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October 15, 2007

This Week's Important Educational Moment In Running

Yesterday I headed out for my 20-miler before New York. I was a little concerned about it, considering I haven't run anything longer than 14 miles since The Pig, but, eh, I figured I'd go for it, see what happened, and the worst-case scenario is I'd get through 15 miles, take a break for a few hours, and then go out and do the last 5 later in the day.

I got lucky and had perfect weather - 60, overcast, and with a wee slight drizzle. Not enough to totally soak me and make me miserable, but just enough to keep things nice and cool. I was a fan. I felt good. I was going to knock this sucker out of the park.

And I did! Things started to get really hurty around miles 13 and 14, so when I got to 15, I stopped and took a few minutes to really stretch out my legs while I refueled. After that, I felt almost as good as new. I'd taken those first 15 miles really easy, so I still had plenty of gas in the tank. I was pleasantly surprised, and decided to pick up the pace for the trip home. Why not? It was only 5 miles. I could totally do that.

So I did, and about a mile into it, my calves started cramping up like nobody's business. It hurt. I was not a fan. But I kept going, drinking the last of my Gatorade as I went. Then the headache came, which surprised me. It was that dull achy sort of headache that normally tells you you're dehydrated. Except there was no way I was that dehydrated. The water fountains were still on, and I'd been drinking a ton of water in addition to my Gatorade. Heck, I'd even stopped to pee at my turnaround point! Then, the brain started working: headache, cramping.... I was low on salt.

I was amazed. I mean, it was only 60 degrees outside! How could I be in need of salt, outside of what I was getting from the Gatorade and Gu? Yet somehow I was. And did I have a sugar-free salt source with me? Of course I didn't. I took one of my extra Gus around mile 17.5, and while it helped a little bit, I needed more than what I was getting. Plus, my stomach was starting to protest all of the extra sugar that was coming its way in my attempt to get some salt into my system. Craaaaaap. Oh well - I had 2.5 miles to go, I wasn't dead yet, and I still had enough gas in the tank to haul ass home, so I did. I was now running on the principle of "the faster I go, the sooner I get done."

My average pace for the last 4 miles of my run? 10:25. Can you say "hauling ass"? Yeah, it hurt, but I was at that point where it would have hurt more to stop and walk than it did to just keep on pushing it. So push it I did, both wanting nothing more than to be home where I could load up on sodium and dreading the end of my run, knowing that as soon as I stopped moving every piece of connective tissue in my legs was going to lock up simultaneously. Which they did, and HOLY MOTHER OF CHRIST did that hurt.

I got home. I chugged down a glass of salt water. I stretched as much as I could, hoping it would make my legs feel better. However, when it came right down to it? It hurrrrt. A lot. I've never really had a major cramping problem before yesterday, and let me tell you that I was NOT a fan. I whined. I stretched. I whined some more as I hauled my sorry self into the shower. Once I was clean, I chugged down another 16 ounces of Gatorade, but I was still feeling incredibly hurty. So I went to bed and took a nap.

When I woke up a half-hour later, I was feeling much better. My legs were no longer achy and crampy, and actually felt pretty good. Heck, they still feel pretty good today. I'm shocked, but pleasantly so. I might not be quite as out of shape as I think I am.

So, important lesson for the week: if the length of your run is better measured in "hours" rather than "minutes", make sure you take salt with you. Even if it's 20 degrees outside. You may not need it, but this most definitely falls under the category of "better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it." Trust me on this one.

Posted by Dawn at October 15, 2007 06:42 AM

Comments

Posted by: W at October 17, 2007 11:14 PM

Posted by: jank at October 19, 2007 09:01 PM