22 miles Closer to the Marathon

This pic is near the finish of the Race for the Taste 10K I did at Disney last month. I probably felt today like I looked there - but I also felt a high level of accomplishment:

First - I breached the 20 mile distance!!! I ran 22 whole miles today.

Second - I didn't hit "the wall". I was able to run all the way through without battling the wall or its evil effects.

Third - I ran for a longer time than ever before (well, it stands to reason since I ran a longer distance than ever before). 4 hours, 41 minutes 34 seconds. This is 50 minutes longer than my last really long run of 18.75 miles. My pace was 12:48 - a good pace for a long training run.

The weather: It was a great day for a run in Central Florida. When I started, right about at sunrise (6:45 am), the temperature was about 45 degrees F. It was a bright sunny day, so it did warm up, but not too much - probably to about 65 degrees by the time I finished.

What I wore: I wore shorts, a long sleeve running shirt (wicking capable), a running hat and gloves. The gloves helped keep me warm through the first 10 miles of my run. I wore my sunglasses for the bright sun I was going to finish in. I put Icy Hot on my legs to help keep the muscles relaxed. I used Body Glide on my feet and areas on my body that tend to chafe. I wore my Fuel Belt which allows me to carry 28 oz of water and Gatorade, my gels, my iPod, my cell phone and my pepper spray ('cause you never know).

What I ate: I ate some Sharkies about 30 minutes before I ran, to begin the fueling process. I took 5 Cliff Shots (Chocolate - no caffeine) to keep me fueled while I ran.

Who I ran with: I ran with my iPod for the first 10 miles, then I had the privilege to run with my friend Shirley for the last 12 miles (she ran with me a couple of months ago on a previous 12 mile run). It was great having the company - especially as we finished up the last couple of miles. (Thanks, Shirley!!).

And the run....

Since this was a particularly long run, I planned to take walking breaks more often than on my midweek runs. I ran 8 min and walked for 1 min. Walking breaks allowed me to consume gels, drink water, etc. I had planned to meet Shirley 2 hours after starting. It took me 2:02 to get to our meeting point - so it worked out well. I stopped to refill my water bottles and off we went. At about 17.5 miles, I was nearly out of fluids so we stopped at a convenience store for water. Then from there it was just hanging in there. At about 21 miles both my feet were hurting (my heel started around 10 miles) but my muscles felt ok. When we reached the finish, I had a little energy left to sprint a bit to the end.

After the run: Ice bath. This time I added more ice and kept a shirt on (it gets a bit cold). It took about 6-8 min for the shivering to stop :-) But I soaked for a good 12 minutes. My husband took care of me by bringing me a banana and apple to eat, vitamins to replenish and then to help me out of the tub (the legs were a bit numb and my left foot was very sore).

Epilogue: Tonight we had a wonderful dinner - and afterwards I went with my husband for a stroll around the block - around a mile. Legs felt fine and even my foot felt ok. The sky is full of stars - what a day!!!