The Heat is On

Last weekend, David and I travelled to the Quartz Mountain Resort near Altus, Oklahoma to attend the Quartz Mountain Music Festival. Pepe Romero, the world-renown classical guitarist, performed at the festival. David is a classical guitarist, and he truly enjoyed watching Pepe perform. In addition, we celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary on Sunday!

Several people told me that it would be hot and humid where we were going, and I tried to adequately prepare. On Saturday morning, I ran six miles with no problem, and I did not carry water. It was definitely more hot, humid, and hilly than I am used to on my typical runs in Amarillo, but it was not unbearable. This made me over-confident for how I would feel on my 10-mile run scheduled for Sunday morning. I set out around 7:00 a.m., and the first three miles were not too bad. I ran for what seemed like an eternity and managed to run only 8.5 miles. Fortunately, I was smart enough to carry water in my Camelbak, but I ran out of water before my miles were up. The humidity and heat were ridiculous, and the hills numerous, and I ran out of steam at 8.5 miles. Thinking that I would make up the remainder of the miles when we returned to Amarillo, I got ready and we had breakfast. About an hour after breakfast, my stomach began hurting and did not stop.

I went to bed early Sunday evening and got up at 6:30 on Monday morning. After doing my hair and make-up, I had some cereal for breakfast. I was not feeling bad and had every intention of making it to work. After my cereal, while filling my travel coffee mug, I became nauseous. A minute later, I was running to the bathroom to throw up. I was sick and unable to eat for most of the day Monday, causing me to miss work and my workout. It even affected my strength and energy on Tuesday, and I took that day off as well.

It could have been food poisoning, although David and I ate similar things and he did not get sick. I truly believe that the heat got to me and made me sick. On days like Monday, all I can say is that I am thankful for the dry climate and breeze of Amarillo! I am heading out for a run today in Amarillo, and even if it is hot, you won't hear me complain.

For more information on heatstroke and heat exhaustion, visit this Runner's World article: http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-369-370--12030-2-1X2-3,00.html.

To Skirt or Not to Skirt . . .

Have you seen these new running skirts? These are getting so popular that Runner's World published an article on the topic in its July 2008 issue. You can see more Runner's World discussion on these skirts at http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-369-371--12738-0,00.html. Before I read the article, I swore that I would never wear a running skirt. There is something about running in a skirt that is contradictory to an athletic event; in my mind, true runners do not wear skirts.

The article made some good points, such as the fact that the skirts don't ride up. Anyone who runs much has fought the dreaded upward crawl of their running shorts. When this happens to me, I am quite thankful for the miracle product that is Body Glide (http://www.bodyglide.com/). However, I just cannot imagine running in a skirt. I wear skirts to work, but these all come to my knees. I do not own a mini skirt that I wear in public, so why would I run in one? The skirt seems to take the seriousness out of the sport, but maybe I am just too serious. I am thinking about buying one and trying it out. If I do, I will let you know.

Weight Gain

How is it possible to run/exercise more than I have in my entire life and my clothes are tight? I have spent the last month trying to convince myself that my pants are tight because I am getting more muscular. However, the ruse is up. I am gaining weight, and it is happening because I am eating too much. I wonder if this happens to a lot of people when they start running? The appetite increases and you eat more, i.e., you eat too much. Maybe it is the dessert. I am still eating similarly to how I ate when I wasn't training, but now I am allowing myself to snack and eat dessert more often.

I envision runners as long, lean calorie-burning machines, and that's what I want to look like. I want to be healthy and not too skinny, but I sure don't want to run 15-25 miles per week and worry that my pants won't fit! The plan is to not do anything about this until after we return from our vacation to Chicago (we leave on the 4th!). When we return, maybe I will start lifting weights and limiting my desserts. I also want to try yoga. I am working on positive self-talk ("this is a learning experience," "everyone goes through this"), but I need to see some improvement quickly because I am getting discouraged!

Burnout!!

I have been running consistently since October 2007, and I finally experienced burnout. This morning I rolled out of bed, slipped into my running clothes and shoes, and put on my iPod. I took ONE step out of the front door and came to a dead stop; all I could think was "I cannot make myself do this today." Feeling extremely guilty, I called my husband, who was driving to work. I explained my predicament and asked him what he thought about me taking the rest of this week (i.e., four days) off from running. Over analyzing as usual, I worked four days off up to failure in a marathon. However, after a 5-minute chat with my (counselor) husband, I realized that I need a short vacation from running. I take vacations from work to refresh, why shouldn't I do the same with running? The distinction in my head is that work is something I have to do, while running is something I want to do. However, running can get monotonous, and maybe I need a few days off to remember just how truly good it makes me feel. We are spending the weekend in Taos, NM, so I will definitely still get some exercise walking around the square, whitewater rafting, and hiking. I am going to reward my months of consistent running with a short break, and hopefully come out a better runner on the other side.

Sabotage...

I ran my first 10K (6.2 miles) this past Saturday. It was my husband David's second 10K (he ran his first when I ran my 1/2 Marathon). Naturally, I asked him for advice on pacing myself for the 10K. He tells me not to start out too fast because it is a difficult distance to run if you run too fast in the beginning. As a born rule-follower, I decide to heed his advice. After all, he is my husband, and he would never sabotage me in order to kick my butt in the 10K...or would he???

After waiting and waiting and waiting for the start, the gun goes off . . . and David is gone. I kept up with him for about 30 seconds at his daunting 7:30 pace at the start, but I slowed down quickly because I was sure that he had started out too fast. I typically do 7:30 pace in a 5K, so I figured, based on David's advice, that I would kill myself trying to sustain that level for over six miles. However, David never slowed down, and I never caught up with him. I kept him in my sights, believing in my heart that he started out too fast, that he would slow down, and that I would catch up to him. I never did catch up to him. I got close, but he just kept the pace and finished well ahead of me. However, I finished with a time of 50:53 and placed second in the 20-29 age group.

When the race was over, I asked David why he started off so fast and maintained such a fast pace. He responded that a friend of his (who is really fast) started off fast and he realized (after the race had begun) that he needed to start off more quickly. Did he tell me this? No. Did he slow down and tell me I needed to pick up the pace? No. Then he tells me, after the race, that you can't start out thinking that you will make up time in the later miles, because it is just too short of a race. Too short??? This is six miles we are talking about.

So he beat me. I should be proud--my husband is becoming a better runner and spending time with me at these races. But anyone out there who knows me well at all knows that I didn't consider that I needed to feel proud of him until a few days after the race was over. I had a pity party for the entire weekend after the race. My competitiveness kicks in, and I have trouble being proud of the person I love the most in this world. David, if you are reading this, I am proud of you now, but I am still not positive that you didn't sabotage me. ;-)

It's Monday Again...

I am sitting in my office tracking the Boston marathon times of my 51 year old aunt and another 51-year-old who works in my office. I am 29 and I can't even fathom qualifying for Boston, but it sounds awesome. Maybe someday...I suppose I need to actually run a marathon before my goals get too lofty. I ran in a 5K on Saturday, and I ran a 23:26, my fastest time ever. It was an absolutely beautiful day. My husband ran, too, and he's definitely gaining on me; he ran a 23:40. It is really fun to run with him, but I don't think I will be able to convince him to run a marathon with me. Saturday night we stayed up really late. I had a few drinks, but I didn't overdo it. However, I was really tired Sunday morning and we had plans to run trails in the canyon. We ran about 4 1/2 miles (I wanted to run 6-8), and I just ran out of fuel. We didn't make it to the Canyon until after 10:30 a.m., and it was already over 80 degrees. I got hot and grumpy, and I wound up with a sunburn. I learned my lesson--it is getting hot outside, so I am either going to have to get my runs in really early or really late. I don't do well in the heat. Last week was a light week, so I need 25 miles this week. I will post my training schedule soon. I have to work now...more later.

Another Day, Another Run

I ran 4 miles with my husband on Tuesday night. My legs were really tired from my 12 mile run on Sunday. I kept up with him for a while, but he ended up kicking my butt. Of course, that did not put me in a good mood. Don't get me wrong, he is in fantastic shape. However, I should be in better running shape, shouldn't I? My competitve nature just takes control, even when I kept telling myself to run slow because I needed an easy day. I need to get over this, because I am never going to win a marathon; I need to take pleasure in something other than beating someone in the race. I am afraid this competitive spirit of mine is going to result in injury if I don't reign it in. Everyone says the goal for your first marathon should be finishing. When I look at various training programs in books, I hate looking at the one that says "training to finish." I need to figure out how to get joy out of finishing this race, regardless of my time.