Memorial Day run

It was one of those days where I wish I had been wise enough to not run at all.

I spent the whole day outside working in the yard. My backyard has a large section I've named the Japonica Jungle (after the sweetest-smelling invasive vine around), and my it does spread. Pops up all over the place - ignore it at your own peril. Eventually the entire region will be one big infestation of honeysuckle, at least until the kudzu takes over.

Anyway, the high was 87F and the humidity was increasing as the day wore on, I was drenched with sweat and as a result I was dehydrated even though I had drunk nearly 2 liters for the day. But I still needed to get my miles in :-), so at a quarter to six I took off running. I was fiddling with a feature on my watch that allows me to set up a virtual partner and "race" him (my virtual partners are guys - don't know why). After 10 minutes of warm-up (as if I wasn't warm already), I revved up to an 8:30 pace, alternating every 5 minutes with a few minutes of a 10 minute pace.

That went on for, oh, maybe almost an hour. And then I couldn't force myself to continue. I've hit the metaphorical wall before and this was not that. I've seen this movie before and there is no good scene. This is dehydration: a light case of disorientation, difficulty in thinking clearly, and a hard time keeping a train of thought going. I know that describes many people at times, but this is a running.

I saw these huge storm clouds rolling in along with the stiffening breeze, spent a few minutes trying to figure out what to do, and eventually decided "go home". I got a drink at a fire station water fountain along the way. I passed a major road that goes home, which I drive my car on all the time. My fuzzy brain said "ah, familiar road, go that way" which actually added to my total time because the jogging trail cuts diagonally while the road does not.

I got home at 8:30pm right as it was starting to sprinkle, almost 3 hours after starting, and covered about 11 miles, most of it walking. Yuck. At that point I was over 5 pounds lighter than when I woke up Monday morning. Rx: lots of rest, water, and electrolytes.