Week #9 recap

Weekly Mileage: 34.48

Monday: Rest Day

Tuesday: Rest Day - I was supposed to run but had alarm issues and missed my run. I was pretty nervous about running as I had been sore since last week and was unsure how I would feel, but was still upset because I needed to get the miles in before the weekend.

Wednesday: I ran without the heart rate monitor so I could just try out the legs without worrying about pace or heart rate. I got 5.56 miles in at a pace of 8:24 but still felt very tight and sore.

Thursday: We were heading to the beach for a long weekend so I was only able to sneak in 2.55 miles  at an average pace of  8:34 again I felt very tight with deep muscle soreness. I have been spending extra time at night stretching but just can't seem to get my body to loosen up. I'm assuming its from the amount of miles I have been piling up but had hoped my light week last week would help me recover, if anything I felt like I got tighter even with the extra rest and shorter distances.

Friday: I decided to get in a few miles and hopefully build some confidence for my long Saturday run. I ran along the boardwalk at Seaside later in the day and got just over 4 miles in at a 7:49 pace. I still felt tight but did feel better and I think the warm weather and faster pace helped me loosen up a bit.

Saturday: was my long run day (3 1/2 hours) I took off about 7am and planned on coming back to our rental about 2 hours in to refill my water bottles and grab another gel. The run started off o.k. But quickly became daunting. I realized the boardwalk was only 1.5 miles from end to end and that I may go insane running that same stretch about 17 times give or take so I headed for the beach. The mistake I made was going to the beach in an area with a lot of soft sand this made for an interesting experience as the sand came in my shoes and attached to the Vaseline on my toes (it helps avoid blisters) I was only a few miles in and realized it would be a miracle if my feet could make it through 3 more hours of running with sand stuck in between my toes.

After about an hour the run became mentally challenging I wasn't feeling great and all I could think about was that I still had 2 1/2 hours of running left. I gutted out another hour wanting to quite many times and then headed for the rental house to refuel. I'm not sure if it was the short break or seeing the family but after about a 5 minute stop I was off again and feeling pretty good. I started alternating my route from the boardwalk to the beach and was running much faster over the next hour then in the previous 2. Things were going pretty well until about 3 hours in (right at mile 19) there is something about mile 19 where you just want to weep you may not even be hurting but mentally and spiritually you have fought with yourself to keep going and something inside finally gives in.

I was feeling pretty spent when an older guy caught up to me and had some encouraging words. He said "how's it going" and told me good job and then mentioned that my form looked great (which at mile 19 I can only believe was a complete lie) he asked how my run was going and how long I had been out there I told him I just hit 19 and he said oh good. Then he paused looked at me strangely and said 19 minutes or 19 miles? I said miles. He asked if I was training for something and we began talking and running together, he told me he is in his early 60's and was in town from Las Vegas. He runs 10k's and half marathons mostly (over 450 all time) we ran together for almost 2 miles before he was done, but it was a great distraction and very uplifting right when I needed it.

I thought things would just finish up without much excitement the rest of the way (and I really wish they had) but just after mile 21 a lone seagull starting screeching and dive bombed right for my head. I ducked quickly with the little energy I had left and strained my neck in the process. The bird kept circling and making the horrible noise so I changed directions and and got out of there. Now the thing is that act of ducking from a crazy bird might normally take a unnoticeable amount of energy but when your 200 minutes into a 210 minute run it pretty much uses up everything you have left. Fortunately I was able to finish the run and got in 22.29 miles at an average pace of 9:23 (not bad for at least half of it being on the sand)

All in all it went well I suppose it was a challenge and an adventure and that's why I do this type of stuff. I hope next week I am healthy enough to do it again (minus the bird)

Sunday: Rest Day