Taking a cue from our multiple trips around Green Lake, Andy and I decided that we would do four 4-mile loops, each time starting/ending at the club. That meant that every 4 miles, we were able to refill our water, ditch out coats, use the bathroom, whatever... It worked out really well, and it was also comforting to know we were never too far away from our home base.
Alyssa ran with me for the first two loops - Andy was way ahead (no surprise there). I'll admit I was really not feeling it when we started. A slower pace still didn't feel all that slow. My legs felt ok but kind of heavy. I just sort of felt kind of blah, and 16 miles is a long way to feel blah. After the first four I started to feel a little better... it seems the longer the distances get, the longer it takes me to feel warmed up and comfortably in a groove. When Alyssa and I made it back to the club after two loops (8 miles) she said her goodbyes and then I reeeeaally started to dread going back out for 8 miles. I filled up my water and was about ready to take off when Katie burst out the door in full running gear. She was a sight for sore eyes! With Katie by my side I felt pumped (ok maybe just didn't feel like I was dragging) to run another four. After that loop there was only one to go - it was just Andy and I, and he slowed down and stayed with me the whole way. What a guy.
Now a few details - Since my plan is take a gel about every 5 miles, I packed two with me for the long run today.
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| It's Peanut Butter Jelly Time!!! |
I took the Razz gel first (saving the best for last) - it had been in the pocket of my jacket for the first 6 miles and by the time I took it, it was really warm. Super gross. The flavor wasn't so bad, but I would not recommend warm gel to anyone. Yuck. I think I will pop them in the fridge the night before my long runs from now on. The peanut butter one was delicious! I'd put it on toast! Ok, maybe not quite that delicious, but it was a good treat after 12 miles. The bad news was that between mile 12.5 and 14, my stomach really hurt and I actually ran holding my stomach. I really hope it wasn't the peanut butter gu that was giving me issues. It was tasty enough that I'd like to try it again.
My body felt pretty good throughout the run. Towards the end, however, my feet really started hurting. I suppose they are bound to hurt when you pound on them for hours on end. Also towards the end, maybe the last mile or so, I was virtually shuffling across the road. I found it really hard to pick my feet off the ground, which is scary because that's a surefire way to trip. Instead of focusing on picking up my achy feet, I pretended that a string was tied to the tops of my quads and with each step I took, I imagined someone yanking on the string. By getting my knees up higher, my feet came up too. It might have looked weird, but it seemed to help!
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| Sweet Sixteen - check out that 10:17 pace! |
When we were finally done, we headed into the club, got a Gatorade, and then went straight to the hot tub. Andy hopped right in - I just put my feet in, but boy did that feel good. What didn't feel good was the discovery I made when I took my socks and shoes off.
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| Big blister (sorry you have to look at my foot) |
After thoroughly inspecting the blister, I have high hopes that it will be a callus soon. My feet are going to be so gnarly by the end of this thing. Anyway, once my socks and shoes were carefully back on, we visited Katie and the front desk, and then... the siren song of Sarah's zumba class started calling me. I know it's pyscho, but I went to the very tail end of it - only a couple minutes. She told the whole class about my running adventures and they all clapped... how nice! I was also glad that it explained to the people near me why I smelled so bad. I mean - I. smelled. bad.
Once home Andy hopped into the shower and I dove into my leftovers from Friday night's dinner with Sarah.
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| mmm... cold risotto... |
I didn't realize until I started eating just how hungry I was but WOW was I hungry! Let's just say the rest of the day was spent eating - although I did get some cleaning/laundry done and finally got my suitcase put away. Now I'm off to bed - my body will be happy to finally sleep!
* One last thing. This time around Andy had a confrontation with a biker (around mile 10). It made him so mad he had a huge surge of adrenaline that he said helped him get through the end. There's a good chance that by the time this is all over, one of us will have killed a biker. Watch out!
Total Miles Run: 197.87 (so close to 200!)
Total Weight Change: -3.0
Great job!! I'm hoping doing my 10 this morning...my right leg is hurting so we'll see. I'm hoping to power through!
ReplyDeleteI haven't had many issues with bikers...I tend to have issues with people waiting at bus stops and being with their dogs who think that it's ok to take up the entire sidewalk and that I want to stop and pet their dog. I'm a dog lover (since I have 3), however not when I'm running.
You can do it! If your right leg hurts too much, just cut it off and hop on one foot for 10 miles. :)
ReplyDeleteA dog almost lost its life yesterday. Around mile 12 this tiny little dachshund charged for us. Thankfully it was on a leash tied to a tree so it yanked back, but if it had been loose there's a good chance I would have kicked it hard. Why do I get so violent on my runs?? Haha. And I love dogs too even though I don't have three. Can I have one of yours? ;)