Antelopes, Imaginary Lions and Fat Dogs...Oh My!

This morning I went out for my last pre-race "long" run.

Everything went pretty well, considering some less than ideal pre-run circumstances. Last night a group of us from work went to T.G.I. Friday's for a going away party for my friend Anna. 1/2 price apps and taps makes for a tired Ryan. Then, this morning, all three kids got up super early. We're talking 5:45am. TWO HOURS earlier than usual. Not okay. What are you going to do, though? Julie sent me downstairs to try and get another hour of sleep (bless her), but it was fitful. By the time I got out there it was after 7am and I hadn't eaten or drank anything. Super smart.

It was really cold (29 degrees), which felt good, although my feet got really cold which is the first time that's happened. And I'm sure it didn't help that I was all paranoid about my shoes at the beginning. I feel like they're a little too small, but I'm sure they're fine.

Listened to the Gomers, standard fare for my Saturday morning runs. The only issue is that I listen to it, like, a week after it comes out. It comes out Mondays and I save it for my long run on Saturday. Thus, I cannot participate in the Monday survey. I'll have to change this once the race is done with. Get back into real Gomer time. (On a related note...I use those earbuds that you shove into your ears and the right one kept popping out; because of the cold, I assume. I'm going to try the normal ones that wrap around your head next time.)

As I expected, I was a little tired on this run. And my left leg/shin hurt again. That sucks. Had to stretch it a couple times. I'm sure it'll be fine, though. My breathing was no problem, just my legs, so I just told them to shut-up and keep moving. It seemed to work fine.

My two favorite parts of the run were animal related. During mile 4 this young lady ran by me. She reminded me of an antelope. A smiling antelope. She was so fluid; so silky smooth. Practically bouncing as she sped past. "Morning!" she said through her smile, canyon wide. I flashed a smile and flicked my wrist with the runner's wave. For a second I imagined a lion jumping out and devouring her, but I thought that she'd probably just outrun him and then he'd be angry and he'd come after me and I'd be an easy lunch, so...I stopped thinking about that.

Then, as I was finishing, I passed this dog that was barking at me from his porch. It was a small dog. It was also insanely fat. It looked so angry and frustrated. It would bark and then look at the stairs...and then bark again. I imagined it yelling, "Yeah, man! You better keep running! If it weren't for these stairs, you'd be in my mouth right now! And I'd be chewing on you! You'd be mincemeat! MINCEMEAT! Mmm...miiiiincemeeeaaaaat..." It probably eats too much mincemeat.

After the run, I did feel pretty sore, so I took an ice bath again. This is stupid, but...I filled up the tub and was doing other stuff while I waited and then when it was full I shut off the water and psyched myself up to get in. I put one foot in and...it was lukewarm. Lame. So, I emptied it and filled it again with ice cold water. Heavenly. Also, I did that trick where you fill a water bottle with hot water and hold it to your chest and it totally worked! Thanks, Gomers! (Steven, just use a plastic water bottle so you can feel the hot water.)

Now, a couple hours later, sitting in a coffee shop listening to jazz, finishing my blueberry scone and OJ, writing about it...it feels really good. And my body feels fine. It lets me know I can just power through the pain next week and I'll feel fine afterward.

I like that feeling.