Week 8: Long Run - 9.5 miles

I spent part of the week leading up to Saturday being nervous about what would be my longest run/walk yet. In an attempt to re-route my thinking, I started visualizing run/walking the 9.5 miles. This did help calm my nerves. Along with reminding myself that the actual day wasn't here yet, and being in moment needed to remain my focus as well. I got to go to sleep at a decent time Friday night which was about 11 p.m.

I woke up at about 6:10 a.m. wide awake. This is new for me. I used to hit the snooze alarm at least 3-4 times before getting out of bed on a Saturday. And now I can't even fall back to sleep for one snooze hit. I did my yoga practice as usual. It is getting slightly easier to have non-judgement about my thoughts while meditating and practicing which helps to be in the moment too.

I got my gels, water bottles, and key holder for my shoe gathered up and set out for the Cascade Valley Towpath trailhead on Memorial Parkway to meet Allison. Being nervous can make me cranky, so I'm glad Allison was chipper because it dispelled my cranky nerves. With a reminder to not go all out on the first mile, we set off north on the trail. We had just walked together on Thursday night, so it amazes me just how much we actually have to talk about.

We hadn't went very far on this trail when we run/walked it on Wednesday. So, we didn't really know where we would go or what was where as far as restrooms and water stops.  This actually made me miss Sand Run trail. It just goes to show how much the familiar is comfortable just because it is familiar.  I knew the trail markers, the rest stops, the scenery and the people. This trail felt like a stranger. But a stranger that I wanted to get to know. 

One of the nice things about the Towpath is that it was pretty flat compared to Sand Run on the section that we run/walked. It was also nice to have new scenery, new things to discover. The Towpath ran into Merriman Road which is the road that Sand Run is off of. I got to show Allison where Blimp City Bike Shop is. That's the shop that is fixing up my mountain bike. Passed Bruegger's Bagels. We also tried our new Hammer Gel. Allison tried orange and I tried the raspberry. I had been using Clif's Shot Blok's Electrolyte Chews which are kinda like gummies. So the actual gel was an odd texture and taste. Not bad, just odd. The raspberry Hammer Gel reminded me of a less sweet, more runny version of jelly. I'm not sure that I noticed a performance difference between the two. I like them both.

Soon we got to our half way point (4.75 miles), it was so exciting. I wasn't exhausted and I didn't feel like puking. A little crazy that we had to go back the same distance that we had just come, but one step at a time we'd be able to do it. Allison had also recently realized that we hadn't come across a bathroom or a water stop. We decided to ask a fellow runner. He happened be quite a cute fellow according to Allison. He suggested that we get water and use the bathroom at Bruegger's. We walked over the grass barrier and headed into Bruegger's.

It was comforting to see that we were not the only ones who were sweating at Bruegger's. It was a hopping joint for 8:30/9 am in the morning. I just remembered that is was really quite foggy the majority of the morning. It was appreciated as the Towpath trail is not as shady as the Sand Run trail. For some reason we didn't do as much positive talk this morning throughout our entire run/walk as we have on other mornings. Saturday, it was probably about the last 3 miles.

I really ended up liking the Towpath trail. It was probably better practice for the actual half-marathon because it was more open, and it has a section that is run on the sidewalk.  I also liked that because the tri doesn't have road closings for the race. The people were just as friendly as they were on the Sand Run Trail too. The last mile to mile and a half were probably the toughest. Allison feet and one knee started to bother her again. So, we tried to go it slow and steady. We definitely busted out the Miley Cyrus "Party in the USA." Laughing still makes it harder to breathe, but it helps my mood so I guess it's worth it.

We probably walked the majority of the last half mile. But we made it back to the beginning of the trail in 2 hours and 35 minutes. It was such a thrill to yet again complete another run/walk that I used to think would be impossible! My body was sore enough. I could tell that I just ran/walked 9.5 miles, but nothing particularly hurt except the side of my neck. The tendon or whatever that is in the front of my hips seemed to be the most sore thing other than my neck. Overall, I was in pretty decent shape.  Oh, the last notable thing that I noticed was that I actually had sweat dripping down the front of my lower leg.  I don't know that I've ever noticed that before. And it wasn't just one lone drop sliding down my leg. It was a lot of sweat on both legs. I think that I'm just fascinated that I was able to exercise enough for this to happen. Namaste.