Cold and Rainy

Well it's December, but apparently the rain still doesn't want to leave. At least we won't have to worry about having a drought anytime soon. When I checked the weather before the run, it was 34 degrees with light rain. The only thing that could've made it worse was some rain.

I walked outside with just my ColdGear top on. I went right back inside and switched to a shirt sleeve shirt and water resistant jacket. I only wore short shorts on the bottom. It actually didn't feel as bad as it would've seemed. Maybe I'm just used to 34 degrees now.

I didn't feel very strong early on. My legs didn't have a lot of bounce. The jacket made me feel a lot heavier too. A guy blew by me just after the first mile and I let him go. It was a pain adjusting the jacket's hood. At first, the light breeze would nearly blow it off my head. Once I got it right and the rain started weighing it down, it worked well.

Although I didn't feel strong, I ran okay. My IT band started acting up a little bit after the third mile. I also noticed that my legs were red and they were numb when I touched them. It was odd because they never felt cold. I decided that I'd run to Falls Bridge and turn around.

Going up to Falls Bridge, my IT band bothered me again. I went all the way across the bridge before turning around. I was really concerned about my legs, so I thought about warming up in a portable bathroom for awhile.

A few minutes later, I came across another guy with shorts on. His legs looked redder than mine and a women with him had a very red face. I decided to plug on. I still didn't feel great, but my IT band didn't bother me. It was mostly just a problem on the hills.

The IT band did finally act up again as I was half a mile from Lloyd Hall. I tried picking up the pace for awhile and that's when it started bothering me. After reaching Lloyd Hall, I added on a portion to the circle in the drive by the art museum. That made my IT band worse too.

When I finally stopped, my legs were quite red. I rested and stretched for about 15 minutes in the bathroom. The worst part wasn't the part of my legs that were exposed, it was portion that was under my legs. The wet shorts were a problem for my legs. I put some paper towels under them and survived. It was a little scary for awhile though.

My IT band is still a problem, but it's definitely getting better. Last week, I only made it 4 miles before walking. I made it through the whole 8 miles today, even though I had some struggles. Tomorrow is an easy 4 mile run, as I continue to balance running and working.

7.8 miles - 1:02:03 (7:57 pace)