Diabetics Doing Yoga and so much more with Lauren Bongiorno

[00:00:00] Rob Howe: Welcome to the Diabetics Doing Things podcast. We're back with new episodes in 2017 telling the amazing stories of type 1 diabetics across the world. I'm your host, Rob Howe, and if you'd like to get involved with Diabetics Doing Things, all you have to do is shoot me an email or reach out via Instagram. What's up, everybody? Rob Howe here. Just wanted to throw some gratitude your way this afternoon because we just crossed over 25,000 downloads all time for Diabetics Doing Things. and I owe that all to you. So thank you guys so much for listening. It totally makes my day whenever you tell me that the podcast has affected you positively in some way. So keep listening. I appreciate you to the max. All right, let's get back to the episode. Hello, welcome back to Diabetics Doing Things. We're back with new episodes in 2017 and today I couldn't be more excited for our guest. From New York, joining us is Lauren Bongiorno. Lauren, welcome to the podcast.

[00:00:59] Lauren Bongiorno: Thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited to be here with you.

[00:01:03] Rob Howe: Likewise. I've been really looking forward to this interview and I think even in the short time that we've been talking this morning, I really, really, really want to dive in. It's extremely, I'm excited that you came on. For those of you guys who are not familiar with Lauren, why don't you tell us a little bit about yourself?

[00:01:20] Lauren Bongiorno: Yes. I have had diabetes since I was seven. I am going to be 24 this year. I am on a Omnipod. I'm recently an Omnipod user, just switched from a Minimed to an Omnipod about, I want to say like three weeks ago, almost a month. And I am a diabetic health coach, yoga instructor, boot camp instructor from New York. So I guess that's my little short bio there.

[00:01:47] Rob Howe: That short bio, and I definitely want to remember that because I want to talk to you specifically about like changing and like, you know, changing your treatment method, obviously, like, I mean, even after having, you know, 17 years in, right? Like there's always some sort of new curveball, right?

[00:02:04] Lauren Bongiorno: Oh, yes. It's like, I, and once you get used to having, like being in your set ways, it's like, oh, but it's kind of working. Like, do I really want to change? Like, and then of course there's the getting used to something new, but I mean, I've had, I absolutely love it just because it's wireless, the Omnipod. and I just feel like for my lifestyle because I'm so active, not having that wire attached. Sometimes I'll get out of the shower and I'll be like, oh my God, I didn't put my pump back on and I'm like, oh wait, I don't have to plug anything back on and it's just on me. I love it. I'm having good results with it.

[00:02:38] Rob Howe: I think that suits your lifestyle specifically. I think when you and I were talking a little bit earlier, it's not just health, it's not just fitness, it's also sort of the holistic lifestyle. So talk a little bit about how you, your philosophy in terms of health and wellness?

[00:02:54] Lauren Bongiorno: Yeah. So, and I mean, there's so much behind my philosophy because it's my life experience and kind of what I went through in my journey that has gotten me to this point. But my philosophy is, is that I don't think that there's, I think that it's not just about diabetes, right? We're so much more than diabetics. Diabetes is what we have. It's not who we are. And my whole motto, I guess life model that I live by is decide and conquer. You only have one mind, one body, one chance. We get one life. So let's make it the best we possibly can. Let's be the healthiest and happiest we can. And let's look at all the areas in our life that are impacting that. So a lot of times we'll just look at nutrition or we'll just look at our diabetes numbers. And it's so much more than that. And so I know we'll probably get a little bit more into this, but in my diabetic health coaching with clients, they come to me with goals, whether it's I want to increase my insulin sensitivity or I want to lower my A1C. I want to have more predictable blood sugar numbers. I want to lose weight. I want to start a nutrition plan or diet or workout that I want to stick to. I don't want to just have to start over every single Monday. If we want to get there, we have to look at where they are, look at where they want to be, and then bridge the gap in between. And what's so important is not to just keep your blindfolds on and just look at one thing, but look at everything. So look at stress management. Look at exercise. Look at nutrition. Look at home environment. Look at their career. Look at their relationships in their life. Are they in toxic relationships? Is that making them upset deep down and making them binge eat at nighttime? Like what is it? It's so interrelated, all the different areas. and it really, it's when you're able, it's when I'm able to sit with somebody and they come to me on day one, they're like, I'm, you know, I, my blood sugars are, you know, 400 or even like, you know, 300 when I wake up and I, I just don't understand why I'm just, you know, I'm just, I'm in a slump. I can't get out of it. I've, and I'm like, what have you tried? And they're like, well, I've just, you know, I mean, I'm just, I correct it. And then, you know, I try to, I try to do better the next day. And a lot of the times it's because we don't take the time to slow down and be mindful of, okay, let's backtrack. Let's see exactly what's going on and look at it from all different areas, all different perspectives, just like I was saying before. And then you break it down and see which area you're not really fulfilled in and how can we build it up using the tools and little tricks that we can.

[00:05:27] Rob Howe: No, I think you really nailed it. I mean, I, and I really wanted to sort of focus on a couple of things that you, that you said, there's so much information to like pick through obviously, but, um, I want to focus a little bit on like the maybe non like outside of your typical diabetes questions. So, uh, you mentioned stress and like stress management. Um, and I know you'll read this will hopefully, you know, spark some more conversations between you and I, cause I know you were an athlete, um, or you, you know, still are an athlete, but we're like a division one athlete. For me, when I was an athlete playing basketball in college, I would get so worked up during game time that I would get like a fasting blood sugar would go from like 80 to 400 within an hour with no stimulus, no sugar. So talking about, you know, just managing stress, like I had to come up with a new way to approach a game. Otherwise, I couldn't, you know, perform very well because I felt terrible. But anyway, all that to say is how often does something like stress or like you said, a career or a toxic relationship, how often do you see that that is affecting, you know, someone's blood sugar or outlook or, you know, preparation with their diabetes rather than just like a simple like diet or exercise?

[00:06:41] Lauren Bongiorno: Oh, it's so for me and even in my journey, and this is what made me want to go into integrative nutrition. And just because for me, I realized that my blood sugars, if they were high when they where, you know, when I was before I had this, you know, transformation or whatnot, which we can talk a little bit more about after. But I was, I was looking at once I started realizing like how everything is so interrelated. And I went to the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. I was like, okay, well, my blood sugars are super high, especially for me, like in the morning time. And you know, what, what, what, what, what's the reason? And then I would say, okay, well, I'm eating after dinner and I'm eating the chocolate and popcorn. And like, it was like the minute I would put my fork down at after dinner it was like I had this like addiction to like going to the pantry and like getting all the food and like no matter how like I knew it was wrong I was like well that's why my blood sugar is like I'm waking up so high obviously because of the delayed effect even if my blood sugar was like 130 before bed it would go high because of the fat in the middle of the night and so for me it was like realizing that no matter how much like I didn't like I said to myself don't eat it like don't eat it don't eat that it was because I was really unhappy like with myself and where I was in my own life. This was happening mainly like in college. And, you know, I, to go a little bit deeper into my story, I was a division one soccer player. I went to school my whole entire life was to get to play division one soccer. It was like I, every training, every, you know, travel team and every company, you know, all of that, every college showcase, it was to get to division one soccer. And then I got there and I played and I shortly realized throughout the four years of being in college that I didn't love it anymore. And that was really hard for me because my whole life I identified as a soccer player and that was my whole identity. And the reason why I didn't love it was just because I didn't really click well with the teammates and just like, you know, some stuff I really couldn't have a life. Like I wasn't allowed to study abroad if I was playing soccer. I really We couldn't like socialize. Like the girls on the team would get a little bit like just mad if I didn't socialize with, you know, just them. And I was like talking to any like they call them NARPs, like non-athletic regular people, like college. And I was just like I'm such a personal – I want to like meet everybody. I want to like have this college experience. And so I took yoga actually as an extra credit for just like a random class. Like they were like you have to pick a PE credit. And I was like, all right, I've never done yoga. That sounds relaxing though. it's like a sounds like I could get a good stretch in like as to like compliment you know soccer and everything and every single time I left yoga class I just felt this like this like peace and it was like so much more than just like the poses are just moving it was like the way that the teacher like instructed you to like breathe and just be present and like let go of anything that's not serving you and I think it I didn't realize it at first but it you know really just helped me realize like, why am I doing something that I'm so like, I'm not, I'm not happy. It's not making me happy. And so anyways, I left, I ended up deciding not to stop playing soccer midway through college. And from there I had no identity. And my instinct, my body was to go, because I felt out of control in that area of my life. My instinct was to control what I can control. and that was my diabetes, my nutrition and my exercise and I became super, super, super, super like obsessed with perfect blood sugar numbers, perfect nutrition. I would exercise for like, I would run for like 60, like an hour to an hour and a half every single day, like seven days a week without no rest and like I thought in my head like okay like this is the more control I have like the more happier I will be like the more weight I lose I'll be happier or like the better blood sugars I have like I'll be happier and those are all things we want to strive for like just a healthy mind and body and good blood sugar numbers but not in the way that I was doing it and so I would sometimes like have this like restrict for three months because I was you know so just stressing my body out and then I'd like end up like binging for like a week straight on like food and everything at nighttime. And then I'd wake up, of course, with like the super 400 blood sugar numbers. And it took me a while to, you know, figure out that I was binging at nighttime, not because for no reason, it was because I was really unhappy with myself. And I was really unhappy with not knowing who I was. And I think that was, that was really what happened, what helped me realize that it, you know, it's so much more than just nutrition, because you can tell somebody, okay, like don't binge eat at nighttime. But if you're not addressing the underlying issues, you know, and you're constantly stressed out and you're stressing your body out or, you know, you can't just put a bandaid on and just say, okay, let's remove the food. Like if you bring the food back, the problem is still going to persist. So how much of that is just

[00:11:45] Rob Howe: being worried about the wrong things, right? Because I think, you know, it's easy for us to get caught up in the blood sugar numbers or the weight or the number of minutes exercised every day or whatever the case may be. But talk about the importance, and I think it comes back to your philosophy holistically. We can't hold on too tight to those things, right? What's the

[00:12:08] Lauren Bongiorno: solution there? Yes, yes, yes, yes. Okay. So that is literally, that's something I'm very passionate about is how can we take control of the things that we can take control of, but also at the same time have acceptance, love for ourselves, and know that we can't control everything and for those things we need to let go of. But I think that the underlying first step is really to find acceptance and love for yourself. No matter who you are, if you're seeking it from somebody else or outwardly or you're seeking attention or whatever it is, you're never going to be fulfilled. You need to be happy in your own body, whether you have diabetes or you're anybody else. And you need to find that love for yourself first. And then you also need to treat your body like you love it and not that you hate it. So do these things out of love and not out of fear. Don't, you know, exercise or, you know, have to eat healthy because you're fearful of gaining weight or you're fearful and you're obsessed with needing to be perfect. It's not about that. It's about doing the best that you can. And, you know, I think that I've found a way where that works best for me that I can have a balance between taking control of my diabetes, having really, really good tight blood sugar numbers, but also enjoying life and not approaching that as an obsessive, like controlling, you know, negative mindset, I guess you would say. And so I think I found a really good balance for myself. And the whole thing starts, you know, comes back to taking control of what you can and letting go of what you can't. Like, Like for instance, I'll be really real here. My blood sugar in the middle of the night, this Omnipod, I'm still getting used to it in good places where you can put it like on your body for like good absorption. And I had forgotten I think to clean my arm before I put this Omnipod site on and it got – I think it's infected. So in the middle of the night, I completely – like it stopped giving me insulin. It was – I think it – I don't know what happened. But I was like super high. I was like in the 300s, like which is obviously not good and not common for me. And so I felt like I got hit by a train. And like I woke up this morning a few hours ago. I was just still dealing with this. And that's something where, you know, okay, well, what can I control? I can control the fact that I know now I've learned that I have to make sure 100% that I clean the site with alcohol before putting it on. But what can I control? I can't control this, you know, mistake that I made. And so I need to let go. But at the same time, it's like, okay, but how do you just not let go and say, oh, like, forget about it. And you have to deal with it. So I'm 300. I want to figure out how to get my blood sugar down the fastest way. So I actually just took a shot because I think that's the fastest way, you know, to get your blood sugar down versus like a pump. So I just took a shot and I was drinking a ton of water. And my blood sugar came down pretty quickly. And that's because my blood sugar, my body's pretty insulin sensitive because of the amount of times that I work out. So I have, you know, if those times come, what can I control? What can I control? Not obsessing over I'm bad, I'm not perfect, you know, just kind of learning to let that go. And that's a lot of what you learn in yoga. And so my yoga journey has helped me a ton. You know, I can do, you know, all the fun poses that I post on Instagram, like the handstands, the arm balances, and that's all great. But if you're not applying the lessons that you learn from yoga in your daily life, then it's what's it worth. You're not learning.

[00:15:48] Rob Howe: No, and I totally agree with you. And I think I want to dig a little bit deeper into kind of what you talk to when you're dealing with other type ones from around the world and kind of helping them with that journey of self-acceptance. It's like you just something that you said a minute ago talking about, you know, you're having your high blood sugar in the night. Like you've heard that mantra, right? Like pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional. Right. So I'm going to have, you know, I had I had a low blood sugar the other day where it didn't really make sense at all. And it was I was like 30 in the middle of the day, which like without without a there wasn't like a big bolus or anything in there. I don't know what happened. And I was like, well, I'm going to just treat this low and keep moving because I have no idea where it came from. And, you know, some days are going to be like that. Like high and low blood sugars are inevitable, but, you know, beating ourselves up about them is, you know, is totally within our own control. So when people are, when you're working with people, you know, what are the things that you look for, you know, when you're working towards that sort of self-love, self-acceptance?

[00:16:54] Lauren Bongiorno: Right. So the first step is we need to figure out the things that we can control. So if you look at the things, you know, diabetes is tough because there's so many things that can affect your blood sugar numbers. There's, you know, from exercise to stress to sickness to being tired, not getting enough sleep to basal rates, insulin to carb ratios, sensitivity factors, you know, exercise. all of these things are impacting your blood sugars and that number. And so the first thing is that a lot of times, like I said, we go through life and we're just going really, really fast. I'm like, oh, I had a 30. I don't know why at all. Let me just move on. And then same thing for highs or whatnot. I'm not understanding. I'm not understanding. So the first step is to kind of slow. I slow down with my clients and I say, okay, step one is we're going to go back to what your doctor probably did with you when you first got diabetes, which is blood sugar logging. So I have these logs that I send out and they're kind of holistic approach where you integrate the food and exercise and all those different things. And you're really logging a lot the first couple of weeks that we work together. And it's to see what patterns we can find and what we can control. And we look at basal rates. We do basal testing and we're looking at how certain foods are affecting you, right? You know, it's no longer is it, and I hope that everybody is starting to realize this, that a carb is a carb, right? Different carbs affect your body differently. An apple might affect my body differently than your body. 15 carbs of white bread is going to affect your body differently than 15 carbs of beans. Beans have more fiber. They're lower glycemic. So there's so much to it. It's so involved. But when you're logging in or you're taking the time to be mindful of it and reflect, and that's what our sessions do. In our sessions, we reflect a lot. it's saying oh my gosh well that makes sense well oh my gosh I always thought my you know I just went low at this time but look my basal rate is so off so that's the first thing and then I guess at the same time and you know throughout the program once those things are kind of like taken care of and they you know they decide they talk to their doctor and they want to make some changes with their basals or whatever it is it comes more room to focus on the self-love and the acceptance so you control what you can and then we integrate more mindfulness things more morning reflections evening reflections and this is where I guess the more holistic side comes in so for me I am a big and this to some people might seem a little like like wishy-washy like oh like okay I'm sure that works but like I swear by it like every morning I kind of have like a morning ritual where I get up I, you know, get to start before even starting my day and even getting to the gym, I kind of just do some breathing exercises and then I do some visualizations and use affirmations. So whatever I'm eating that day, I'll kind of do like a, you know, mental taken and I'll, you know, just close my eyes. I'll do some breathing exercises, just maybe breathing in for five, exhaling for five, doing a few rounds of that. And then from there, I'll, you know, see what I need today. Like, Am I lacking acceptance? Am I lacking focus? Am I lacking mindfulness? What did I do yesterday that maybe I had high blood sugars from? Was it because I didn't test for four hours because I was running around? So maybe it was I need to slow down more. Or maybe I was just like all over the place multitasking and I forgot to bolus correctly, whatever it is. So maybe I need more focus. So I would use the affirmation, I am focused. And I'd say that a bunch of times, even out loud. I'd say, I am focused. I am focused. I am focused. I am focused. I am focused. I am focused until I believe it. And while I'm doing that, I'm going to visualize my day, visualize myself focused, visualize myself going through the day, doing one thing at a time. When I'm bolusing, I'm focusing on that. When I'm eating, I'm focusing on that. And when I'm having good blood sugar and visualize myself having good blood sugars. and I promise you on the days that I do that, I mean, it's an incredible, an incredible difference from the days that I just wake up 10 minutes late and I'm rolling out of bed and I'm like, you know, going brushing my teeth, running to the gym and then you have a million things to do and I don't take the time to slow down in the morning time. It's kind of like in yoga. I say when you're trying to go into a handstand, you'll see people just like try a handstand and they'll like throw their hands down, like kick their legs up in the air, like try to get into it and then they get so frustrated. oh my god like why can't I get this why can't I get this but then you look at you know how how instructors teach it or how you know you how you'd be more successful where like take a deep breath in plant your hands shift your gaze bend your back knee take an inhale and kick up slowly just a little bit and then each time kick up a little bit more and you're going to have a lot more success when you start your day from a place of being grounded so you can move into a place of being grounded. And so when I speak about all the lessons in yoga that we learn, that's one of them, like going slow, being mindful, being focused, concentrating, all of those things that you take into your daily life. So setting your day up for success. I actually forgot what the question was,

[00:22:20] Rob Howe: but you asked. No, no, no. It was great. And it's funny, it's very apropos for me personally. Um, really in 2017, I've been working on, uh, being more consistent with my morning routines. Um, and currently I'm, this is, this is actually will be day 50, uh, in a row of my, of doing headspace in the morning. So, um, headspace is a great app that, uh, one of my friends turned me on to, and it's like 10 minutes of guided meditation every morning. Uh, couldn't recommend it more. And it's something that you said, um, you know, really like the differences in the days where I have my routine and I go and I check off all my little, my boxes. I go make my bed. I do my meditation. I have my coffee. Like I think about what's going on. Uh, those days compared to the days where I'm like, Oh, well I slept 10 minutes too late. I better get up and go. Um, are so different. Uh, and I'm just so much more collected, um, and intentional and successful. I think, um, on the days where I, you know, take that step back, take that time to really get moving, figure out what I'm going to do and how I'm going to do it. It makes a huge difference.

[00:23:26] Lauren Bongiorno: Yes. I love that you use Headspace. I think it's a great, great tool. And whatever way, I always say like meditation is going to work different for everybody. So some people are going to thrive when they have a guided meditation. Some people are going to thrive whether it's just visualization, visualizing their day. Some people better with breathing exercises. Some people with affirmations. You know, meditation I think is different and, you know, should be different for everybody and see what works for you best.

[00:23:54] Rob Howe: Couldn't agree more. I think, you know, it's interesting how many people I've run into since, you know, since I've started having these conversations about it. The people are like, oh, well, I could never just sit there quietly and not do and, you know, with my own thoughts. And that was me. You know, I tried meditation in the past. I try and I just, you know, on my own, I maybe made it like four days in a row before I like kind of got, you know, would something else would come up. But the guided really helps me and like, and you know, quiets, it helps me quiet my mind that runs a million miles an hour all the time. And, you know, taking 10 minutes, it's like, it seems like a big deal. But you know, then you know, you just do it, get get into your routine, start seeing the benefits. And I, you know, anyway, I go on and on all day about, you know, what meditation has done for me. But let's get back to you a little bit. Do you mind if we shift gears for a second? Because I want to touch on some really, I don't know, some athletic kind of questions with you as well. Let's do it. So at seven years old, you're diagnosed. And I imagine that you had played soccer up to that

[00:24:59] Lauren Bongiorno: point as well, correct? Yeah, I was in like, I guess, little league, if that's what they call it. I don't know if that's what they call it. But when you're younger, I had, yeah, since I was

[00:25:08] Rob Howe: like four I was playing. Right. So, you know, you definitely have that adjustment there. So I know I have a lot of type 1 parents that listen to the podcast. So for someone who, you know, is dealing with a child who wants to play sports, wants to continue to be active, you know, what are some things, you know, as you're, you know, from growing from being like a, you know, a little league or whatever the term may be in sports to taking it more seriously. And then, you know, to that point where you got like every decision you were making from an athletics perspective was to play Division One sports. So talk a little bit about that. And I want to like chime in a little bit as well, because I think it's something that parents worry about, but maybe you're afraid to ask at some at some times.

[00:25:53] Lauren Bongiorno: Yes. So I want to say first that I I had very my parents were amazing. I really attribute my characteristics now and who I am as a person to them and how they helped me. Obviously, when I was seven years old, how they geared me up to having a certain mindset. I think that I have an athlete's mindset on the field, in the gym, in the yoga studio, and as well in everyday life. You have to have that athlete's mentality, that whole, if I'm down, all right, how am I going to get back up? not letting your diabetes get in the way of it. And it comes full circle to what I was talking about before, which is just you have to obviously take more precautions, but at the same time don't let it stop you from doing anything that you want to do. You're obviously at a disadvantage when you're playing, especially with Division I athletes. When I got to August preseason, I went to the University of North Carolina Wilmington. And the whole entire summer before that, I had trained harder and had managed my blood sugars better than I ever had, you know, really. I mean, it was because I knew I'm going to be at a disadvantage here. I want to make sure that my blood sugars are perfect because when your blood sugars, even for me, when my blood sugar is over like 180, my legs like feel heavier. Like I don't feel as like, you know, fast and as quick as I would if my blood sugars were in range. And even if you're on like, you know, it's hard. I have a few clients now that are young teenagers and they dance and do gymnastics and when they're at tournaments and volleyball also. And when they're at tournaments away, it's like the night before everybody's in the room eating Twizzlers and eating all these things. And how do you balance being a kid and letting them enjoy life but also helping them have good blood sugars so that they're not all crazy the next day. and you have to get pulled out of the game and all of that because that's, you know, then that reminds you, okay, well, I'm not, you know, I'm not good enough as everybody else on the field or I'm not perfect or I can never play, you know, Division I soccer or be a professional athlete because I'm, you know, not normal or whatever it is. And I think that age gap of when you're a child into teenage years is so, so, so important to not make somebody or your child or make them, you know, see that they're different or that they can't do anything or feel like they're not perfect. Um, even though they're constantly being told, you know, when you see a number, it's like your blood sugar number, it's like seeing a gray, like on a report card. It's like, did you get an A, a B, a C or D? Um, and it's very reminding you're, you're reminded of that, you know, seven, 10 times a day when you test your blood sugar. But I guess for parents, my biggest advice would probably be is to let them to let them be a kid right but also to give them a little bit more responsibility um for me I was I mean right when I was diagnosed my parents were very very pro like me doing everything because they wanted me to take responsibility for it and I think that helped me realize that like oh shoot like if my blood sugar is high or low like this is something that maybe, you know, this is kind of in my court here. My parents are giving me this responsibility. Like they told me to test and I didn't test before the game or, you know, whatnot. This is me and I have to do better next time. And so I think that was for me something that helped. But I think it's like the struggle between, you know, being a kid and getting them geared up to have the best blood sugars that they possibly can so that they can, you know, play their best and also on the field when they're being scouted for college and whatnot.

[00:29:44] Rob Howe: Yeah, and I think I love taking responsibility piece because that's ultimately – and I think part of being an athlete as well is like listening to your body and like that's a huge part of being a type 1 diabetic as well. It's like you have to know yourself so well and I love what you said about training and preparing because you're at a disadvantage. like part of that too is like that mindfulness again like hey how do I feel what's going on like you know if I'm if I'm not playing well do I need to look at why if my legs are tired do I need to figure out hey do I need to step out and test for a second and I think like having confidence in doing that and making those decisions especially you know around coaches who are like your you know you're they're in charge of you like they're and like they're your authority figure and you have to sort of say and make that stand sometimes like, hey, I need to check and figure out what's going on here. And I think that's a big step for people, especially for kids. You have to say, hey, I trust my instincts. I trust that I don't feel the way I should feel and I need to figure this out.

[00:30:53] Lauren Bongiorno: Yeah, of course. And I think it, of course, depends on age and how young they are. But I think for me, I was never really afraid. I'm not an afraid of a fearful person. And so I was just like, I'm a soccer field. I was, everybody would say like, you're a bull, Lauren. Like you're a go. Like you're a goer. You're a doer. And I was not going to let diabetes get in the way of this. So like I said, like, and what I come back to, like even, I guess this kind of, my parents kind of instilled this in me, but it was like, diabetes is so much you can't control. but like being mindful and taking a step back and being like, okay, well, like how can I mess with my temp basal rates during this? Let's try this, this game. And the next game, maybe, you know, a little bit differently. Um, I think that the more control that you have over your blood sugar numbers is really like the key and taking that a step back is like the more patterns you can find within your blood sugar numbers, um, between food and exercise and stress and all of those things and writing things down. I'm a huge, huge fan of like writing things down because when you see it on paper, sometimes it's easier to reflect on and it seems like it's a little bit more in your control.

[00:32:02] Rob Howe: Have you, sort of in that vein, give me an example of something that maybe not with you specifically but with the client where writing something down and sort of documenting that opened up a new opportunity or a new solution for you.

[00:32:17] Lauren Bongiorno: Oh my gosh, literally every session. let me think I should like pull up some client session I want to say like let's take this week okay so Heidi she's been working with me she was in my six month program and then she signed up for another six months and I'm going to be so sad when we have to part because we've created such a great bond and a great flow of making of her having so much progress but so a lot of times it's like she'll start the session And I always say, okay, like Heidi, like how are things going? And she'll – the first thing out of people's mouths are usually the thing that's on their mind the most. And so for her, she was like, oh, like I have no idea why, you know, my blood sugars have been so good. And I was like, well, let's look at it. And so we looked back at her logs and we're really seeing like great patterns, great, great, great, great numbers, not a lot of highs. and we're talking and then we realized that two weeks ago, like the difference between the two weeks, you know, sessions, her two weeks ago was not, you know, not very good, her last two weeks. And so I'm saying, okay, well, what's different? What do you think is different between these two weeks? And she's saying, all right, well, let me look at the dates. Let me look at what happened. And so we're looking at the dates and we're talking and she realizes that she was, she's from London, but she lives in New York. And so when she was living in New York, she goes back and forth and when she was here in New York for the two weeks and she wasn't working her blood sugars were worse and the reason for that was she felt like she was like eating more there's so much food out and all the parties and you know things like that with friends and she's not you know working because she doesn't have you know she can't she's not allowed to work here then when she went back to back to London and when I was Skyping with her she was like I'm in this flow of I can tell like I'm testing at this time I'm testing at this time I'm doing this I'm giving and pre-bolusing and it's because she's in her back in her routine with work. So for her, it was just realizing how important routine is for her. And so when she comes back to New York the next time, basically like we talk a lot about like how we can stick to, you know, a schedule and how we can, you know, remember when you're snacking or when you're out and you're doing all these things, how can we, how can we, you know, keep your blood sugar numbers good while still enjoying a fun time but but looking back to that like obviously that routine you know does well for you and like it's so funny because probably hearing this it's like oh it's so obvious like she was in routine in london with her work schedule and everything she does the same thing every day she walks four miles to work then she you know she works and her blood insulin sensitivity is better and then when she's here she's not really working out as much or it seems obvious but for her it was like i have no idea like because most people don't think an environment change can be can be something that is, or like for her, her work was something that is actually very, very good for her. So that's just like a small example. The first thing that came to my mind because we had just skyped a few days ago, but I mean, it happens, you know, all the time writing things down or it's just having logs are just crucial. It is. And I think like, like you mentioned to

[00:35:29] Rob Howe: her, it wasn't as obvious, right? Like it wasn't, uh, you needed somebody else to look at it and ask the right questions, I think. So yeah, I think like, you know, in terms of necessarily like a coach or whether it's a parent or your doctor, like having somebody else to look at that, because, you know, I always think of like the detective's curse, right? The answer is like right in front of your nose all along, but you can't see it because you've been looking at it for so long. And, you know, so sometimes like a fresh set of eyes or a, you know, just somebody to help you keep you accountable or just to, you know, just to open up about it, I think is always, is always beneficial, always very helpful.

[00:36:06] Lauren Bongiorno: Yes, for sure.

[00:36:09] Rob Howe: Okay, so I want to shift gears again. So now we're, you know, as we, you know, kind of, there's so much to cover with you. Obviously, you're doing amazing things. I want to focus on, like, the Type 1 community and, you know, so your involvement there and just, like, the things that, the conversations that you hear happening that give you kind of hope and that you're excited about. What is Lauren excited about from the Type 1 community here in the next few years?

[00:36:42] Lauren Bongiorno: Well, I think that, and I don't know exactly what answer you're looking, if you're looking for a specific answer.

[00:36:51] Rob Howe: No, no, not at all.

[00:36:52] Lauren Bongiorno: Or if it's from me specifically. I think, or what I hope I can give to the Type 1 community, would that be okay to answer it that way?

[00:37:01] Rob Howe: Of course, yeah. And I think I'm really just looking for, like you said, for your perspective and things that you're hopeful for or things that you get excited about.

[00:37:12] Lauren Bongiorno: Yeah, yeah, of course. Okay, so really for me, what I get excited about is when I see that I can give people the space to take control back from their diabetes. So I come, a lot of people come to me on day one and they are down and they're like just in this diabetes burnout or just like can't figure it out and the parents are exhausted because they're waking up 10 times in the middle of the night and it's just like their life is so like, you know, chaotic because of this, because diabetes is so, wants to control every aspect of you. and then you like look back by the end and they hit every single one of their goals throughout the program and their whole lives are changed I mean I get messages and emails from clients that I ended with you know a year ago and just telling me how thankful they were and you know all this all these things and I don't look at my I look at myself as almost like a as a just as I am as a yoga instructor just as a guide I'm guiding you in the direction that you know intuitively the answers that you need for you to succeed. And so I hope that I can touch as many diabetics as possible in the entire country, the entire world, because I think that the approach of integrative nutrition is so, so, so important. And if you think about it, like I work with clients in like a three or six month setting, like compared to your whole lifetime, like that is not a long time to see the progress that, you know, my clients see. And so if you just can, if you can just dedicate like a small amount of your time and see this magnificent changes, like your whole life can be, you can take back control of your life. And so I want to be able to give that on a bigger, on an easier scale, I guess. And I'm working, that's something I'm working on is how can I, because obviously I can't work with every single person one-on-one, how can I scale this? whether it's doing big events, doing a country tour, something like that with, you know, yoga and mindfulness and nutrition and talking about, you know, all of these things that we talked about today and getting people in the mindset that they're not the victim and that if they make the decision to conquer, that they can. and so I'm hoping that the direction of the diabetes becomes that we are not the victim and that we are in control and I'm seeing more about more of that in the community as everybody is bonding together like beyond type 1 for instance they're doing a great job on their online platform here bringing everybody's stories together and bringing everybody together to be able to relate with each other and having that unity. And I love what they're doing. Um, and so I want to, but what I want to add to that is bringing a community together, bringing people together, people with diabetes together, but specifically to show them that they are not the victim, that their mental health is as important as, and their physical health is as important as they're just blood sugars, but blood sugars alone, because if everything else is off, is going to rock the whole boat. And just showing people that it's possible. It's possible to feel incredible. And that's how your body is designed to feel. It goes back to what we started. We have one body, one mind, one spirit. That's all you get. And so let's do it right. Let's feel good and take control.

[00:40:32] Rob Howe: No, I think that's super powerful, right? And I always ask my guests, what's the one thing you would tell somebody who was just diagnosed. And I think like I would just, if I had that recorded, which I do, I would just play that exact, that speech right back for him that you just went through. It's like you can be in control. You know, you can feel good. You can live and do whatever you want as long as you take responsibility and really prepare and treat yourself right.

[00:41:03] Lauren Bongiorno: Yeah. And like, I know you had, I didn't get to listen to the podcast yet, but I know you had Rebecca, Rebecca on the podcast. And she's actually one of my clients. And she's in New Zealand, but she's incredible. She's just a beautiful soul. But we're doing that with her. She's on her, I think, only third session with me, second or third session with me. And so that's exactly what we're doing is we're talking a lot about that she feels like she's a victim, right? That she's out of control. but how can we look at what she's not doing and fix the things that she can control while working on the other aspects of her life so she can be the happiest, healthiest person as she can be because she's a radiating soul and I want her to radiate 24-7.

[00:41:56] Rob Howe: She's amazing and that's Rebecca Ryan and her episode actually will go live this week. For us, we're recording. uh obviously like i have my recordings that are like already done and ready to be published and then uh so as really she's the next episode that goes live so i'm really excited for people to hear her interview she's an amazing person and like you said just like a silly fun soul uh very very very cool person yes so uh so lauren um wow thank you for your time i think first of all it was amazing to get to meet you. I'd love to, um, to connect everybody with you. So like where, where can our guests find you online, uh, or on Instagram or, or social media? So if they have

[00:42:42] Lauren Bongiorno: any questions, they can reach out. Yeah, of course. So my Instagram handle is my, is my name. So it's Lauren underscore Bongiorno, um, L-A-U-R-E-N underscore B-O-N-G-I-O-R-N-O. And then And my website is laurenbongiorno.com. So I have those two ways that you can connect with me. Send me an email. Send me a message on Instagram. If you're in New York ever, definitely message me. We'll go to yoga class. We'll get some yummy, delicious food. And I love meeting people. I love connecting and hearing your story. I just love hearing people's stories. I think we all are so unique. And our story is our power. and so yeah you can find me there

[00:43:26] Rob Howe: perfect and we'll include all the links in the show notes as well Lauren thank you so much for coming on the show next time I'm in New York I'm definitely going to look you up so just be ready to show me whatever pizza spots that are good for after yoga

[00:43:43] Lauren Bongiorno: no we'll go get green juices and acai bowls

[00:43:47] Rob Howe: perfect I'm fine with that as well

[00:43:49] Lauren Bongiorno: that's my call So I say that there's health food and then there's soul food. So one time in my life I was all soul food. I was all pizza and chicken parm and all of those things. And the other side I was just health food, which was kale and just salads 24-7. And now I have a balance of both. So you have your health food the majority of the time. That's what fuels your body. That's what nourishes your body. And then you have time for the times you're out with your family or your boyfriends or your girlfriends and you're enjoying life and you have your soul food. and that's when we'll go get pizza. So maybe it'll be a soulful day when you come.

[00:44:22] Rob Howe: Maybe so, yeah. I'm like right in the middle of my sixth Whole30 right now, so my soul is speaking pizza to me right now. I can just hear it.

[00:44:32] Lauren Bongiorno: Oh my God, yeah. We've got to come to New York for that. If you're going to do it, you've got to do it right.

[00:44:37] Rob Howe: That's all right. Well, thanks, Lauren. Thanks for coming on and we'll talk to you soon. Thanks again for listening to Diabetics Doing Things. I'm going to try a new thing. I'm going to start sending out a Friday newsletter with just my thoughts for the week and some questions that you guys have asked either on social media or that you emailed me. So if you wanna do that, just subscribe on the website, diabeticsdoingthings.com. See you again next time.