um ouch

Okay, so yesterday was the biggest run I have ever done in my whole life! 18 MILES. Really. I didn't think it was possible, but I did it!

It all started out so wonderful. I left the house at 5:20 am, and the weather was gorgeous! Overcast, cool, with a couple sprinkles here and there. Perfect running weather, except for the 50% humidity. It didn't bother me too much though, because even though I sweated more buckets than normal, I had plenty of water in my trusty camelbak. I started out super slow, because I knew if I started out too fast that would be the end of it, I would never be able to hold out for the whole 18 miles. I took the east-west greenbelt that runs behind my neighborhood, and I ran from Greenfield to Power road, then turned around and ran alllll the way to McQueen road. Then I came back to Greenfield and ran a small loop around my neighborhood for the last two miles.

Needless to say, it was painful. When your feet aren't used to going that far, it starts to kill big time. I must admit that there were tears between miles 14 and 15, but I just complained to myself for a little bit then moved on. Seriously, my feet were screaming at me to stop, but I had no choice but to keep going. The sun came out at around 9, which didn't help me much. It turned hot pretty fast! And I won't even pretend like I ran the whole thing, I did take a couple short walking breaks and ended walking the last mile or so, because my feet just couldn't take anymore pounding.

I would not have finished this run without the Clif Bloks that I bought the day before, they're like these chewy fruit snack things that are pure carbs with some electrolytes thrown in, which gives me the energy to keep going. I ate two packs of them, and it definitely made a world of difference.

So yeah, that was my run! I am extremely sore right now, everytime I stand up after sitting down for a while it hurts a lot! This coming Saturday I have 8 miles to do (easy stuff!), then the week after that is 20 (gulp!), and then it is three easier weeks until the marathon. Oh man. I'm gonna admit, I want this to be over! Training is hard!

And on an unrelated note, I have recently become obsessed with the show Psych. Season 4 just started, and I've seen most of season 3. I just bought seasons 1 and 2 on Ebay for cheap, yay! So if you haven't seen it before, I HIGHLY recommend it!

Aren't Shawn and Gus adorable? Haha! I find Shawn (the one on the left) extremely attractive.

Reunited and it feels so good!

Welp, after missing two long runs in a row and practically no running for the last two weeks because of vacations, I am back into full swing into marathon training. I ran outside just now, on the street, for the first time in a long time and it felt way good. For the last two months I have been doing mostly treadmill running, but I finally couldn't take it anymore and went for my Monday run on the street! Reunited and it feels so good! Although, I could do without the people in cars yelling, honking, and leering at me. Kind of scary when you're running along at 9 at night and all of a sudden a car honks at you. Makes me jump!

There is less than two months left until St George, but I am confident I can at least finish. At the beginning of training I had all these unrealistic expectations about what time I could finish in, etc., but now my main goal is to finish within 5 hours and with a smile on my face. And preferably not puking. Haha. Running in the heat has slowed me down considerably, but I am hoping for cooler weather in St G so that I can maintain a better pace throughout.

This last weekend I went to Havasupai, and it was freakin amazing! I was so excited to see the differences from the massive flood last year, and it sure did not disappoint! There is an entire new canyon that was formed which has two new waterfalls in it, and it also caused the river to completely bypass Navajo Falls, which are now bone-dry. I put up my pictures on Facebook, but they do not give the place justice! Also, I thought I was in pretty good shape for this year's hike, but nothing can really prepare you for strapping on a 35-pound pack and hiking 22 miles round trip. Needless to say, I am extremely sore (made tonight's run interesting!) but I am still looking forward to the next time. Don't know when that will be for sure, because of some maybe plans for the future that may involve 18 months of being away from home [hint, hint ;)] but we'll see. As it is, I absolutely loved the trip, the people I went with were way fun, and I have some great new memories. Nothing can compare to last year though, when we got caught in a flash flood on the way out, totally long story though that I don't feel like typing out.

Anyway, I am excited to immerse myself in the training once again. School starts in two weeks, I am babysitting a couple times a week for auntie Annie, and I am training for a marathon. Don't you just love being busy?