Monday’s Sunset
I’m beginning to build my mileage in anticipation of running the Houston Half Marathon in January. I started with 4 miles, then 5, then last Monday I ran a successful 6.3. On Sunday I went out with the intention of running 7 miles…and I totally crashed and burned. I was ready to be done after a couple miles, but by then I was about as far from the house as I could get. I plodded onward, ever so slowly. At 4.5 miles down and a bit more than half a mile from the house, I threw in the towel and walked the rest of the way.
It’s not hard to figure out what could have happened, though. On Saturday, I went to the Y with Jose and ran on the treadmill. Well actually, I didn’t just run on the treadmill, I did some speedwork on the treadmill. I ran hard. Then we went over to Gavin and Jen’s for the evening where I drank at least a couple glasses of wine and zero glasses of water.
Hmm. Hard run the day before, combined with bad hydration? Not really the smartest move, and it made me realize that I’ve got to start taking this seriously again. If I’m going to do a long run, I need to treat it like one. Hydrate well, avoid alcohol the night before, get a good night’s sleep, make sure I eat well in advance.
Last night I ran 3.6 miles where I concentrated on just keeping things easy and comfortable. It went great. Hopefully I’ll be able to say the same about my next long run!
