Thursday, July 7, 2011

Run #5.3 - I Felt So Naked

I hadn't run since Saturday's 8 miler. I was more than ready (mentally) to get back out there. The heat is not my friend. I left my house after 8pm last night, and it was still 82º outside, making this the hottest run of the year for me.  My plan was only 2 miles. No sweat, right? Well, WRONG! Easy peasy? Yes, if you ignore the heat that tried to zap me.

I won some Auria earphones last month from the fabulous blog Impossible Is Nothing. They arrived in the mail last weekend and I was finally going to take them for a run. I really liked them! It was strange getting used to the fit since they are nothing like the cheap ones I've been using for my entire running career. I like that I can control the volume and songs right on the cord, versus trying to reach into my skirt pocket. So that was a success!

I did NOT look like this for a change!
The other difference was that I was going naked. Nude. In the buff. Completely without .... KT Tape. I was actually really nervous. I mean I've been using that tape religiously for over a month now. I also went without any compression socks/sleeves/band. Just my legs, socks, shoes and skirt. To say I felt hesitant to take that first step is an understatement. But I did it! I did my two miles in less than 20 minutes (if you ignore the times I had to pause in the shade to melt). My legs felt great! Today I feel a little tightness in my left leg again, so I'll be back to the tape and compression band for a while at least.

I think I lost 23 pounds in sweat. I've never sweat so much in my entire life, and I'm not even exaggerating. It was just pouring out of me when I got home. I looked at myself in the mirror on my way to shower and I was bright red and glossy. I had a lovely, slippery sheen about myself. I bet I smelled horrible!

So this is progress. A short run, but a big mental challenge for me by going with a naked leg!

You know how I'm totally BFF's with Steve Prefontaine's sister now? (What? You missed that?) (Do I exaggerate? Hmm... ) .... anyway, she sent me this great e-mail after Seattle. We've been talking about my running, progress, injury and if I have a coach or not. She gave me a lot of really good advice that I am still thinking about a lot - and building up courage to act on. One thing she did say is that I may need to back off a little bit (my words, not hers). This is an excellent point. I was talking about this with Biker Boy after I read her e-mail. I see all of you that can run 1,000 + miles in a year and I want to do that, too! I LOVE racing and would love to do it multiple times a month if I could. (Heck, in September alone I have FOUR races stacked up in the first 3 weeks.) Perhaps this is what I get when I idolize an amazing runner that could handle the pain when it came, and all the miles. I just want to be as awesome as Pre, is that too much to ask?? ;)  Anyway, I probably have pushed myself a bit more than my body can currently handle. I'm certainly not going to stop running or give up, but maybe I'll be a good girl and listen to myself more and just back off when I need to. I'm willing to make the changes if it means I can have more "naked" runs.

Yeah, we're totally BFFs. Just sayin'.   ;)

5 comments:

  1. AnonymousJuly 07, 2011

    Pre's sister is probably right - if you can work to build a really strong base, then your legs will get stronger and with that comes more miles and less pain!

    You can do it!

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  2. Here's to naked running!!!!! Wait, won't that tape just fall off with your sweat anyway?
    Are you thinking of getting a coach? I think that helped me learn HOW-WHY-WHEN to take it easy and it doesn't have to be a forever thing...unless it IS Mr. P's sister, just sayin'.

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  3. I have learned the hard way lately that sometimes our bodies just need us to take it easy, whether we want to (mentally) or not.

    No matter what you choose, I'm sure you will keep rocking it!

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  4. We are all made so differently. Some of us can train every day of the week and race every weekend, and some only manage to get in a couple runs a week. Personally, I've learned not to run more than 3-4 days/week because I don't want to risk reinjury. I think you may be going a little overboard with the races. I'd suggest backing off on them and picking out just a couple that you really want to do.

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  5. AnonymousJuly 08, 2011

    So you are the ones posted all over the news running around with a naked leg? Stay cool! The humidity around is stifling. Did I spell that right? Stay hydrated. It is amazing how much fluid I lose sweating in this extreme heat.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for reading my little blog, your comments rock my compression socks!! ºoº