training kilometers, I discovered something new about my pack. Even though this isn't the pack that I'll be using during the event, it is very interesting that I learned something new about it today. I still had the light pack today, without any added weight at all. I think this is the sensible thing to do at the moment because of THE TOE, but I might start adding small amounts of extra weight from next weekend. This morning, I had that experience that confirms that Melbourne and Victoria are the best places in all the world to live. As I walked along a quiet road in the bush, the sun came up and showed me the most glorious view of a beautiful valley with houses and small farms. It was absolutely beautiful. There were cockatoos and magpies in the trees and wallabies grazing on the side of the road. It just doesn't get better. THE TOE held up well, but did start to hurt a little towards the end. But the main point to ponder from today was the physical exhaustion that came on after about 20km. It had nothing to do with sugar or THE TOE, except maybe from a change to my walking style. I'm slowly extending the time before the exhaustion, so pure repetition and perseverance is what is needed. Training - 5 hours - 24.5km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 7 units in the morning and by 2 units in the evening |
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| Help support Alex's efforts |
| Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation |
| Send Alex an email |
| Click Business Cards |
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| Some travel stories |
| Entry for August 04, 2008 |
| Oh my goodness gracious!! I've just received an email from the organisers in California saying that there has been huge interest shown in the 2010 event and they will probably have to hold a lottery to determine who can be in it. I am very unhappy about this, but what can I do? After all this organising and training ........... N O T H A P P Y J A N ! |
| Entry for August 09, 2008 |
| Today's walk was brilliant. They just keep getting better. This one was along some new roads and the scenery as the sun came up was stunning. There was one new problem coming from today and one very important lesson. First the problem. It has been happening for a while but today it was worse. That is the abrasions I get on my hips from where the pack rubs against my skin. After the walk today it was very painful, with serious abrasions on both hips. I am going to have to find a way of protecting my skin without hindering the carrying of the pack. A trip to the chemist is likely. Now for the important learning. Common sense would tell most people that walking on the even surface, level road is the best place to be, because it is the easiest walking using less energy. Today, as I got to the 18km mark, I was starting to feel the familiar stresses and strains beginning, which includes this weird affect of sort of wobbling along, not able to maintain a straight line. It is not a pleasant feeling, and one which I have always put down to the onset of weariness. Today I decided to experiment. When that feeling came on, instead of staying on the even, smooth road, I chose to walk in the grass and the stones and roughness on the side of the road. I would walk there until the way was blocked, then step back onto the road. I went so far as to climb up and down small embankments to get there. And hey presto, I started to feel a bit better. The wobbling and weariness was reduced and I felt more lively. Thinking back to my experiences in the Oxfam Trailwalker, by far the hardest part of the walk was the 30km of the Warburton Railtrail. This was a smooth, even, level section of track that didn't even have a bump in it. That section of the walk was psychological trauma writ large, and now I understand why. By walking on the even surfaces, you are using the same muscles and tendons and actions as you walk along. This must put stress on these muscles and tendons, but also place restrictions on them due to the repetitive motion. By walking in the rough, suddenly you have to vary your steps and stride; your ankles flex, your knees flex to varying degrees and lo and behold, you've got blood pumping in and re-invigorating your tired muscles and tendons. It was a miracle. It seems almost counter intuitive, but this is a lesson I will take with me to The Sahara. Training - 5 hours 10 minutes - 24.8km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 7 units in the morning and by 2 units in the evening |
| Entry for August 13, 2008 |
| THE BACK ! And so we move into the next injury. The toe is "OK" now, but now I have a lower back problem. I believe it may have come from lifting a heavy piece of machinery the other day. Sigh. I have the heat pack going and the linament, and I'm being extremely careful. I reckon I have kept it to only 60% of what it could have been, but it does mean I have cut right back on my regular walks. I'm not walking to walk this week and will likely not have a walk this coming weekend. But I should be back into it next week. Hopefully all of these things are once only, and I'll learn enough from them to avoid these injuries again. On a different topic, I went to speak with some diabetes experts today, starting the process of learning the details of how I'm going to manage the illness during the event. There is no reason why I can't finish the event, but there are some significant hurdles that I need to overcome. Today we talked about updating my medication regime, from the rather old fashioned approach I've been using for the past 20+ years, to a more up-to-date approach. I'm not entirely convinced yet, but I'm going to give it a big try. On the next visit I'll get to talk to the nutrition expert, to discuss my options for managing my food during the event. I've already got some definite ideas, but that doesn't mean there aren't better ideas. That's what I hope they suggest. I haven't heard from the organisers yet, so I still don't know if I'm definitely in the event. :-( |
| THE BACK ! The back is improving, but it is still giving me problems. I'd be particularly dumb to try doing a walk this weekend, so I'm going to have this weekend off. I'm doing the heat pack thing each evening and generally taking things carefully. Meanwhile I've been looking at new packs, because it seems that my backpack is the cause of my scraped hips. I have found a likely replacement, but won't buy it until I have been chosen in the lottery. Ahh, the lottery. I've received an update. The lottery should be happening late August / early September. Please cross your fingers for me, because now everything hangs on that %^&*( lottery. |
| Entry for August 16, 2008 |
| THE BACK ! THE TOE ! THE LOTTERY ! Plus, some GOOD NEWS ! I believe I have the toe under control now. I just have to keep it wrapped and be careful with it. I know you're excited by that news. :-) The back is improving very slowly. Staying off it is certainly the way to go. I won't be walking this weekend, but I am certainly hoping to be walking again next weekend, even if only 10km. Don't worry; this is way more frustrating for me than it is for you. The lottery is my main concern at the moment. My understanding is that I won't hear anything for 2 or 3 or 4 weeks, but then I should hear if my name has been drawn from the hat. Then it is full steam ahead. I have a considerable list of activities just waiting until I hear that I'm in. Actually, you could help if you felt so inclined. I'm attempting to get onto ENOUGH ROPE to help promote the good work done by JDRF, and your comments on my suggestion would help enormously. You can find it all at www2b.abc.net.au/guestbookcentral/list.asp?guestbookID=31. Just paste that address into your web browser. Finally the good news. I've had some wonderful people make donations to my chosen charity, JDRF. It came as a very pleasant surprise the other day. You can see the progress of the donations, and even make one yourself if you feel inclined, at www.everydayhero.com.au/Alex_Williams. Hopefully the next entry will be back on the road. Oh, PS - since I've cut back on the regular walking, the sugar has gone regularly high. The doctors and nurses are not going to be happy, but it is, in all practical terms, unavoidable. You cannot keep the sugar steady when you are walking 25km on one day with 12kg on your back, and then only one or two kilometers for the next 5 days. It'll come back down and be more steady when I start the long walks again. |
| Entry for August 23, 2008 |
| After 10 or 15 or 20 years of umming and ahhing, I have finally consented to trying the insulin pen. And I must admit that the upsides out weigh the downsides. I still have to work out a few fiddly bits, but it seems to be quite straight forward. And the needles are extremely fine. You may think it is strange that it is such a big deal for me to make this change, but try to think that of it this way. I've been following the same routine for something like 30 years and 22,500 injections. And before that I was following an old fashioned routine that would fill you with dread if you knew the details. So going to the pens has been a big step for me, and today was the first day. The next step forward is to find out more about food ideas for the trek, and I have an appointment in 7 weeks for that. I still haven't heard from the US organisers, but then I didn't really expect to yet. The back is improved and I am looking forward to 10km on the weekend with a very light pack. |
| Entry for August 28, 2008 |
| Finally, I've managed a training session. The back has improved, though still not perfect. I did a careful 10km this morning, with a very light pack. The damage on the hips from the last long walk still hasn't fully healed, so I covered it with a combination of padded plasters and heavy duty protective tape. It seemed to do the trick. Until I get a new pack (over $400), I'll be using the protective tape. I'm told that the cause is my pack, but I'm not so sure. It might be as simple as a combination of the weight in the pack and the belt that I'm wearing. Maybe ditching the belt might be the answer. Who knows. Patience and trying different things will find the answer eventually. Because the walk this morning was OK on my back, I might do the same tomorrow. I'll see how I go today and then decide. Training - 2 hours - 10km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 3 units in the morning. |
| Entry for August 30, 2008 |
| What a glorious training session this morning. I'm still being very careful of the back, so it was with a light pack. I did 14km in perfect weather and conditions. Life does not get better than that, oh except when I have finally heard that my name has been drawn in the lottery. :-| BTW - Did I say a big thank-you to the people who have donated through the web site (see top of the page)? I really appreciate your donations, which will go to help find a cure for this serious illness. Training - 2 hours 45 mins - 14km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 3 units in the morning. |
| Entry for September 06, 2008 |
| I'm on holiday, so I'm able to do a proper training session every couple of days. This morning was another marvellous session of 15km. The weather was sunny, cloudy, raining lightly, warm and cool. That's Melbourne. The toe was fine. I think that might now be a dead issue. The back was fine. That just needs constant monitoring and care. The sugar was fine. Life is good. Training - 3 hours - 15km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 3 units in the morning. |
| Entry for September 08, 2008 |
| The conditions this morning were perfect. The walk went very well. I did 20km with a light pack and took it very carefully. All went OK, with a twinge coming from the toe. While walking I played with my hat, experimenting with some of the many combinations of how it can be configured with flaps up, flaps down, different bits secured in different ways. All good fun. Training - 4 hours - 20km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 4 units in the morning. |
| Entry for September 10, 2008 |
| Excellent walk today. I even managed to avoid the wobbles that have been happening at the 18km mark. Either I'm strengthening, or the stretches I do during my rests are having a positive affect, or some other magic is happening to keep them at bay. I'll figure it out eventually. I plan on doing 25km tomorrow. That is the plan which is my plan. Walking along and thinking about why I'm having so much trouble getting people interested in what I'm doing, I came to a realisation. I believe that Joe Public has no idea of the dramatic difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes. All they hear is "diabetes" and associate it with over weight people who eat poorly. That is where I need to focus my attention. Stay tuned. Training - 3 hours 45 mins - 20km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 5 units in the morning. |
| Entry for September 12, 2008 |
| When I'm walking, I get a great opportunity to think. Today I was thinking about why I have not had much success so far getting people genuinely interested in supporting my undertaking. The conclusion I came to is - Joe Public does not understand the significant difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes. So when they hear me mention diabetes, they are thinking about what they have heard so much of in the media over the past few years, which is almost always to do with type 2 diabetes. I need to do something about this. Please click here to learn more. |
| Special entry - September 12, 2008 |
| A magnificent walk today. And I managed to have some clear thoughts. 1/ People who know about type 1 diabetes, such as doctors, nurses and other health professionals, are dumbfounded that I am doing this. They are very impressed. It's when people don't understand the significance that they struggle to be impressed. 2/ I believe I have worked out a formula that I can use to determine what insulin dosage to have for a given walk. Taking my standard dosage as 25 long and 9 short in the morning, I need to reduce the overall dosage by 1 unit for each 5km that I'm going to walk. As summer gets closer, I will also need to work out a "heat factor". It will be something like reducing the dosage by an extra unit when the temperature is over 20C, then another over 30C, then another over 35C or 40C. 3/ Eating dried apricots for 6 days will drive me nuts. I can also eat dates, so I need to mix'n'match between the apricots and dates. If you are able to add any information or suggestions, such as how I can get the word out, please send me an email. Training - 4 hours 50 mins - 25km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 5 units in the morning. |
| Entry for September 13, 2008 |
| Today's walk was an interesting one. I kept it short ( 15km ) as I had two longer walks over the weekend. I felt really good and handled the walk well. The weather was appalling, with gale force winds and a little rain. But of course I have to be prepared for radical weather conditions in the Sahara, so it's all part of the training. I played with the pack adjustments again and may have found a way to alleviate the damage to my hips. I'll experiment some more and see how I go. I have also figured out that I need to do more than just one long walk per week. OK, so I'm holiday at the moment, which allows me to do more regular walks, but I need to figure out how I can do more walks at normal times. The obvious is to do a walk on both days of the weekend. Training - 2 hours 50 mins - 15km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 4 units in the morning. |
| Entry for September 15, 2008 |
| Today's walk was quite possibly the best I have had yet. I felt just right and "in the zone". The toe and back are fine, so I won't mention them again. The hips are still receiving a small amount of punishment, so we'll see if a new pack fixes that completely. The main learning from today was about the sugar. Oh, the new formula for adjusting the dosage appears to be working. I took the high side of reducing one unit for each 5km, and everything was excellent. What was the learning? Remember when I was getting the wobbles at 18km? My first thought was that age was getting the better of me and I was just reaching a point of exhaustion. But when I thought about it, I realised something. Some people may feel a little offended at the words I'm about to use, but it's the only way I know of to describe what I'm talking about. So I apologise if I offend you, and ask any medical people out there to send me a note and advise me of the correct terminology. I felt the very first signs of "the wobbles" today at about 15km. I realised that it was feeling very similar to what I call (here it is - sorry) feeling spastic. This is something that first happened to me about 18 years ago, and is an awful feeling of not being able to control my movements. I know when it happens at home that it is to do with oncoming very low blood sugar. The feeling is entirely unpleasant and quite scary. At home, it is fixed by Donna pushing food down my neck at a furious pace and the feeling goes away after about 30 minutes. So today I had a bunch of apricots when I first felt it coming. I kept having more apricots for a couple of minutes and then the feeling went and did not return for the rest of the walk. After that I felt rock solid, fully co-ordinated and on top of the world. So I think that maybe this question has also been answered. Training - 6 hours - 28.5km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 6 units in the morning. |
| Entry for September 17, 2008 |
| Today's walk was excellent. At about the 15km mark, I felt so "in the zone" that I felt like I could walk all day. The learning from today was to with the pack. I have finally concluded beyond any doubt that, and this won't come as a big surprise, the problem with the abrasions on my hips was my fault. I had the various adjustments on the pack set poorly. I have been tweaking them over the past days and today was able to go the whole distance without any safety coverings on my hips and without any new rubbings. I'm still going to get a new pack, but at least I've finally learned something. I'm considering doing a 34km walk tomorrow. Let's see how I feel later today. Training - 3 hours 45 mins - 20km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 5 units in the morning. |
| Entry for September 19, 2008 |
| This was the longest walk so far, and ended up being hard work. The weather was awful, with sunshine, calm, wind, cloud, rain, cold, warm. I had to cross a creek by stepping from rock to rock. I also had to negotiate deep, wheel-rutted mud. Two dogs decided that I was worth getting aggressive, so I stared them down. The first gave up when I took a small step forward, but the second stood it's ground, hair standing on edge. It bared it's teeth at me, which was the hint I needed. So I started to bared my teeth at him and he gave up. The sugar was fine, without any dramas at all. I suppose the main glitch was the knee supports. I went out this afternoon to get new ones, so that should be a problem again for a while. Training - 6 hours 50 mins - 33.5km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 7 units in the morning. |
| Entry for September 20, 2008 |
| Good walk this morning. The weather was beautiful, but I knew that I was racing against time. A change was scheduled to move over Melbourne around lunch time, and I could see it coming. I have started up a FACEBOOK group and have added a link to it at the top of this page. Training - 3 hours 50 mins - 20km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 5 units in the morning. |
| Entry for September 22, 2008 |
| Facebook group Marathon des Sables (requires a Facebook logon) |
| What a magnificent walk today. The weather started off close to perfect, but dimmed a little just before the end. The walk today was the same one I did immediately before I had to stop for a few weeks with my bad back. The difference today was astounding, with all of the learnings I have had in the past weeks. The sugar was perfect, the boots are great, the pack is brilliant and the back was fine. The only difference in what I did was that today was with a light pack (about 8kg), not the heavier pack I had last time (about 12kg). I am planning on having a looong walk on Friday, but haven't decided on the details yet. Training - 4 hours 50 mins - 25km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 6 units in the morning. |
| Entry for September 24, 2008 |
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| Facebook group Jelly Baby Campaign |
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| Fundraising permission letter |
| Well, the loooong walk wasn't possible today, as I suddenly had to go into the city to meet with a JDRF person. But I did manage a short walk of 15km. There were no dramas today. The weather was warm but windy, so not all that pleasant. I have a "growing" problem with one foot. There is a corn slowly developing, so I'm off to the chemist to see what I can do about it. The next walk is tomorrow, and it is supposed to be a long one. Let's see what ends up happening. Training - 2 hours 50 mins - 15km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 4 units in the morning. |
| Entry for September 26, 2008 |
| What a great walk it was today. I did the loooong one, at 35km. It was hard work, but all over was very good. Because I did the 15km yesterday afternoon, it gave me an opportunity to experience the sugar management overnight. It was a bit high this morning, so I played with the apricots to bring it down in a controlled manner. By 25km, the sugar was back down safely. The learning from this is that the sugar must go up over night, in order that my sleep is safe. I can bring it down gently the next day as I walk, but much care needs to be taken to ensure it doesn't drop too rapidly and get out of control. Another interesting aspect of this morning's walk is that it means I have walked 50km in less than 24 hours. So my training is having the desired affect. Training - 6 hours 50 mins - 35km Medication - reduced normal dosage by 7 units in the morning. |
| Entry for September 26, 2008 |
| Sun Valley True Fruit (fruit strips) |
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| Newspaper articles |
| Aug / Sep 2008 |
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| Bridget McNulty - Type 1 and travelling the world |
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