Runner or Mexican Day Worker?

Well, the run that I was both dreading & dreaming about has come & gone. Today’s run was neither creative, scenic, easy, very much fun, or even dreadful. Today’s run seemed to be sponsored by the letter “R” for Reptile… 2 snakes (although it’s possible one was a large string of some sort, but I don’t think so, considering its slithering movement next to me), a turtle (hey turtle! wanna race?) who may have very well beat my speed if given the opportunity and a raccoon. Yes, I know raccoons aren’t reptiles, but he was worth mentioning, as his teeth were really quite lovely…

I knew for sure this run would be damned because of my new fuel belt. I couldn’t get it tightened enough & the bottle kept slipping out of the pouch. So, I threw a mini-tantrum & stripped off the belt. This, ironically, wouldn’t be the last thing I stripped off during this run.  Because of the whole belt “issue” I had to adapt my plan. My plan was for a glorious 8 miles one direction, 8 in the return direction. Instead, I broke the run down into 4 miles out, drink, 4 miles back, drink. Rinse & reeeeeepeat…

Surely the run was not only damned because of the belt “issue”. As I was expertly running along, a man slowed down in his truck & hollered something out of his window. He then slowed his truck down, as if waiting for me to answer. With this, I took out my ear plugs & asked what he said. He wanted to know what was going on with a road construction sign. I wanted to say, “What? Do I look like a Mexican day worker?” Don’t gasp… I kind of do at this point. And I can say stuff like that, because technically, I’m ½ Mexican. And I am currently, very, very dark… Perhaps that’s what stumped him, but I think he said he thought I’d know because of my shirt- florescent pink! Maybe if it was orange. Because of that interlude & because it was 105 degrees, the shirt was stripped off. Now, with that being said, I am a fairly modest person. Yes, occasionally, I take pictures of my sunning legs, but it’s not like they’re my boobs. Mainly, I don’t take pics of those, beeeeecause, I don’t have any. Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh…

Anyway, on one other run on this same road, I was offered a ride by one of Smithville’s finest. On this run, I was offered a ride by a MO State Trooper. Don’t I feel extra special! Pretty sure though, if I had accepted the ride, I would’ve been hauled straight to the loony bin, because really, no one in their right mind is running in this weather. When I declined today’s ride, I was offered water. Of course, I took it. We topless day workers need water too…

For today’s 16 mile run, I had planned on going 1^st thing this morning- alarm was set for 3:30. I reconsidered at 2:00 after a dog “issue”. My plan for this afternoon’s run was took take a different route, go straight out one way & then return. None of that went according to plan. What kind of went accordingly was my pace. Having never run this distance before, I wanted to go slow & steady. That I did- FOR SURE! Slow & steady turtle… wanna race?!

I’m starving & pretty sore, so I think some dinner & ice are in order for the remainder of the evening. Happy running y’all!!

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 1^st 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 1^st 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 1^st time was kind of a welcome break & a good reason to get some air conditioning. The 2^nd 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 1^st 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!

My Hopes for All Runners

I wish I could be all “technical” here about running, about form, times, splits, speed work, etc., etc., but I cannot. I’m not THAT type of runner. What I am is a visual runner. I see things differently in my runs each time. I hope that rings true for each runner and walker out there. When I really started running outside, I noticed all of the things that were so unusual about the usual. When you pass by places in a car, you never really SEE those places. When runners concentrate on their paces, heart rates, mileage, form, the beauty of the run may sometimes be lost. Maybe not, I could be wrong; it’s been known to happen.

My hope for every runner, walker & cyclist out there is that the everyday beauty of our surroundings be fully appreciated. The way the flowers blow in the wind, the way the hot air from a car feels as they race by, the way the smell off the lake is intoxicating sometimes, the way the sun feels against the skin, the sound the feet make as they hit the ground. Those things are all things I pay attention to as I run. I also pay attention to my pace patterns as the music thumps in my ears. I feel a great release from all of the stressful and ordinary things in life. That is WHY I run.

Every runner out there has a different mission, if you will. But I do hope that on one of the runs, the mission is pure appreciation for the great things your mind, body and soul are accomplishing. Take time to smell the roses seems really very blasé, doesn’t it… if you do though, be sure to take it in, tell someone else about what you experience. Be sure to wholly enjoy each run. Happy running y’all!

Dirty Laundry & Dirty Secrets

Well I haven’t posted in a while, not because I didn’t have anything to say… I was just worn out. Loading, unloading, hauling, unhauling, packing, unpacking. Anyway, I did an “interesting” trail race last week. It was a nighttime 10K that was a disaster! My friend Courtney & I are in NO way cut out for that kind of running… it was ‘get yourself murdered’ dark & 100 degrees. I’m still stumped by our decision to tackle that one. Anyway, we can say we did it & will never have to do it again.

I’ve been a bit miffed with myself since my long 12 mile run on Wed. turned into an 8 miler on Thurs. & 2 of those miles were walking. I got a nice offer for a ride by one of the town’s Po-Po, I declined. Looking back, I shoulda hopped in. At least I would’ve gotten to ride in the police cruiser.

This morning’s run, & I use that term loosely, was HOT, short, a little walking & a whole lotta disappointment. Not that I walked, or that it was 4 miles, but that I just had that irked attitude still from Thurs. At least it was good company thanks to my friend Melissa. And afterwards was a great visit w/friends over coffee.  

I know I’ve been moving this week & life has been a wreck & so has my eating & sleeping, but I guess I see that as no excuse to already being a week behind in my marathon training. Ugh, Oct. will be here entirely too soon I’m afraid.

I decided I was feeling well enough after a walk/run, coffee, a shopping trip & a few mins. at home, that I dusted off my old runners, strapped on my water belt & headed back out the door. I tried a new route to the lake today & was pleased enough. After 5 miles, I rested on the shoreline of the lake & drank my water in the shade. I wanted desperately to slip my shoes off & feel the waves, but I feared wet feet=blisters. After a nice break, I headed back towards home. With only 3 miles left, I was feeling pretty good about my water supply. This is where the run got a little iffy… There’s gonna be a ton of traffic on a bloody hot day on the main road to the lake. Why didn’t I see that one coming?  I spent a lot of time on the side of the road. At this point I was drenched in sweat & just kind of ready to be finished. I kept hoping for someone to just sweep me off the road & take me out to the lake on their boat, but nope. Because of the very busy & hilly road, I thought smart & decided to cut thru a neighborhood. PS… that added about ¼ mile to the run I wished was finished…

I found a shaded tree to stand under & also found a need to ‘flush my hush,’ so with a little coolness & a little coyness, I did. What the hell, I was already soaking wet… what?! I drank the rest of my water, leaving me w/the feeling I just knew I would die before I made it the rest of the way home. So what if I could actually SEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE my house at that point. The mind plays dirty sometimes. Just knowing that, I kicked it into high gear & tidied up that run, completing 8.25 more miles for the day.

I stripped down in my front yard & relaxed with my water. When I got up, there was a nice puddle where my toosh was. I’ll be honest here, because I think I can be… IDK if it was water, sweat orrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr… aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaanyway. Probably a mixture of all. Oh well. Knowing it was probably a mix, I stripped off the rest of my clothes in the garage, promptly placed them in the brand new washer & off I went to shower.

I didn’t realize the garage door was still open. But that’ll be our little secret. I felt better about the 2^nd run, as well as my miles for the week. Happy running y’all!