Full Transcript for Keeping Active When the Routine Disappears. Holiday Activity Tips for People with Type1 Diabetes.

--> 00:04:57,210 And having that tradition of physical activity and exercise can help us get through it much more effectively. 48 00:04:57,430 --> 00:05:00,770 And then, of course, keeping our weight from getting out of control. 49 00:05:00,990 --> 00:05:03,110 There's a lot of good stuff to eat through the holidays. 50 00:05:03,690 --> 00:05:07,870 Does your family have a food or a meal tradition? 51 00:05:08,810 --> 00:05:09,930 Not actually. 52 00:05:10,150 --> 00:05:16,970 We often have like a traditional European type of Christmas with turkeys and gammons and things like that. 53 00:05:17,050 --> 00:05:21,650 But it's not very practical when it's like, I don't know what 40 degrees Celsius is. 54 00:05:21,710 --> 00:05:23,190 Over 100 Fahrenheit, I think. 55 00:05:23,730 --> 00:05:26,290 Yeah, it's just the opposite in North America. 56 00:05:26,570 --> 00:05:27,710 It's not very helpful. 57 00:05:28,230 --> 00:05:33,110 So we often end up having a barbecue by the pool and just swimming and being outdoors and that. 58 00:05:33,710 --> 00:05:37,430 We have a Hanukkah tradition where we make potato latkes. 59 00:05:37,430 --> 00:05:42,750 Potato latkes are just big grease balls of potato and onion and flour. 60 00:05:43,290 --> 00:05:46,050 Also horrible for keeping your diabetes and your weight under control. 61 00:05:46,270 --> 00:05:49,870 But it's so tasty, especially with a big gob of applesauce. 62 00:05:49,990 --> 00:05:52,490 Man, that is really tasty stuff. 63 00:05:52,630 --> 00:05:54,890 So we do a latke fest. 64 00:05:55,010 --> 00:05:59,210 We just make dozens of these enormous latkes and chow down on them. 65 00:05:59,490 --> 00:06:01,050 We have some real food with it, too. 66 00:06:01,230 --> 00:06:04,290 But that kind of stuff, it can add up during the holidays. 67 00:06:04,290 --> 00:06:08,750 Plus all the sweets, all the treats and dessert items that are so common. 68 00:06:09,190 --> 00:06:18,210 But I look at staying active during the holidays pretty much the same as staying active any time of year when a challenge is thrown your way. 69 00:06:18,450 --> 00:06:24,050 I travel quite a bit because I serve on advisory boards and I speak and this and that. 70 00:06:24,410 --> 00:06:28,030 And traveling throws a wrench into activity plans also. 71 00:06:28,270 --> 00:06:31,810 And I find it's a matter of attitude more than anything. 72 00:06:31,810 --> 00:06:36,130 An attitude that I'm not going to let things get in the way of my workouts. 73 00:06:36,690 --> 00:06:41,710 So when I travel, if I'm at a hotel, I'll use the workout room in the hotel. 74 00:06:42,010 --> 00:06:44,210 Or I always bring my running shoes when I travel. 75 00:06:44,390 --> 00:06:51,530 I can always go out for a jog, which is nice because I get to see all the sights up close in another town. 76 00:06:51,910 --> 00:06:54,010 So really, it's a matter of attitude. 77 00:06:54,410 --> 00:07:01,150 You just got to make it up in your mind that, you know, I work out whatever, three, four, five, six times a week. 78 00:07:01,150 --> 00:07:05,330 Normally, I'm just going to find a way to keep doing that during the holidays. 79 00:07:05,670 --> 00:07:10,690 If it means I've got to do it at a different time of day because I've got other things going on, then I do it. 80 00:07:10,930 --> 00:07:17,810 If it means I have to try a different type of activity, maybe I'm getting the house ready for a family and company coming to visit. 81 00:07:18,210 --> 00:07:21,030 Hey, that day of cleaning, that's my workout. 82 00:07:21,330 --> 00:07:23,930 We're here now, we've got leaves everywhere. 83 00:07:24,150 --> 00:07:29,770 Autumn's come to the northeast part of the U.S. and there are leaves every place. 84 00:07:29,770 --> 00:07:33,790 So raking those leaves, that's my workout sometimes. 85 00:07:34,230 --> 00:07:36,570 Or shoveling snow. 86 00:07:36,770 --> 00:07:38,390 Not yet, but it could come. 87 00:07:38,610 --> 00:07:39,670 Do you guys get snow by you? 88 00:07:39,970 --> 00:07:41,910 Not this time of year, but in the wintertime? 89 00:07:41,950 --> 00:07:42,610 No snow. 90 00:07:44,410 --> 00:07:45,910 Don't know what you're missing. 91 00:07:46,490 --> 00:07:52,690 But I mean, so if it is snowing, I mean, a lot of families might go snow skiing during the holidays or just after. 92 00:07:52,990 --> 00:07:56,930 Sometimes the snow comes in January and you can take some time and go skiing. 93 00:07:57,390 --> 00:08:00,150 We've got indoor ice skating rinks here. 94 00:08:00,750 --> 00:08:01,570 I'll hit those. 95 00:08:01,710 --> 00:08:05,230 I might take one or two kids with me and go ice skating. 96 00:08:05,370 --> 00:08:06,430 That's my exercise. 97 00:08:06,710 --> 00:08:13,050 So sometimes you just have to alter the type of activity or the time of day, but you can still do it. 98 00:08:13,250 --> 00:08:13,370 Yep. 99 00:08:13,530 --> 00:08:19,010 I must say, I'm glad you brought up the issue about traveling because I'm one of those people at an airport. 100 00:08:19,310 --> 00:08:24,630 I'm marching up and down, looking at all the shops in duty-free and going and exploring all the curios and things like that. 101 00:08:24,630 --> 00:08:32,210 And then when I get to my destination, I'm the first person with my walking shoes on and I'm out exploring all sorts of different places in the town. 102 00:08:32,490 --> 00:08:38,549 And I think, as you say, if you've got that sort of mindset and that attitude, exercise doesn't have to be a punishment. 103 00:08:38,789 --> 00:08:42,010 It can actually be a form of exploration, a form of entertainment. 104 00:08:42,570 --> 00:08:45,190 And if you can build it into your routine, I think that's fantastic. 105 00:08:45,450 --> 00:08:50,490 Yeah, big city airports, there's a lot of space, a lot of opportunity to walk. 106 00:08:50,490 --> 00:08:54,710 And even if you have to carry a bag or two with you, that just adds to the workload. 107 00:08:55,170 -->

00:09:00,990 My question for you is, how do you keep from getting schvitzed when you're walking around the airport that much? 108 00:09:01,050 --> 00:09:03,270 Because I don't want to get on the plane and stink it up. 109 00:09:03,770 --> 00:09:05,430 No, you can take a gentle stroll around. 110 00:09:06,330 --> 00:09:07,470 Oh, a gentle stroll. 111 00:09:07,770 --> 00:09:08,010 Okay. 112 00:09:08,050 --> 00:09:09,070 Gentle stroll, yeah. 113 00:09:09,490 --> 00:09:12,090 And the airports are usually air conditioned, so it's not too bad. 114 00:09:12,490 --> 00:09:14,510 I think just building it into your routine. 115 00:09:14,590 --> 00:09:22,690 And as you said, even if you've got family coming to visit, it might mean that you're not able to go for your early morning walk or your after dinner walk as you usually are. 116 00:09:22,990 --> 00:09:25,210 And perhaps you can invite your family to come with you. 117 00:09:25,530 --> 00:09:33,770 I'm sure there's an aunt who needs to go for a walk as well, drag her along with you, or else just to pick another time in the day and build it into your schedule. 118 00:09:34,190 --> 00:09:37,830 I think it is just a matter of reorganizing things a little bit. 119 00:09:38,350 --> 00:09:48,270 Yeah, even if you have nieces and nephews or kids or grandkids coming over, just going outside and playing with them, that can be quite a workout. 120 00:09:48,850 --> 00:09:49,070 Absolutely. 121 00:09:49,150 --> 00:09:53,990 When my kids were little, little, now they're in their 20s, 30s. 122 00:09:54,090 --> 00:09:57,230 When they were little, little, we used to have a dance party at night. 123 00:09:57,610 --> 00:10:00,830 After dinner, we'd take them into the family room. 124 00:10:00,930 --> 00:10:08,330 I'd put on a disco light and some old disco music and 50s and 60s music on the turntable. 125 00:10:08,710 --> 00:10:10,110 And I would just throw them around. 126 00:10:10,230 --> 00:10:11,570 We would dance for an hour. 127 00:10:11,770 --> 00:10:12,870 And that was exhausting. 128 00:10:13,410 --> 00:10:14,170 That was the workout. 129 00:10:14,170 --> 00:10:21,730 So even if you got all the kids to take care of or other responsibilities, you can still find a way to get in a workout. 130 00:10:22,210 --> 00:10:24,230 It's not like going to the gym workout. 131 00:10:24,490 --> 00:10:26,610 It's different, but it's still a workout. 132 00:10:27,110 --> 00:10:32,910 So if you got people coming over and the house needs cleaning, hey, that cleanup, that's your work. 133 00:10:33,010 --> 00:10:35,870 If the lawn needs tending too, that's your workout. 134 00:10:36,090 --> 00:10:41,030 You can still find ways to get the activity in throughout the holiday season. 135 00:10:41,030 --> 00:10:48,750 And Gary, what's the story with, we always advocate to our patients and we say, try and get 30 to 45 minutes of cardiovascular exercise in. 136 00:10:49,090 --> 00:10:55,510 But if you just can't fit in that 45 minutes, is

it worth going to the gym for 15 minutes or should you just give it up completely? 137 00:10:55,870 --> 00:10:58,410 Or do you have to then go two or three times a day to the gym? 138 00:10:58,630 --> 00:11:04,750 Well, if your time's that restricted, you probably don't have time to go to the gym, but you can do things on your own in short intervals. 139 00:11:04,750 --> 00:11:11,470 The reason for the 30, 45 minutes is that's sort of a zone for getting cardiovascular conditioning. 140 00:11:11,970 --> 00:11:22,470 However, you can burn just as many calories and improve your insulin sensitivity just as much with a series of 10 minute sessions throughout the day. 141 00:11:22,810 --> 00:11:32,030 And so even though you're not going to build significant cardiovascular advantages with short bouts of activity, you can still gain a lot of benefit. 142 00:11:32,030 --> 00:11:40,190 You can burn the calories and the energy, feel good, keep your insulin working as well as it should with those shorter bouts of activity. 143 00:11:40,450 --> 00:11:40,550 Yeah. 144 00:11:40,790 --> 00:11:48,390 And I think I often try and keep people motivated and say, don't fall off the wagon completely just because you missed one or two days of exercise. 145 00:11:48,770 --> 00:12:01,590 Or don't have this all or nothing approach where you're like, I'm going to the beach for a week or we're going away to the lake for a week or whatever you're doing and say, there won't be a gym there, I won't be able to exercise, that's it, I can't do it. 146 00:12:03,010 --> 00:12:05,870 I think a lot of people fall into that sort of trap as well. 147 00:12:06,170 --> 00:12:06,510 Absolutely. 148 00:12:07,090 --> 00:12:08,390 I'm that way also. 149 00:12:08,570 --> 00:12:15,790 I work out most days and when I miss a day, the next day I'm like, I missed the workout yesterday, why bother? 150 00:12:16,210 --> 00:12:19,430 But then I figure, I'm going to get a new streak going. 151 00:12:19,650 --> 00:12:21,870 Forget about yesterday, today's a new day. 152 00:12:22,590 --> 00:12:26,410 I'm just going to start a new workout streak and see how long I can take that. 153 00:12:26,410 --> 00:12:32,130 So yes, look at every day as a fresh start, opportunity to start brand new. 154 00:12:32,350 --> 00:12:34,090 Yesterday is history. 155 00:12:34,470 --> 00:12:35,350 Don't worry about it. 156 00:12:35,430 --> 00:12:37,010 Start new and do the right thing now. 157 00:12:37,310 --> 00:12:40,070 I had a colleague once who said, just do better than you did yesterday. 158 00:12:40,290 --> 00:12:44,890 So if you missed yesterday's workout, you only have to go for five minutes today or 10 minutes or 15 minutes. 159 00:12:45,130 --> 00:12:50,810 You know, you're just wanting to do better than yesterday, which I thought was actually quite a nice motivation tool. 160 00:12:51,010 --> 00:12:52,850 It sounds like you like walking. 161 00:12:52,950 --> 00:12:54,570 Is that your main form of activity, Paula? 162 00:12:54,570 --> 00:12:59,410 Yeah, I mean, I don't enjoy running and I really don't enjoy going into a gym. 163 00:12:59,690 --> 00:13:03,310 I enjoy walking with my friends and we go walking on a regular basis. 164 00:13:03,750 --> 00:13:10,730 I enjoy doing a park run every now and again when I'm able to and then do some Pilates, which is also in a group. 165 00:13:10,850 --> 00:13:11,890 So that's also quite fun. 166 00:13:12,270 --> 00:13:19,290 And I know that when it gets to holiday time, things just go out the window and there's too many other demands on you. 167 00:13:19,290 --> 00:13:27,010 Group activities can be really motivating and it can carry people through these times when it's challenging to get the workout things. 168 00:13:27,230 --> 00:13:32,930 If you have a scheduled session with a group, it's hard to just say, no, I'm not going. 169 00:13:33,470 --> 00:13:38,410 You feel more accountable when you've got a group of other people doing it with you. 170 00:13:38,590 --> 00:13:39,510 Yeah, no, absolutely. 171 00:13:39,670 --> 00:13:52,350 Whether it's a formal group that you're going to exercise class at the gym, whether it's a group of mates that you're meeting and you're going to go and do some exercise with them, absolutely having a group of people that can motivate you and to whom you're accountable. 172 00:13:52,650 --> 00:13:53,430 Always feel bad. 173 00:13:53,590 --> 00:14:03,270 There's often I wake up and I just don't feel like going for a walk in the morning and I think, no, then I've got to actually phone or text my friend and say to her, I'm not coming and she's got to get grumpy with me either. 174 00:14:03,650 --> 00:14:04,410 No, we just go. 175 00:14:04,430 --> 00:14:08,270 Do you have big shopping malls in South Africa? 176 00:14:08,510 --> 00:14:09,730 We do, but I don't like shopping. 177 00:14:10,110 --> 00:14:11,830 You're the woman of my dreams. 178 00:14:12,890 --> 00:14:14,330 My daughter loves shopping. 179 00:14:14,730 --> 00:14:16,130 I don't really enjoy shopping. 180 00:14:16,130 --> 00:14:34,130 Because power shopping can be a workout, particularly if you're swapping a bunch of bags along with you, but walking a mall and shopping, if you have to shop anyway, hey, go for it and walk at a good clip between stores and you get your activity in that. 181 00:14:34,250 --> 00:14:46,270 And what's interesting in that is often you have to remind patients and say to them, don't forget that that amount of just general walking all over the place can really do damage to your blood sugar levels over a period of time. 182 00:14:46,670 --> 00:14:51,190 People don't factor that in as being exercise and they don't account for it. 183 00:14:51,290 --> 00:14:55,950 And often you're walking around, you're not hydrating properly either, you're standing for long periods of time. 184 00:14:56,230 --> 00:15:02,390 So it's one of the things that I always say to people, be really careful if you're shopping for an

extended period of time. 185 00:15:03,050 --> 00:15:15,890 Yeah, I encourage people to use some type of an activity tracker, whether it's a pedometer, a motion sensor in their phone, an aura ring type of thing, because it does capture all the movement we get. 186 00:15:16,290 --> 00:15:22,250 So when you're cleaning up the kitchen after dinner, you get credit for that. 187 00:15:22,390 --> 00:15:23,070 It's movement. 188 00:15:25,410 --> 00:15:35,430 It's great because it makes us all accountable and there are simple things that we can do throughout the day that can help accumulate movement and burn energy for us. 189 00:15:35,430 --> 00:15:41,810 Does not have to be going to the gym, does not have to be setting aside 45 minutes for a walk. 190 00:15:42,070 --> 00:15:46,450 It can just be little things we do all throughout the day that add up. 191 00:15:46,670 --> 00:15:52,350 Yeah, and I think that's key over the holiday period where you are out of routine and things are a little bit out of kilter. 192 00:15:52,510 --> 00:15:56,570 If you've got some sort of activity tracker, you can say, oh, I didn't actually do too badly yesterday. 193 00:15:56,790 --> 00:15:59,230 I forgot we went to the ice rink for three hours in the afternoon. 194 00:15:59,550 --> 00:16:01,630 There you've done your activity, you don't have to feel so bad. 195 00:16:01,630 --> 00:16:08,770 I see this week, did you see that Oxford Street in London, they've closed the entire street off and made it a pedestrian street. 196 00:16:09,810 --> 00:16:22,550 So now all those iconic shopping centers that were on Oxford Street and the big red double-decker buses, they are no more and they're now encouraging pedestrians to walk around between the shops and they've made the whole of Oxford Street pedestrian. 197 00:16:22,810 --> 00:16:23,450 That's amazing. 198 00:16:23,870 --> 00:16:31,310 Philly, we have a downtown plaza that Blue Cross fills with water and they turn it into an ice rink for skating. 199 00:16:31,630 --> 00:16:33,330 So people can skate right downtown. 200 00:16:33,730 --> 00:16:36,650 If you're in New York City, you can go to Rockefeller Center and do that. 201 00:16:36,650 --> 00:16:38,510 I was just going to ask, have you ever been to Rockefeller Center? 202 00:16:38,950 --> 00:16:39,810 Oh yeah, yeah. 203 00:16:40,330 --> 00:16:41,490 It's pretty scenic. 204 00:16:41,810 --> 00:16:48,810 Yeah, we're just going into the downtown, any big city and just checking out all the Christmas decor, holiday decor. 205 00:16:49,010 --> 00:16:50,950 Get a good walk in, there's your activity. 206 00:16:51,550 --> 00:16:53,150 You got your workout for the day. 207 00:16:53,330 --> 00:16:53,690 Absolutely. 208 00:16:54,250 --> 00:16:57,190 And when I was young, the other thing that we used to do a lot is go window shopping. 209 00:16:57,310 --> 00:16:58,650 I don't know if that's still a thing anymore. 210 00:16:58,650 --> 00:17:05,170 But it was wonderful during the holiday season because everyone had all their lights and their festivities out and everything. 211 00:17:05,930 --> 00:17:13,210 And you'd just walk along the shops and look through the windows and get an ice cream or a cool drink or whatever on the way. 212 00:17:13,609 --> 00:17:13,770 Yeah. 213 00:17:14,150 --> 00:17:15,369 But that's also great for... 214 00:17:17,150 --> 00:17:31,050 Think Like a Pancreas, the podcast is brought to you by Integrated Diabetes Services, where experience meets expertise, passion meets compassion, and diabetes care is personal because we live it too. 215 00:17:31,550 --> 00:17:37,830 Our team of clinicians, all living with type 1 diabetes, understands the challenges firsthand. 216 00:17:38,590 --> 00:17:41,450 We're here to help, no matter where you are in the world. 217 00:17:41,970 --> 00:17:54,290 From glucose management to self-care strategies, the latest tech, sports and exercise, weight loss, type 1 pregnancy, and emotional well-being, we've got you covered. 218 00:17:54,930 --> 00:18:00,950 We offer consultations in English and Spanish via phone, video chat, email, and text. 219 00:18:01,930 --> 00:18:02,750 Want to learn more? 220 00:18:03,710 --> 00:18:12,670 Visit IntegratedDiabetes.com or email info at IntegratedDiabetes.com to schedule a consultation. 221 00:18:13,450 --> 00:18:17,550 On Thanksgiving, we have a tradition in America called football. 222 00:18:17,550 --> 00:18:22,910 Now, football here, it's a religion unto itself. 223 00:18:23,590 --> 00:18:25,830 And Thanksgiving football games are on. 224 00:18:26,570 --> 00:18:34,450 And what we do is during the pregame and the halftime and the postgame, we go out and we throw a football around. 225 00:18:34,950 --> 00:18:36,550 We're not running a ton. 226 00:18:36,610 --> 00:18:38,890 We're just throwing it around and having a good time. 227 00:18:39,030 --> 00:18:42,230 But just taking those activity breaks makes it fun. 228 00:18:42,310 --> 00:18:45,210 You can interact with people and get a little movement in. 229 00:18:45,210 --> 00:18:47,490 Air's a little nippy here, which is fine. 230 00:18:47,910 --> 00:18:50,890 The activity, you don't get overheated too much. 231 00:18:51,350 --> 00:18:56,790 But it's a whole lot better than just plopping down on the sofa and falling asleep. 232 00:18:58,470 --> 00:19:01,190 We've got garden cricket that happens in December. 233 00:19:02,030 --> 00:19:03,590 So cricket season happens. 234 00:19:03,690 --> 00:19:05,710 So cricket is a little bit like baseball. 235 00:19:06,270 --> 00:19:12,010 And I think it's more of a religion in Australia than it is in South Africa. 236 00:19:12,010 --> 00:19:17,390 But we generally play a whole lot of test cricket matches in December, January. 237 00:19:17,830 --> 00:19:19,250 And that's over five days. 238 00:19:19,530 --> 00:19:21,890 So for five days, you're watching this cricket match. 239 00:19:22,270 --> 00:19:24,210 And people do exactly the same thing. 240

00:19:24,310 --> 00:19:24,630 They watch. 241 00:19:24,730 --> 00:19:27,890 And then when it's a tea break, then they all go outside and play their own game of garden cricket. 242 00:19:28,010 --> 00:19:30,490 And they all come back inside again and carry on watching the cricket again. 243 00:19:30,790 --> 00:19:31,050 Mm-hmm. 244 00:19:31,270 --> 00:19:31,570 Yeah. 245 00:19:31,730 --> 00:19:40,230 The other thing about the holiday season, at least around here, maybe by you, is that the weather's not always conducive to outdoor exercise. 246 00:19:40,790 --> 00:19:44,790 And there are so many options for exercising indoors. 247 00:19:45,150 --> 00:19:50,250 If you're somebody who prefers to walk outdoors, it doesn't mean you can't walk indoors. 248 00:19:50,570 --> 00:19:51,830 You can get a treadmill. 249 00:19:52,070 --> 00:19:53,570 You can get a stationary bike. 250 00:19:53,950 --> 00:19:55,750 The rowing machines are great. 251 00:19:55,850 --> 00:19:56,970 Those are more full body. 252 00:19:57,210 --> 00:20:01,150 And when you watch your favorite TV show, just get on there and walk. 253 00:20:01,250 --> 00:20:02,870 Get on there and pedal or row. 254 00:20:03,810 --> 00:20:07,150 This time of year, basketball season just kicked in. 255 00:20:07,150 --> 00:20:10,850 I've got games to watch every other night with my hometown team. 256 00:20:11,250 --> 00:20:16,610 And I'm always either on my bike or on my treadmill when I'm watching at least the first quarter of those games. 257 00:20:16,770 --> 00:20:19,470 I get in about a 30 to 40-minute workout that way. 258 00:20:19,810 --> 00:20:25,470 So having indoor options when the weather is not agreeable is a smart thing to do. 259 00:20:25,650 --> 00:20:28,750 Some people will just put on some music and dance. 260 00:20:29,010 --> 00:20:36,610 That's a great form of exercise, where you can watch an aerobics video or some type of online class that you can do. 261 00:20:36,610 --> 00:20:44,090 And they have those stationary bikes, the Pelotons, that have classes that you can do live on your Peloton at home. 262 00:20:44,350 --> 00:20:46,050 So there's so many options. 263 00:20:46,390 --> 00:20:51,690 And again, it'll only matter if you have the attitude that's necessary. 264 00:20:51,830 --> 00:20:53,610 The attitude is the key thing. 265 00:20:53,710 --> 00:20:59,850 The attitude that, yeah, I'm not going to let the holiday season or the change in weather get in the way of me. 266 00:20:59,970 --> 00:21:01,490 I'm going to plow through that. 267 00:21:01,710 --> 00:21:03,470 And I'm going to maintain my activity. 268 00:21:03,650 --> 00:21:05,190 I'll find a way to make it happen. 269 00:21:05,790 --> 00:21:09,330 And once you set your sights on it, you'll find solutions. 270 00:21:09,670 --> 00:21:09,770 Yeah. 271 00:21:09,970 --> 00:21:27,950 And I think if you frame it as this is for my health and not just for me to lose weight or to get my sugars under control, but just basically for my general health and you integrate it as much as you can into your day, I think it makes it a lot more manageable, a lot more feasible, and a lot more palatable also. 272 00:21:28,150 --> 00:21:28,390 Yeah. 273 00:21:28,710 --> 00:21:29,750 It helps if it's fun. 274 00:21:30,070 --> 00:21:31,350 It absolutely helps if it's fun. 275 00:21:31,510 --> 00:21:32,870 I love playing basketball. 276 00:21:32,870 --> 00:21:42,210 I play two or three days a week, and I feel like my workouts the rest of the week are just to be in shape for basketball so I can play my best, not get hurt, et cetera. 277 00:21:42,810 --> 00:21:58,950 So finding something fun to do or even training for something, it doesn't have to be an Olympic event or a marathon, but even training to do a 5K walk in the spring, training to accomplish something, something that's worthwhile to you. 278 00:21:59,210 --> 00:22:01,230 That way you're not working out. 279 00:22:01,310 --> 00:22:02,210 You're not exercising. 280 00:22:02,210 --> 00:22:04,930 You can tell everyone, I'm in training. 281 00:22:06,210 --> 00:22:15,890 One of my family members last year challenged some of the other family members to an exercise regime and just to basically get fitter and healthier. 282 00:22:16,350 --> 00:22:24,910 Part of their Christmas present was whoever could get the best rewards and lose the most weight at the end of it, they were going to get some prize at the end of it. 283 00:22:25,390 --> 00:22:31,330 That's also another great motivating factor, the fact to get the whole family together and say, right, guys, this is what we're doing. 284 00:22:31,330 --> 00:22:32,370 There's a team challenge. 285 00:22:33,290 --> 00:22:33,470 Yeah. 286 00:22:33,750 --> 00:22:36,590 Some kind of a prize or a reward for yourself. 287 00:22:36,990 --> 00:22:39,790 A lot of people will make a deal with their spouse. 288 00:22:40,010 --> 00:22:47,210 I work out 20 times this month and you're going to give me a massage every night, something like that. 289 00:22:47,530 --> 00:22:50,070 Those can be fun too and keep us motivated. 290 00:22:50,890 --> 00:22:51,090 Yeah. 291 00:22:51,350 --> 00:23:08,950 For me, the key is to try and integrate it as much as possible into your daily activities and not to see exercise as an add-on in your day as much as you see it as just being part of your day so that when your daily routine is disrupted a little bit, that it's still being healthy is still part of what you do. 292 00:23:09,330 --> 00:23:12,870 I'm at a point now where I build it into my calendar. 293 00:23:13,230 --> 00:23:15,490 I find if I do that, it'll happen. 294 00:23:15,770 --> 00:23:17,790 If I don't do that, there's a chance it won't. 295 00:23:18,210 --> 00:23:27,010 There's certain mornings I'm going to play basketball because my group plays early morning and then I have to find a few other nights where I can go to the gym or work out at home. 296 00:23:27,010 --> 00:23:40,090 My in-training-for-basketball-type

workouts, but I look at what my schedule is for the week, my patient calendar, meetings I have to attend, et cetera, and I say, all right, Thursday evening, I've got the evening open. 297 00:23:40,110 --> 00:23:42,650 I'm going to go to the gym that night, do the weights. 298 00:23:43,690 --> 00:23:46,550 Friday morning, I've got basketball that's taken care of. 299 00:23:46,790 --> 00:23:52,970 I look at the week and just see, make sure I get my workouts in whatever time it happens to be. 300 00:23:52,970 --> 00:23:58,590 For people who are busy, everyone's busy this time of year more so than any time. 301 00:23:59,430 --> 00:24:03,870 If you have a calendar, and most people do have some form of calendar, they keep a schedule. 302 00:24:04,150 --> 00:24:06,290 Build the workouts right into your calendar. 303 00:24:06,530 --> 00:24:07,950 Start of the week, fill it in. 304 00:24:07,990 --> 00:24:09,910 Monday evening, I'm going to go to the gym. 305 00:24:10,050 --> 00:24:12,270 Tuesday morning, I'll go for a walk, et cetera. 306 00:24:12,670 --> 00:24:14,210 Build that right into your calendar. 307 00:24:14,510 --> 00:24:16,290 You're much more likely to stick with it. 308 00:24:16,450 --> 00:24:26,610 As far as sticking with it, there is research that shows that exercising first thing in the morning is highly beneficial for long-term maintenance. 309 00:24:27,070 --> 00:24:30,150 Now, I don't know about you, Paula, I'm not really a morning person. 310 00:24:30,390 --> 00:24:32,890 I play basketball in the morning because I have to. 311 00:24:32,950 --> 00:24:34,230 That's when everyone else is playing. 312 00:24:34,750 --> 00:24:38,570 But otherwise, I'm not that- A full game of basketball right in the morning. 313 00:24:38,830 --> 00:24:39,450 Yeah, yeah. 314 00:24:39,490 --> 00:24:41,610 We have 7.30 a.m. games because we work. 315 00:24:41,670 --> 00:24:42,870 We've got to get to work afterwards. 316 00:24:43,230 --> 00:24:45,650 But my wife, Debbie, she's a morning person. 317 00:24:46,030 --> 00:24:48,170 She's like Ms. Energy first thing in the morning. 318 00:24:48,430 --> 00:24:50,190 I don't know where that comes from. 319 00:24:50,250 --> 00:24:50,970 It's not me. 320 00:24:50,970 --> 00:24:52,970 I prefer to work out after dinner. 321 00:24:53,590 --> 00:24:54,950 That's what I do most nights. 322 00:24:55,590 --> 00:25:04,350 But the research shows that people who work out first thing in the morning tend to stick with their program much longer and work out more consistently. 323 00:25:04,830 --> 00:25:06,690 There's different theories behind that. 324 00:25:07,010 --> 00:25:08,970 I don't think it's a personality thing. 325 00:25:09,090 --> 00:25:11,050 It's just there's not much to get in the way of it. 326 00:25:11,350 --> 00:25:22,650 There's the added advantage of early morning exercise does not usually cause blood sugars to drop, so we don't have to worry so much about managing our glucose levels with early morning exercise. 327 00:25:22,950 --> 00:25:26,630 You work out any other time of day, it becomes a major consideration. 328 00:25:27,190 --> 00:25:29,990 But early morning is a good time to do it. 329 00:25:30,430 --> 00:25:39,790 So anyone who's listening to this, if you're thinking about starting to get active and you're ambivalent about what time you do it, I would try early morning. 330 00:25:40,110 --> 00:25:42,330 That's a really good time to do it. 331 00:25:42,790 --> 00:25:49,990 And for weight loss, do you want to exercise before a meal, after a meal, morning, afternoon? 332 00:25:50,510 --> 00:25:52,090 It does depend. 333 00:25:52,250 --> 00:25:59,030 If you're taking mealtime insulin, bolus insulin, there is an advantage to working out soon after the meal. 334 00:25:59,610 --> 00:26:07,970 If you work out before the meal, you're going to probably need to consume extra calories before the workout to prevent a blood sugar drop. 335 00:26:07,970 --> 00:26:13,670 If you work out after the meal, you don't have to eat extra food, you can just take less insulin. 336 00:26:14,070 --> 00:26:18,110 And taking less insulin, that helps facilitate some weight loss. 337 00:26:18,230 --> 00:26:19,830 So there's an advantage there. 338 00:26:20,390 --> 00:26:21,670 And you're not eating extra calories. 339 00:26:21,990 --> 00:26:22,810 Right, right. 340 00:26:23,010 --> 00:26:26,070 So there is a little bit of an advantage to doing that. 341 00:26:26,150 --> 00:26:31,510 But again, it doesn't matter what time you exercise, the calories you burn is the same. 342 00:26:31,870 --> 00:26:36,450 It's just in the early morning, the body tends to burn more fat than glucose for fuel. 343 00:26:36,450 --> 00:26:39,770 So that's why the blood sugar doesn't drop as much. 344 00:26:39,870 --> 00:26:45,030 But the calorie expenditure is exactly the same, whether it's morning, afternoon or evening. 345 00:26:45,250 --> 00:26:48,710 And I think also any exercise is better than no exercise. 346 00:26:49,270 --> 00:26:57,750 So if you get to the end of the day and you didn't manage to go for a walk in the morning or you didn't manage to play your basketball game, whatever you can do is better than nothing. 347 00:26:58,090 --> 00:26:58,270 Yeah. 348 00:26:58,450 --> 00:27:05,470 My trick is when I get home from work, if I'm planning to work out after dinner, I put my gym clothes on before I go to dinner. 349 00:27:05,470 --> 00:27:08,430 Otherwise, I don't know, it's just one more step. 350 00:27:08,590 --> 00:27:10,610 I'd rather just plop down in front of the TV. 351 00:27:10,830 --> 00:27:11,810 But I think that's why. 352 00:27:12,210 --> 00:27:14,950 If I got my sneakers on, I'm ready to go. 353 00:27:15,110 --> 00:27:16,550 Yeah, it's more likely to happen. 354 00:27:16,670 --> 00:27:23,670 But I think that's why exercise in the morning works also, because you wake up and before you even have your eyes open, you've already putting your clothes on. 355 00:27:24,170 -->

00:27:26,450 And then you've got the mind like, oh, let's just go for a walk. 356 00:27:26,610 --> 00:27:30,470 Yeah, no chance for excuses or other things getting in the way. 357 00:27:30,790 --> 00:27:31,890 That's the first thing you do. 358 00:27:32,050 --> 00:27:33,630 And it does make you feel better. 359 00:27:33,630 --> 00:27:40,010 Everyone who works out regularly will tell you how much better they feel, not just during, but the rest of the day. 360 00:27:40,310 --> 00:27:42,330 You just get this nirvanic feel. 361 00:27:42,450 --> 00:27:43,530 You've accomplished something. 362 00:27:43,650 --> 00:27:44,810 Your body feels good. 363 00:27:45,170 --> 00:27:46,250 It's a nice state to be in. 364 00:27:46,510 --> 00:27:54,750 So maybe that's the trick to family politics over the holidays is when the family is all at each other, you can head out to the gym or go for a run or something. 365 00:27:55,190 --> 00:27:57,590 Yeah, or middle of dinner, you can wrestle. 366 00:27:58,210 --> 00:27:59,610 It's like, I love the show Seinfeld. 367 00:27:59,610 --> 00:28:06,430 They invented this holiday called Festivus and it included the feats of strength over dinner where they would wrestle each other to the ground. 368 00:28:06,790 --> 00:28:09,290 I would not recommend wrestling during dinner. 369 00:28:09,550 --> 00:28:11,090 That's not very polite. 370 00:28:11,190 --> 00:28:17,330 Yeah, Anna and I had a fun conversation the other day about the emotional issues around the holidays. 371 00:28:17,690 --> 00:28:22,530 And I think having family to stay or going to go and stay with family is always a challenge. 372 00:28:23,090 --> 00:28:25,450 So somehow, I don't know how it works. 373 00:28:25,450 --> 00:28:27,870 We grew up in a family and then you leave the family. 374 00:28:28,150 --> 00:28:32,710 And then when you go back, put everyone back in the same box again together. 375 00:28:32,930 --> 00:28:35,330 It just doesn't work like it did 20 years ago. 376 00:28:35,730 --> 00:28:36,330 Yeah, yeah. 377 00:28:36,390 --> 00:28:38,150 Sometimes there's sibling conflict. 378 00:28:38,430 --> 00:28:41,290 Sometimes there's intergenerational conflict. 379 00:28:41,750 --> 00:28:43,250 You know, your parents drive you nuts. 380 00:28:43,350 --> 00:28:44,310 Your kids drive you nuts. 381 00:28:44,730 --> 00:28:46,510 You know, it's nice to start the day. 382 00:28:46,590 --> 00:28:49,370 You know, instead of dealing with the family stuff, you go out. 383 00:28:49,470 --> 00:28:53,070 You go for a nice walk or a jog or get on a bike. 384 00:28:53,070 --> 00:28:56,370 You know, you're able to handle things a lot better after that. 385 00:28:56,590 --> 00:29:02,090 It definitely sorts out your mental state as well as getting you on top of things for the day. 386 00:29:03,790 --> 00:29:09,270 My sister had some friends coming to stay with us from France over the holiday period. 387 00:29:09,450 --> 00:29:12,030 And she had three teenage boys at the time. 388

00:29:12,270 --> 00:29:15,130 So we had a French versus South Africa cricket match. 389 00:29:16,030 --> 00:29:18,570 And I think we also had a rugby match as well. 390 00:29:18,790 --> 00:29:21,370 So it was her friend's family versus our family. 391 00:29:21,430 --> 00:29:22,470 And that was quite entertaining. 392 00:29:23,070 --> 00:29:24,150 All in the back garden. 393 00:29:24,470 --> 00:29:25,610 But yeah, it was wonderful. 394 00:29:25,770 --> 00:29:27,710 I remember distinctly that day. 395 00:29:27,890 --> 00:29:32,370 We had this huge Christmas lunch and everybody was about to fall asleep and go and lounge in front of the TV. 396 00:29:32,810 --> 00:29:39,470 And then all the teenage boys decided they wanted to go and have this France versus South Africa match and drag the whole family outside. 397 00:29:39,870 --> 00:29:40,630 And it was wonderful. 398 00:29:41,110 --> 00:29:43,090 Everyone's having a good go at each other. 399 00:29:44,810 --> 00:29:46,770 That does sound like fun. 400 00:29:47,130 --> 00:29:47,350 Yeah. 401 00:29:47,570 --> 00:29:49,830 We used to have backyard football games. 402 00:29:50,090 --> 00:29:51,010 Just fun games. 403 00:29:52,230 --> 00:29:56,370 In real football, you sack the quarterback, you tackle them and all. 404 00:29:56,670 --> 00:30:00,770 So we have to count Mississippis before we can rush the quarterback and tackle them. 405 00:30:01,090 --> 00:30:02,010 It was funny. 406 00:30:02,090 --> 00:30:05,450 I remember when my wife was the quarterback one time for her team. 407 00:30:05,590 --> 00:30:07,730 And we counted our Mississippis. 408 00:30:07,830 --> 00:30:09,670 We started running at her and she got scared. 409 00:30:09,790 --> 00:30:12,750 She just threw the ball in the air, screamed and ran in the other direction. 410 00:30:13,190 --> 00:30:16,290 We've had some wiffle ball games in the backyard as well. 411 00:30:16,990 --> 00:30:17,910 You know what a wiffle ball is? 412 00:30:17,910 --> 00:30:23,710 Well, it's like baseball, but it's with a plastic bat and the ball is perfect. 413 00:30:23,730 --> 00:30:25,290 It's plastic and it's perforated. 414 00:30:25,450 --> 00:30:29,970 So it's light and airy and you can make it curve and dip and do weird things. 415 00:30:30,390 --> 00:30:32,990 The ball doesn't hurt anybody if it hits them. 416 00:30:33,730 --> 00:30:35,670 Otherwise, it's a lot like baseball. 417 00:30:36,030 --> 00:30:37,450 So we set up a little mini field. 418 00:30:38,170 --> 00:30:40,210 Sorry, it has a pedal craze at North America. 419 00:30:40,450 --> 00:30:43,530 The pedal craze where people just have a little peddler under their desk? 420 00:30:43,710 --> 00:30:44,550 No, a pedal. 421 00:30:44,750 --> 00:30:46,590 P, it's spelled P-A-D. 422 00:30:46,590 --> 00:30:48,070 Pedal or pedal. 423 00:30:48,670 --> 00:30:48,770 Yeah. 424 00:30:48,990 --> 00:30:50,270 Now you got to tell me what's pedal. 425 00:30:50,550 --> 00:30:52,090 So it's like tennis. 426 00:30:52,770

--> 00:30:54,450 It's a combination of tennis and squash. 427 00:30:54,590 --> 00:30:59,130 You play it basically on a modified tennis court, but it's got glass walls up the side. 428 00:30:59,430 --> 00:31:03,790 And you can hit the ball into the glass wall and it can still bounce on the court. 429 00:31:04,050 --> 00:31:08,130 And every 35 plus year old person is playing it at the moment. 430 00:31:09,690 --> 00:31:13,330 The problem is, is that people are not warming up properly. 431 00:31:13,970 --> 00:31:17,810 And they're going from the couch to playing this intense game of pedal. 432 00:31:18,030 --> 00:31:24,610 And we actually got an email from the radiographers the other day to say, please, can we, this is how to manage pedal injuries. 433 00:31:24,610 --> 00:31:31,610 Because people are breaking their clavicles and dislocating shoulders because they go rushing into the glass walls to try and get the ball. 434 00:31:31,870 --> 00:31:32,090 Yeah. 435 00:31:32,230 --> 00:31:34,350 The obsession here is called pickleball. 436 00:31:35,130 --> 00:31:39,110 Now pickleball, it's a cross between ping pong and tennis. 437 00:31:39,110 --> 00:31:45,570 So if you picture a court halfway between a ping pong table and a full tennis court, you got a pickleball court. 438 00:31:45,670 --> 00:31:46,830 So there's a lot less running. 439 00:31:47,250 --> 00:31:48,910 And yeah, that's a popular game. 440 00:31:49,250 --> 00:31:53,890 It started out mostly with older folks, but now younger people are playing it also. 441 00:31:54,070 --> 00:31:56,350 I have never actually played pickleball. 442 00:31:56,730 --> 00:31:57,990 But I haven't played pickleball. 443 00:31:58,150 --> 00:31:58,890 I've tried pedal. 444 00:31:59,050 --> 00:32:00,430 I'm not fantastic at it. 445 00:32:00,770 --> 00:32:05,530 But it's making the orthopedic surgeons and the physiotherapists very rich at the moment. 446 00:32:05,770 --> 00:32:06,870 I'll bet it is. 447 00:32:07,610 --> 00:32:18,670 But I mean, that's another thing when you're talking, when we're talking about activity during the holidays, a lot of people might not have been active and now suddenly are getting involved in all these backyard sports and things like that. 448 00:32:18,910 --> 00:32:26,970 And perhaps it's a good time to remind the 40 and 50 year old dads that they do need to warm up and they're not as agile as they were when they're 20. 449 00:32:27,610 --> 00:32:32,090 And we're all legends in our own minds. 450 00:32:32,290 --> 00:32:32,710 Apparently. 451 00:32:33,250 --> 00:32:39,010 I saw someone wearing a T-shirt once that says, the older I get, the better I was. 452 00:32:39,430 --> 00:32:44,310 The memories of how good you used to be just get greater and greater as you age. 453 00:32:44,510 --> 00:32:45,670 That's absolutely true. 454 00:32:45,870 --> 00:32:47,090 Gary, always fun chatting. 455 00:32:47,210 --> 00:32:50,430 Is there anything else you want to bring up about activity during the holidays? 456 00:32:50,810 --> 00:32:53,310 No, I think we touched on a lot of the key things. 457 00:32:54,070 --> 00:33:00,250 Attitude is 99% inspiration, 1% perspiration. 458 00:33:00,710 --> 00:33:01,790 It's attitude. 459 00:33:02,710 --> 00:33:06,750 You go into the holidays saying, I'm just going to lay around, I'll gain 10 pounds. 460 00:33:07,350 --> 00:33:08,570 It's going to happen. 461 00:33:08,650 --> 00:33:10,570 You go into the holidays with an attitude. 462 00:33:10,710 --> 00:33:12,290 I'm going to maintain my workouts. 463 00:33:12,490 --> 00:33:13,370 I'm going to feel good. 464 00:33:13,470 --> 00:33:19,750 It's going to help me keep my weight controlled, manage my diabetes, deal with all my family members that drive me batty. 465 00:33:19,990 --> 00:33:20,790 You'll do it. 466 00:33:20,870 --> 00:33:21,610 It's attitude. 467 00:33:21,810 --> 00:33:22,950 That's where everything starts. 468 00:33:23,210 --> 00:33:25,230 And I think it doesn't have to be perfect. 469 00:33:25,590 --> 00:33:27,070 It's not that all or nothing routine. 470 00:33:27,230 --> 00:33:30,310 It's like, just do better than you did yesterday. 471 00:33:30,550 --> 00:33:32,070 Whatever you can do, just do it. 472 00:33:32,070 --> 00:33:36,010 In whatever shape or form you can do it and keep going from there. 473 00:33:36,330 --> 00:33:36,770 You got it. 474 00:33:36,910 --> 00:33:38,310 Gary, thank you very, very much. 475 00:33:38,530 --> 00:33:41,090 It's been great fun chatting as always. 476 00:33:41,510 --> 00:33:53,410 And I hope, hopefully we've given the listeners and the viewers a couple of good tips and hints as to how to stay active during the holidays, how to navigate their way through it and get on top of all the challenges. 477 00:33:53,830 --> 00:33:58,270 And in our next podcast, I'm going to be talking to Jenny and Dana and focusing on food. 478 00:33:58,270 --> 00:34:03,170 So, you know, look at all the food challenges that come up during the holidays. 479 00:34:03,370 --> 00:34:03,870 That should be great. 480 00:34:03,870 --> 00:34:04,830 Sounds like fun. 481 00:34:05,250 --> 00:34:07,330 Paula, happy holidays to you and your family. 482 00:34:07,650 --> 00:34:08,190 Thank you, Gary. 483 00:34:08,350 --> 00:34:10,989 And you as well, and to all our listeners and viewers as well. 484 00:34:11,710 --> 00:34:15,090 Thanks for tuning in to Think Like a Pancreas, the podcast. 485 00:34:16,010 --> 00:34:22,350 If you enjoyed today's episode, don't forget to like, follow or subscribe on your favorite podcast app. 486 00:34:22,650 --> 00:34:27,250 On behalf of Think Like a Pancreas, the podcast, I'm Gary Scheiner. 487 00:34:27,250 --> 00:34:29,690 Wishing you a fantastic week ahead. 488 00:34:30,270 --> 00:34:32,770 And don't forget to think like a pancreas.