Gutting it Out

Well today wasn't a pretty day. What I ate the night before (probably popcorn) didn't agree with me. I had stomach cramps and wound up in the bathroom a lot. I felt so bad that I didn't even eat lunch. I slept from 1 PM to 3:30 PM.

I had to tough it out though. I got out of bed and finished my five mile, even when feeling in such awful condition. I grabbed a gel and some Gatorade and headed out to run.

Once again, it was more miserable, rainy weather. I guess it's my fault for saying how I like running in the rain. I'm getting really sick of it though. I like the warm summer rain, but this stuff sucks.

Once again, I went out overdressed. I wore a hat and my light jacket over a T-shirt. I still threw on shorts at least. I was quite hot throughout the run though.

I decided to start at Lloyd Hall and then run a mile out and back along Kelly Drive. Following that I ran the Schuykill Banks loop for the five mile total. Breaking the run into two short loops made it much easier.

I felt very good on the first loop and really started to fly. I caught a girl just before the turnaround. I decided to continue to really push myself and run hard until Lloyd Hall. I then slowed until the Schuykill Banks part flattened out. Right before that, I was passed by a fast runner, but decided not to go with him.

I then ran hard through the turaround on the Schuykill Banks loop. I just missed passing another girl that was going pretty fast. She turned off at the end of the path though. I continued to run hard until my watch hit the 30 minute mark. After that, I slowed and cruised to the finish for a cooldown.

While I was able to run at a fast pace, my legs were still sore from the long run the other day. The 16.5 miles really gave them a pounding. They just didn't have any zip in them. Now is the biggest week of training though, so it's not the time to worry about them. I'll be cutting back once this week is done.

Tomorrow, is a 10 mile run. I'll likely run the loop, plus a short add on. Sticking to the flat portions of the trail on both sides of the river has been a big help lately. I'm feeling as good as I have in awhile and I'm very confident.

5 miles - 40:28 (8:06 pace)