Monday, July 23, 2012

This Ain't My 1st Rodeo

So these miles are adding up quite nicely & very quickly. However, 100, 104, 108 degree afternoon runs are really kind of taking a slight toll on my body, as well as my mileage. This ain’t my first rodeo in the heat, is what I tend to tell myself on the days I feel like I’m running with wet sponges for feet. Ugh… 96 days until the Marine Corps Marathon! Last week was a “light” week for mileage. This week is not. My runs since the last post have consisted of a 14+ miler @ 3:40 in the A. M.! It was wild! And when I say WILD, it’s because of the disgusting wildlife I encountered--- 3 skunks in very close proximity to my legs, 4 deer, a black cat, a white cat (I assume they cancel each other out), one runner about ½ way thru my run & another when I was finishing. Clearly, they were slackers!
We also did the Glow Run 5K, a nighttime run that was HOT (what did you expect?), a bit disorganized, but wholly enjoyable. My time for that one wasn’t too shabby. Last week I ran 6 on the trails & had mismatched (but cleeeeeeean) socks, entirely inapprope shorts, ran out of water, encountered a VERY SCARY creature (so what if it was actually a squirrel, the heat causes delirium!) & I made a less than graceful tuck & roll kinda flip over a root, resulting in a scraped elbow, scraped knee, a scratch on the back & a full on headache!
This past Sat. I ran the Julia’s Warriors Run for Hope in our town of Smithville. It lost some of the “community” feel of last year, but lost none of the meaning. That hill was a bear, but I did it! I chatted with a couple of friends, got some water, a cold towel, had my chip clipped, walked around, had a pic. taken, all before noticing I had NOT turned off my GPS. What a DORK! NOT my 1st rodeo, but clearly I forgot…
So back to being a “pro” in the heat… hilarious! Today’s run was tough, rough, hard, horrid, nappy, scraggy & just plain hard… It was 104 at the start of the run. This is NOT your 1st rodeo in the heat. WHO was I fooling? I have goals for myself, & yes, it remains true… the only one disappointed in my performance is me, me, me. I ran out of water TWICE. The 1st time was kind of a welcome break & a good reason to get some air conditioning. The 2nd time was just poor planning. I was thirsty! Even thirsty, I just wanted to be finished. I had NO patience for today’s run (6 was only 5.11). Having spent a lot of time in the sun yesterday & hydrating with Mimosas was, perhaps, not the best of my ideas. Yes, yes, I had a ton of water too… I find the key to hydrating, especially in this heat, is to keep downing water for days in advance. This ain’t my 1st rodeo after all.
I’ve been tired & if I’m honest, a bit stressed about this Wednesday’s run. On Wed. I will attempt to run the farthest these little size 6 sponge feet have ever taken me. I am scared & just thinking about it makes me hyperventilate a bit. I am worried. I am fit. I am determined. But… in the aspect of running 16 miles… it is indeed, MY VERY FIRST RODEO.
Stay safe, stay hydrated & as always, HAPPY RUNNING Y’ALL!

2 comments:

  1. Good writing, as always, Dianna! I enjoy reading your blog.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks Tom!!! Just hoping to set myself in the right direction. And maybe "inspire" someone else to get moving too. :-))

    ReplyDelete