I don’t know if it was the weather, or if I wore myself out from all of the Indian wedding festivities (blog to come soon), but I had very little energy all week. I tried to run, and had all of the intention to do so, and every morning I woke feeling like a truck had run me down. I wasn’t sick but I definitely felt fatigued and exhausted.
My normal approach to situations like this is to push through, further exhausting myself and making the situation worse. My close friends have seen me do this, and even when I’m beside myself in this exhausting state, I just can’t quit. But I could tell I was past my limit and so I pulled back and took it easy all week. This was pretty remarkable for me since I had lots of goals I had to abandon. And I had to skip two workouts, which was unfortunate but I probably needed it.
I am proud to say that I completed my 8-mile run though—now the farthest distance I have ever run in my life. I decided to head to the Lakefront path because any distance more than six miles in my neighborhood Logan Square can be difficult to complete. So I drove over to the path and parked by Irving Park. I decided to run north, trying to avoid the crowds of people getting their daily exercise in.
It was an interesting run, and I liked the scenery, but I reached Sheridan (and thus the end of the path) before I reached the halfway point of my distance (aka 4 miles). So next time, I’m going to run south instead, so I can run halfway before turning around. In the end, I only had to run a mile past my car and back to complete the distance. It wasn’t until the last mile that I really felt worn out. I also experienced some chills, which I can’t decide if I overdid it with the running, or if the heat was getting to me. I kept experiencing the chills throughout the day, so I’m betting it was the heat.
I also was extremely dehydrated all day, though I did use my new hydration belt. I have trouble drinking water during races, or more correctly, every time I do I feel sick and nauseous, so I avoid drinking while I run. But now with distances like the half marathon, I’m going to have to drink water of some sort while running. So for these longer runs, I’ve forced myself to drink water every mile (or unless I’m really thirsty). I’m happy to report that I was able to drink throughout my 8-mile run with no problem. Hopefully this is symbolic of running to come.
Next week, my long run will take my 10 miles. I’m starting to get nervous about these longer distances, although that seems silly since I continue to meet the distance challenge each time.
I’m hoping next week, I’ll be able to complete the full week of training. I better rest up (and stretch) for the big week.
Schedule for Week 4:
Monday –Run 3 miles
Tuesday –Run 5 milesRan 3 miles instead
Wednesday – Off
Thursday –Run 3 milesFelt really tired
Friday – Off
Saturday – Run 8 miles
Sunday – Off
TOTAL:19 miles11 miles
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