Week 3: Conquering 3 Miles...Well No Quite

June 19th: The Outer Loop

After recovering from the Corporate Challenge on Wednesday I headed to my group training session (GTS) bright and early Saturday morning in Prospect Park. I got there early, around 8:15, and relaxed in the park while waiting for the rest of the team. From the beginning of our season, the coaches have gone on and on about how hot it will be training during the summer and the importance of staying hydrated...blah, blah, blah. Well this all became very real for me in week 3.

The beginner runners did the outer loop of Prospect Park, which is approximately 3.3 miles ( http://www.prospectpark.org/media/file/distance_maprev2.pdf ). Around 8:45 after some announcements and our mission moment we began our runs.

We started out on the shady side of the park. I was feeling good, catching a breeze, and chatting with my mentor. This was a much better start than Wednesday. Then we came out of the trees and the hit the sun, it all went south from here. I guess I thought well it's 9 in the morning the sun won't be that strong but I was wrong! I felt like I was slowly but surely melting away, I could feel the sweat dripping down my neck and I wasn't even running that fast. Suddenly it became much harder to keep up with the group. I looked over to my mentor and another runner and they're just chatting it up as if we were not being baked alive, while running no less. Another light bulb went off, those coaches were right it's hot out here! I should have brought some water with me. I was then forced to do something I haven't done since elementary school, use a public water fountain (gross!).

After my water break I continued on my run and of course hit a hill. In case you already haven't picked up on this, hills (in my opinion) are the absolute worst! Did I also mention that I chose to run a marathon in the hilliest city in America? I clearly didn't think this through. Anyway back to the story, the coaches were camped out throughout the park to monitor eveyones process. A group of them were at the bottom of the hill, so to save face I ran up the hill until I was out of they're sight and then walked the rest of the way. Shameful, I know. But you'll be happy to know I finished my loop strong. I know for a fact I didn't run the full 3.3 miles, but I walked a lot less than I did during the Corporate Challenge which is progress in my mind.

What Did I Learn About Running That Day
1) Hydrating is key when running in the sun. Taking a swig of gatorade before your run is not going to cut it

2) Real runners are ready to brave the elements and extreme weather, I was not!

3) I need to figure out a way to run up hills because they're everywhere!

Stepping Up My Gear Game

Last week you heard me complain about blisters, and my sub par headphones so I decided that it was time to break down and buy some real running gear. There is a Jack Rabbit (http://jackrabbitsports.com/) not too far from Prospect Park so I decided to go there after GTS to buy some new gear. I just want to make a side comment, I don't understand these people who feel "refreshed" and "energized" after running because I just feel plain tired. I mention this because despite being exhausted after my training I walked over to Jack Rabbit, and even a 15 minute walk was tiring after doing the outer loop in the heat.

I went in and talked to the guy about my blister issue and he suggested that I get socks made with wicking fabric. The wicking absorbs sweat and keeps it away from the skin which helps alleviate friction and decrease the development of blisters (http://walking.about.com/od/weather/a/rain3.htm). The best wicking socks are Therlos (http://www.thorlo.com/wicking-socks.php) but they'll set you back $10-$15 a pair. Being the recessionista I am I decided to get another, less expensive, brand of wicking socks and buy a "2nd Skin Blister" kit for extra insurance. The 2nd skin kit is something you can put on under your socks to help prevent pressure / friction blisters. I also was talked into buy body glide, which prevent chaffing. I have not experienced chaffing yet but eventually I will according the guy in Jack Rabbit.

After running in the heat I also realized the importance of wearing light fabrics. The long and the short of all this is that cotton is the enemy for runners. I weighs you down when you sweat and rubs up against in an uncomfortable way. So I bought some drift fit material tops. Finally, I bought some headphones that wrapped around my ear. I felt confident that I had resolved all of my week two issues from a gear perspective, and walked away knowing that this would not the last time that I was going to have to drop money on running gear.

What Did I Learn About Running That Day
1) The right gear is key for you to feel comfortable when you run
2) Cotton is the enemy, if you're running in it stop and make a change immediately
3) Be careful because you can go broke shopping in a running store. Just get in get what you need and get out as fast as possible. Don't browse because they'll get you!

June 24: the Wall Street Run

I slacked off again this week and missed my Tuesday night GTS. Listen, those Tuesday trainings are a stretch after working all day. I'll figure it out eventually. After surviving the world's worst date Wednesday night and accepting the fact that I was not going to get my iPhone 4 on Thursday, I thought a 5K run will do me some good. I was already registered for the American Heat Associations Wall Street Run so the timing was perfect (Here's the race route http://www.nyrr.org/races/2009/pdf/aha_wallst_map.pdf) . However, I was not thrilled that it was 94 degrees outside. Running a race in that kind of heart had dreadful written all over it.

I made two big mistakes on Thursday: 1) despite my experience the following week, I didn't carry water with me during the race. 2) I have a serious caffeine addiction and had my regular 3:30pm coffee that day...terrible idea! I'm not going to get into the details of my journey during that race, but know that it involved me darting into a hole in the wall sushi restaurant at one point and an elongated stay at the water station. Also I have never sweat more in my life, running in the kind of heat was just miserable. I was really scared I was going to pass out at certain times.

BUT there were some high points of the race: No blisters, headphones stayed in places, and there were some very small hills along the race course and I managed to run all of them! I didn't run the full 3 miles but I walked less that I did the following Saturday in the park, which is progress, and I ran some baby hills! I did not conquer 3 miles this week but I have the eye of the tiger and I'll get there.

What Did I Learn About Running That Day

1) Drinking coffee before a race is a horrible idea, even if it's three hours before the race

2) I can't rely on the water stations to stay hydrated, I need to carry my own water bottle

3) Sorry I don't have a number three, I learned two big lessons that day and that was enough