#ToolsofType1s - 002 - Mandy Marquardt

[00:00:00] Rob Howe: Here we are, episode 2, Tools of Type 1s. I followed this person for a couple years now on Instagram. She's one of the first people that I found, Mandy Marquardt. She's a track cyclist for Team Novo Nordisk, which is the first cycling team with all type 1 diabetic athletes. Pretty awesome. And she's also on the USA Cycling National Team. No big deal. Her hashtag is hashtag racingwithdiabetes. You can find her on Instagram at mandymarquardt. and I'm going to tag her in the show notes and in the post on Instagram. So really enjoyed this episode. Really glad that Mandy and Timo Von Ordis took the time to really give thoughtful answers. Definitely somebody you need to follow and big shout out to Mandy for doing this. So really hope you enjoy episode two of tools of type ones. Mandy's tool is track cycling and inspiring, educating and empowering people affected by diabetes. Enjoy.

[00:00:58] Mandy Marquardt: Hi, I'm Mandy Marquardt. I'm from Allentown, Pennsylvania, and I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age 16. I'm 27 now, and I'm a professional cyclist for Team Novo Nordisk, the world's first all type 1 diabetes professional cycling team. And I also race for the USA Cycling National Team.

[00:01:19] Rob Howe: What is your tool of type 1s? And what's the one thing that a person living with T1D could learn from you or your experience?

[00:01:31] Mandy Marquardt: The one thing that a person living with type 1 diabetes could learn from me and my experience is to be unstoppable. Because I have been an athlete my entire life. And when I was diagnosed at 16, a doctor told me I would never be able to compete at a high level. And I've proven that wrong to myself ever since. And so this platform of racing at the professional level and for my country and living and racing with type 1 diabetes is huge for me. It's an incredible platform to be able to inspire, educate, and empower people affected by diabetes. and I hope that they can be inspired by what I do and what my team does so they can continue and be the best version of themselves and to live a healthy lifestyle and continue chasing their dreams.

[00:02:24] Rob Howe: What is the simplest thing you've done that has helped you with the management of your type 1 diabetes? Where did you learn it or who showed it to you?

[00:02:33] Mandy Marquardt: A big part of managing my diabetes really came from the root of when around the time I was diagnosed, I had an endocrinologist work with me very closely and she had mentioned that I should write down what I eat, like what I did as far as exercise that day, just every detail from the time, how much insulin I took. So in that week, I was able to really see a lot of what I was doing and how my body was being affected by these foods or this type of stress or the type of exercise or just really anything. I really got to see in that week how I was affected and what I could do to just, you know, feel better and be a better athlete. So all around, I just got to learn so

[00:03:28] Rob Howe: much in that time frame about myself. What failures or apparent failures with T1D have made you better at living the rest of your life or made you more well-rounded as a person?

[00:03:43] Mandy Marquardt: I wouldn't say that being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes or all these things have been, And, you know, failures, I did at the beginning think it was something that would hold me back because a doctor told me I would never be able to compete at a high level. And I've been able to prove that to myself. And that's the most important thing. And that overall has just made me a better person because even though it was a setback, I broke that barrier and I proved to myself that I'm able to compete at the highest level of my sport and still live a normal life. and it doesn't change who I am.

[00:04:22] Rob Howe: What unusual or absurd opinion or approach regarding your diabetes do you have?

[00:04:29] Mandy Marquardt: That's a funny one. Yeah, so kind of a joke is, like, I feel like I can say it, is that one thing I'll never have to worry about, you know, since I already live with type 1 diabetes, is that I never have to worry about getting type 2 diabetes. No, but it's really important for me to just be healthy on and off the bike. And yeah, that's, yeah. So it's just kind of my own joke. But it's really important for me as an athlete to show people that it is possible. And you just have to take control of your diet and, you know, be disciplined. But yeah, I mean, I want to live as long as I can and reach my fullest potential with type 1 diabetes.

[00:05:18] Rob Howe: What's your favorite thing? What gets you to smile or laugh almost every time?

[00:05:25] Mandy Marquardt: My dog Ruby is by far my favorite. She is the sweetest. And when I come home from training or anywhere, she's just always so happy to see me. But it's really the incredible community that I have within the cycling and the diabetes community that just makes me really enjoy being in the sport. And that's important to have. people, you know, you being surrounded by people that, um, that you enjoy and that bring you

[00:05:53] Rob Howe: happiness. In the last five years, what new adjustment to your lifestyle has improved your

[00:05:59] Mandy Marquardt: life with diabetes the most? I would say in the last five years, um, the biggest adjustment to my type 1 diabetes that has improved my lifestyle is a continuous glucose monitor because I'm able to really see the data and what's in front of me, you know, it's really helpful when I'm traveling and training to see my trends and to see where I'm at. So technology has really advanced and I am really grateful for that. So there's really no excuse for me not to control my diabetes.

[00:06:37] Rob Howe: What bad advice regarding diabetes do you see or hear that you'd like to address?

[00:06:44] Mandy Marquardt: bad advice regarding diabetes that I'd like to address is that there's a stigma behind diabetes that you're not able to live a normal life um which is kind of it's surprising to me because you actually are you know you don't really know until you're in somebody's shoes like what they're going through so before I was diagnosed I honestly had no idea excuse me what the difference between type 1 and type 2 was, right? So I was just, first of all, not educated enough. And so I think that, you know, just kind of made me ignorant because I wasn't educated. And so we're just normal people like anybody else. We just, you know, how I describe it is we just have this organ in our body that's lazy and doesn't want to function. And, you know, we have the resources today. Like, I am super grateful that I have the resources to manage my diabetes. So it's just to educate people more. And we are normal people. And we, you know, didn't do this upon ourselves. But as far as type 2 diabetes, it's just educating them and letting them know that, you know, your diabetes could be reversible, right? So there's just all these coulds and what ifs, but it's really just comes down to education and just being open to that. And yeah.

[00:08:11] Rob Howe: What priority are you focusing on in your own life currently? This can be diabetes related or not.

[00:08:19] Mandy Marquardt: The biggest priority right now that I'm focusing on in my life is the 2020 Olympics. So I race for the national team throughout World Cups and World Championships. So my ultimate goal is to represent my country and that we qualify as a nation for the 2020 Olympic Games. And that would be an incredible platform to inspire, educate and empower people affected by diabetes. That would be huge. And just to be able to get to that point and that day of racing that I am able to execute and perform my best would be just an incredible feeling.

[00:09:01] Rob Howe: Who is someone that you look up to and what have they taught you? How do you apply that to your life?

[00:09:09] Mandy Marquardt: I do look up to a lot of people in different areas of my life. Um, you know, if it wasn't for Team Novo Nordisk, um, you know, Phil Sutherland, the CEO and founder of the team and just all my teammates and people behind, you know, Team Nova Nordisk, they have given me this life. And I honestly wouldn't be in this position, I think, if it wasn't for my team, um, you know, because they have given me that perspective that I can really do anything. and that support behind Team Novo Nordisk and Novo Nordisk and everybody in the community, we've reached tons of people. I mean, it's pretty cool to have one of the biggest followings with over 8 million followers for us on social media. So we have not only just reached the diabetes community, but the cycling community and showing everybody what's possible with type 1 diabetes. So it's, yeah, I'm grateful for all the people that I've met and that I've come across because of this team and this journey. So I'm excited for what the future holds.

[00:10:15] Rob Howe: What are you most hopeful for? This can be diabetes related or not.

[00:10:21] Mandy Marquardt: I'm definitely most hopeful for so much. I mean, wow, this question to me is like so open-ended because it's everything from just my diabetes, right? So to finding a cure, to being an Olympian, to just being the best athlete that I can be every day. And I want to make sure that through my sport that I just reach people in a way that makes them believe, too, that they have the power to do anything, whether they have diabetes or not. that even if there's a setback, that you're still able to break the barrier.

[00:11:03] Rob Howe: What advice would you give someone who has T1D and is trying to pursue a career in your line of work?

[00:11:10] Mandy Marquardt: Racing for Team Novo Nordisk, the world's first all type 1 diabetes cycling team, we are all racing with type 1 diabetes. so you know we're showing I'm showing that it is possible to be an athlete to exercise you know to follow your dreams even with type 1 diabetes so really anybody can pursue their career or line of work or anything if they really believe it and they have a passion for it because it is possible you're going to have people tell you you can't do it or you're going to be you're going to be even than myself, but really what I've grown and have come strong out of that because I wouldn't be in this position, you know, racing for Team Novo Nordisk and the national team if I didn't believe I could actually really do it. So yeah, really just go for it and follow your dreams.

[00:12:09] Rob Howe: What's the one facet or trait that you think makes you uniquely you? Explain why.

[00:12:17] Mandy Marquardt: the one trait that makes me uniquely me I am kind of awkward sometimes but I guess that that can go in different directions right like people can be like okay this girl this girl is awkward but no um yeah I just really like to make people smile and to smile I mean just I feel like that just says a whole lot about who you are. And, you know, sometimes we all like get in our own head and question our own abilities or what we're saying or what we're doing next. But really, it's just to be who you are. And that's, you know, I love to smile. And that's really one thing that makes me, me.

[00:13:02] Rob Howe: Where do you get plugged into the T1D community the most?

[00:13:07] Mandy Marquardt: so as you know i race for team nova nordisk and i race for my country and you know i just diabetes has given me this team this community um and i'm not sure where i'd be without it and you know i just want to kind of continue to spread that message you know from me and my team that um we're more than just a sports team too where people with diabetes we have the same challenges and struggles as you or just as anybody. And we all want to dream big and believe in ourselves and to continue to make that impact in the diabetes community. And it's transformed my life and who I am. And so I try to definitely be creative with my social media outlets. And I love connecting with the type 1 diabetes community and athletes from all over the world. So, you know, I'm on Instagram and on Twitter and I have a Facebook athlete page and a website. So, yeah, I'm always open to connecting with the diabetes community and anybody that ever has questions. And I try to kind of give a unique perspective on my life on and off my bike. just to share what a daily looks like when I'm training and traveling. And yeah, it's just a unique experience. And I want to look back to on my career and say that I have done everything I could to just enjoy it to the fullest and meet people along the way. It's just, it's an incredible journey. and so right now um I'm getting ready for the world cup season so uh I'll be going to Canada and New Zealand and Hong Kong and I've never been to New Zealand Hong Kong and I'm so incredibly excited to go to that part of the world so just getting to see life on my bike um you know and racing on a on a velodrome so it's it's an incredible experience I don't race like on the road or kind of like Tour de France style. I race on an indoor 250 meter velodrome with on a bike that has no brakes. Crazy, right? But that's why I like I want to fill people in and tell them to, you know, to share my journey in that way. I want to share my journey with them is kind of what I'm saying is that the sport is not so common. It is very common in Europe, but a lot of people have never heard of the velodrome or track cycling. So, you know, the diabetes and the track cycling, it's just a unique experience for me to be able to share that with people. And, you know, yeah, if it gets more people on a bike in general, then that's awesome. And if that gets people to manage their diabetes or be inspired by us as a team and me, then I am, wow, like I feel like I've like done my job. But at the same time too, I want to reach the sport at the highest level and reach my fullest potential. And that is representing my country and myself in the Olympics. Man, that would be huge. So I'm like all in. I'm all in. And USA Cycling, my team, my family they're so supportive and I'm I love this journey so much that I like don't even want to think when it's over I'm just I'm living in the moment and that's really important for me to be in the moment and to be present and whatever I'm doing from just nutrition to training to diabetes management um yeah I'm this is me and I've been incredibly thankful to be able to share my story with you guys and diabetics doing things like this is such a unique community. We're all sharing, you know, ways that we empower, educate, and just let people know what we're doing. And that's huge. So thank you so much. And I hope you guys follow me on my

[00:17:22] Rob Howe: journey to 2020. Thank you. Thank you for listening to the Tools of Type 1's podcast on diabetics doing things. I'm Rob Howe, and every Tuesday and Thursday in 2019, we are posting the next Tools of Type 1 episode. So follow us on Instagram, hashtag tools of type 1s, or just on diabetics doing things. We will post those regularly every Tuesday, every Thursday. my favorite type ones are answering the questions I want to know the answers to. And hopefully you'll learn a few things as well. If you like this episode, be sure to review us on iTunes. And if you didn't like it, go ahead and let me know that too. I want to know. All the feedback is good to me. Thanks again for your time. I value that more than anything you could possibly give me. Thanks so much. Bye-bye.