Not long after he was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 12, Adam Abdin made the football team. Then his continuous glucose monitor fell off, and his coach told him he couldn’t play because he didn’t know what the device was. “I had to choose between sports and my health,” Adam exclusively tells Men’s Journal . “I took off my CGM and I chose sports.”

This Sunday, Nov. 1, the Amazing Race alum will line up for the TCS New York City Marathon with his older brother, Joseph Abdin , as part of Beyond Type 1 ‘s marathon team, Beyond Type Run. “Years later, I’m now running the New York City Marathon,” Adam says, “and I’m doing it with the same support system that I had 15 years ago — my brother, my family, and now Beyond Type 1 as well.”

The Florida brothers finished third on season 38 of The Amazing Race , which featured a cast of former Big Brother players .…