Little Miss Runner Pants

and what is it with 10 miles of running that i just love so much!!!??!!

cuz.. yeah.

ok, so, 7am this morning, i pull into the parking lot. there is.... nobody. lots of cars, gu, gatorade, the works.. but no people. i stand around for a bit pondering the situation, when it hits me (about 5 minutes later--why it took me that long to realize this only further proves my earlier admissions that i am not brilliant.. oy. ) that oh. they probably started at 6am.

so. its kinda sprinkling, its about 35*, and i'm all by my lonesome. whatever. not like this is a new thing for me... and with that.. i'm off.

now then... running in the rain IS a new thing for me. i know, i know, you're probably asking yourself how could this be a.maria... rain is a common natural occurance, how is it that you've never, in all your running days, run in the rain?!

well okay, okay. i have run in the rain. yes its true. but i've never started and finished a run in the rain... and ive never run for this long in the rain... and the rain was never torrential downpour (which, it wasn't this time either, but i just thought i'd put that out there...)

so, point being.. i was unsure of what to expect. i had on my totally cute adidas running pants (totally cute. that i'm saying that about running pants.. i.e. tight spandexy material that clings to my buttocks.. well.. thats saying something about these pants, lemme tell ya!) and a long sleeve and a jacket.. a head band and a HAT! (ooh. definitely my first time running with a hat. Running Chick may just be onto something. i felt uber-running-goddess-chick-like, and the hat may just be a permanent addition to my saturday morning routine!!)

anyway, turns out.. i was perfectly suited to run in the rain... and.. it was kinda fun!

the first few miles, were, as always, a challenge. i've been dealing with some very very tight calves/shins lately, that feel ever so much like steel rods running up and down my legs... but i kept telling myself once i was warmed up, they'd feel better, so i managed to push thru the discomfort.

after this weeks speed-interval session with KK i had kind of assumed i'd have that heavy tired leg feel, but surprisingly... i felt pretty energized, and, before i knew it, i was at the 3 mile mark.... 34:02 without even trying!

heh. how 'bout that..

i gu'd up, waved to a few runners i recognized, and was back out and on my way feeling pretty good about myself.

at this point, the rain began to pick up. it went from hmm.. kinda sprinklin' out here today to more of a oookay. yeah its raining. this is definitely rain and i started to notice a bit of a squishy feeling in my left foot. my shoe was sopping wet, as was the rest of me... but.. what are you gunna do, right?! so.. i ignored it and pressed on.

about 20 minutes later, right at 56 minutes, i was at my half-way point. 5 miles. still feeling pretty good and still a bit surprised. where this energy came from is beyond me, but i turned around, and headed back.

as i'm sure you can all imagine... 5 miles. easy-cheesy. feeling good... ooh yeah. a.maria conqueror of all came out to play for a bit.

i am running retardedly well today. look at this! i'm passing people left and right!.. granted... they're walking... but hey! i'm passing them! i'm friggin on fire! i'm gunna knock out these 10 miles in no time! and its STILL a month away from my half-marathon! thats only 3 more miles than what i have to do today!

hell. i'll probably win the damn thing!!

yeah right.

as always, the feeling of I RUNNER. ME ROAR. never lasts for more than a mile or two... and come 7.5 miles... i caved, and was soon dusting my run with bouts of walking.

not a LOT of walking. but.... walking, all the same. my knees were starting to ache a bit... the rain and the wind had both picked up so i was starting to get a bit chilled, and.... i still had 3 miles to go.

but not all was lost. because i only had 3 miles to go, too!

so i grit my teeth, sucked it up, and finished out my ten miles in under 2 hours.

my one goal for the day... done and done. 10 miles. 1:53:23. average pace of 11:20. didnt break any records, but i was pretty pleased with myself by the end. so with that, i got in my car and drove home... smiling all the way.

cuz ya know what?! i just love me some 10 miles!