Run in the AM
I went on my run today at 3 AM, which is about four hours earlier than normal.
I’d forgotten how NICE early AM runs are. Like, apart from the getting up at 2 AM part, I absolutely love them. There’s no one out, there’s minimal traffic, it’s super tranquil and lonely, and it just feels really good.
It’s a little creepy getting down to the path in the dark. And the end of Bowness Park (before the bridge) is REALLY dark and isolated.
But it’s all still so good.
(Except for getting up that early. That’s hard.)
10,000
A’IGHT, BITCHES, GUESS WHAT?
(Aggressively typing because I’m excited)
I just finished a pair of shoes the other day, so I logged all the miles I’ve walked on that pair into my little spreadsheet that contains my yearly distances. Observe a piece of this:
My yearly total mileage right now (or at the end of this pair of shoes) is 3933.83.
If I want to hit 10,000 kilometers for the year (6213.712 miles), I’ll need to walk/run another 2279.885 miles in the remaining 137 days of the year.
That’s an average of 16.6415 miles a day OR an average of 116.4905 miles per week (since I don’t walk/run the same distance every day).
I’ve been averaging about 130 miles a week recently.
SO. If I’m able to keep up that pace (or even a little bit less) per week, I should hit my goal of walking/running 10,000 kilometers this year!
That makes me super happy, yo. I didn’t know if it would even be possible.
But now I HAVE to do it.
A List of Things I Will Get Up Early For:
- Running
That’s it.
Dumb Runner
So I don’t know how I’ve never run into these comics before (unintended pun), but they are absolutely hilarious and very relatable.
Favorites:
Relatable.
Also relatable.
This is why I’m scared of doing an in-person marathon.
OH GOD THAT WAS PAINFUL
So as I mentioned yesterday, today I decided to run for the first time since busting up my leg.
Super
SUPER
painful.
Especially at the start. Even after taking a few ibuprofens. It was like my whole upper leg was on fire for the first several miles, and that only diminished slightly as I kept running. And trying to run on any sort of uneven surface (like the back road in Bowness, which has a decently steep slant to it)? OH MY GOD PAIN.
But I was able to do it. I was able to run 16 miles.
Not sure how much pain I’ll be in tomorrow, but at least I was able to do it.
This is going to be a long, painful recovery.
Get GU’d
Yo.
Today is a MARATHON DAY, so I used it to try my first GU.
I chose the Salted Watermelon flavor.
So I ran to Pullman, ran around the backside of the captive bear area and golf course, then ran on that path that kind of goes along the flat part of Bishop Boulevard. At the end of that path, I tried my Gu.
Flavor: Great!
Texture: Snot!
Seriously. Snot is not the most accurate thing to compare that texture to, but it’s the closest I can think of. It’s like snot mixed with Elmer’s glue. I had to hork up a big wad of it when I got back to the drinking fountain because it felt like it was gunking up my throat. I had about half of the packet in Pullman; I rolled it up, stuck it in my running pack, and had the rest at the drinking fountain by Guy Wick’s Field once I got back to Moscow.
Did it help? It’s hard to tell. It was a rough run this morning. I felt nauseous for the first six miles or so, then it was really hot for like the last eight miles. But maybe I would have felt much worse had I not had the Gu.
I’m terrified of that flavorless one I got now, haha. It’s going to be like dumping straight gluey snot into my mouth.
It’s LEIBNIZ DAY!
As always, the best day of the year.
Take a moment to pause and reflect on the greatness that was Gottfried Leibniz!
On a completely unrelated note, it’s the halfway point of the year, so let’s check my mileage, shall we?
*looks at spreadsheet*
I’m at 3,085.98, which means that if I keep the same pace as the first half of the year, I’ll get to 6,000 miles by the end of December!
However, I am NOT currently on pace for 10,000 kilometers, so that might be a goal for another year.
I guess we’ll see.
I have acquired THINGS!
OBSERVE!
I guess technically I got these books yesterday, but today we went to Fleet Feet in Coeur d’Alene and I got new shoes plus some energy GUs that I’m going to try on my longer runs (especially as I build up to the 37-mile ultra next year).
WOO!
OUCH
Okay, so good news first: today was absolutely FANTASTIC weather for running. I did a marathon and it felt like my typical 16-mile run. Super easy. Super relaxing.
Now the bad news: at mile 23 of said marathon run, I totally bit it and tore up my knees, shoulder, and hand. Not sure exactly what happened – I think I just lost my equilibrium – I was just suddenly skidding along the pavement, haha. Luckily I was starting to go up a hill, so it wasn’t too bad. But I’m not sure what was worse: the family riding their bikes who saw me and asked if I was okay (super kind of them, but also super embarrassing) or the fact that I still had three miles to run and had to do it with a very bloody knee and a road rash shoulder.
Pics or it didn’t happen, you say?
(These were taken on Tuesday after I took the initial bandages off)
Killer road rash.
I don’t know how I managed to get my shoulder so badly, but I did. The funny thing is that my OTHER shoulder is the one that hurts and that didn’t touch the ground at all.
Ignore the bandage residue. Also ignore the other scars. Also ignore how FREAKING DEFORMED my leg looks at this angle.
Fun times!
TWO THINGS!
Item One: I reached my year-long streak with French on DuoLingo! I’m really enjoying it. Duo definitely helped with the vocab when I took that French class last semester; hopefully it’ll help with the next one as well.
Item Two: I am now officially signed up for the 2024 Calgary Marathon’s ultra marathon!
Time to freak out, hahaha.
UGH
So I had every intention of running a marathon today, but:
1. It got smoky. Like, super smoky. Our scale up here goes from 1 (clean air) to 11+ (you’re going to die if you go outside), and we hit a 9 while I was out running.
2. It’s muggy as all hell. For whatever reason, it’s super humid here today and there’s nothing worse than muggy hell when trying to run.
3. It’s windy as all hell. I’m always down for a little wind while running, but it was obnoxious today.
All these components resulted in a pretty miserable, difficult run that was only 21 miles long.
UGH I hate cutting my distance short, but I also don’t want to get lung damage, so.
Roon
All true. Especially the toenail one.
And like one of the comments said, it’s good to know that “some days the legs don’t show up” is a universal thing and occurs seemingly independently of how much you’ve trained.
HYPE
This article’s got me HYPED UP, DAWG.
Oh my GOD I want to be able to run an ultramarathon. That would be such an accomplishment, especially for someone like me who is not “naturally” a runner.
WOOOOOOOOOO
WELL HELL
Despite not actually running the Calgary Marathon yet this year (though I’ve done three marathon distances so far), I’m making next year’s goal an ultra marathon.
The Calgary Marathon has a 50k ultra (and it sounds like 50k is a pretty typical length for an ultra), so I went to go look it up this afternoon to see what the route was if I were to do it in person.
And of course, with my luck, this year is the LAST YEAR they’re doing that distance.
Balls.
HOWEVER.
I googled “virtual ultra marathons” and discovered this site, so now I think I’m going to use it to sign up for practically every virtual marathon I can find.
Because I’m that kind of loser.
YA LIKE SMOKE????
The air quality when I got up to run this morning:
The air quality at the end of my run (about 2.5 hours later):
Yeah, the wildfire smoke blew in QUICKLY. Look at this post-apocalyptic nonsense.
Ugh.
Not a Fluke!
To prove that my first marathon last week was not a fluke, I tried to run another one today.
And I did.
So that’s good! It was also faster than my first attempt.
WOO!
MARATHON!!!!
I did it, y’all!
The marathon distance was not on the schedule today (it was only supposed to be 25 miles), but I was feeling good near the end and wanted to push it.
So I did. And then I cried, ‘cause I’m pathetic like that.
I really didn’t think I could ever run a marathon.
Longest run + Pepper Adventures
You guys, I am SO CLOSE to marathon distance. SO CLOSE!
Also, look at this adorable girl:
We’re trying to get her used to the harness so that we can take her outside on the weekends. She seems to be enjoying the whole process.
It’s a bold move, Cotton…
As you probably know, I am all about trying to break my own records for things.
This includes my yearly walking/running miles.
Last year I hit my furthest distance of 5,555.55. So this year, of course, I’d like to beat that.
And I don’t know if it’ll be possible, but I’d love to hit 6,000 miles for the year. Hell, 6,200 miles is even better, as that’s (approximately) 10,000 kilometers, which is a nice round number for a goal.
*does calculations*
Okay, 6,000 MIGHT be possible, but I’d really have to push the mileage quite a bit, especially on my weekend long runs. I don’t know if I can do 6,200, though, unfortunately.
Maybe next year?
I AM SPEED (AGAIN)
This is not a fast mile for most people, but it’s hella fast for me. I am a slow runner, haha. This was also like mile 10 of 16, so…
Hard Mode
Another 24 (plus a little bit) today!
I can go this distance without needing any fuel or water, but I’m sure that’s going to change as it gets hotter. I’m going to need TONS of water once it gets hotter.
But for now, I can still motor through with nothing.
I don’t know if that’s good or bad, but it is what it is.
Running: The Ultimate Drug
Hahahaha, this is hilarious.
“CHOP THE LEG!”
Longest Run Update: 24 Miles!
We’re getting there.
WE’RE GETTING THERE!
I AM SPEED
(NO I’M NOT)
But this is really fast for me. I know that’s sad, but whatevs, so is this ENTIRE BLOG.
Longest Run Update: 23 Miles!
WOOO!
Can I add another 3.2 miles to this to get to the marathon? It’s finally feeling doable, y’all.
Eigenblogger 