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Saturday, September 01, 2007

What'd you do this morning, Jess?

Well, I'm glad you asked that question, homies, because I ran 20 miles! Yeah, I did!

Okay, so now that I've blurted it out, let me back up and give you the full report: Last night, I was very good and went to bed at 9:30, and actually, I pretty much fell asleep right away and slept pretty solidly through the night. Right up until my alarm went off at 3:15 am. Yes, you read that right: 3:15 am. Let me tell you, that is the middle of the night, my friends, but I got up, got ready, and met the group at 4:30.

My partner and I decided that the best way to do the 20 was to break it in half: do two loops of 10 miles. I was whole-heartily in favor of this option because I like the mental sense of halfway, so we set off at 4:30, did our first 10, then stopped to use the restroom and recover a bit, then we went on and did the other 10. Of course, we stopped at all water stations, where I took just water but also dutifully swallowed the GUs I had with me (yuck! does anyone ever get used to these? they taste like snot!), and my partner had to make a second bathroom stop. But, otherwise, we were full steam ahead.

Granted, the last 3 miles got tough and we would run for half a mile, then walk for half a mile, and you'll see us slowing in the numbers below; still, I made it until 16.5 miles before needing to walk at all, and despite needing to walk some of the last portion, I was mentally and emotionally fine -- big difference from 2 weeks ago! So, without further ado, here are the numbers:

Mile 1: 10:45 (exactly the pace I wanted)
Mile 2: 10:38
Mile 3: 11:12
Mile 4: 12:04 (huh. oh, I know why this is slower -- I forgot to stop the timer when we stopped at a water station here)
Mile 5: 11:11
Mile 6: 11:13
Mile 7: 11:02
Mile 8: 11:02 (this is right within the target range)
Mile 9: 10:58
Mile 10: 10:51
Mile 11: 10:50
Mile 12: 11:03
Mile 13: 10:56
Mile 14: 10:55
Mile 15: 10:43
Mile 16: 10:55
Mile 17: 18:50 (and this is where the walking begins and where we needed to take an emergency bathroom break -- but all the previous times are pretty consistent, don't ya think?)
Mile 18: 14:42
Mile 19: 13:07
Mile 20: 13:39

Total Time: 3:56:45. Not too shabby. I figured it would take us 4 hours, so that time fell right within the perfect range. But get this, total calories: 2717! Yup. There's nothing like burning nearly 3000 calories before 9 am!

It's a huge relief to me to get that 20 done. I might do another in 2 weeks, but if I do 16-18 then too, it will be fine. Getting this beast outta the way feels like I've climbed the training mountain and now I can see the valley below -- and seeing an end to this training is the best view I can imagine at this point.

Before I go, I want to include a few side notes from this morning's run: I wore my new kicks and they worked well -- no blisters or anything; my second-in-command-toe on my right foot is definitely blackening; I got chest chafed a bit from my sports bra -- it was dripping sweat, so the chafing is no surprise, but I didn't even notice until I got home -- I suppose I'm immune to pain at this point; and lastly, there are some absolutely reckless drivers out there: we had to yell some obscenities at one guy who yelled out the window at us as he flew by and literally rode the white line -- I kinda thought my partner was gonna meet a similar fate as that duckling earlier this week; it was scary.

So, I hope everyone has an excellent holiday weekend -- I know I will now that I have that big run behind me. Tonight? Poison, baby! Tomorrow? Poolside drinking and bbq-ing! My life is pretty sweet.

20 comments:

Marcy said...

WHOO HOOOO AWESOME job Jess!!! Wow what a turn around from a couple weeks ago ;D ;D Nothing left to do but enjoy the rest of the weekend!! ;D

BTW what flavor GU did you have?

ws said...

Great run Jess! Nothing more to say - your splits are awesome and you should totally enjoy the rest of your weekend.

No, I couldn't get used to GU, which is why I switched to e-gel. Much, much better. No comparison actually.

Marcy said...

Ohhh yes and I forgot . . .sweet call on the Juicy Juice. Momma needs to add some gin for me and possibly the kids (to help they sleep, ya know?) KIDDING!! (well at least about the kid part)

MNFirefly said...

Way to go, Jess! Awesome pace! Enjoy time because you deserved it!

Junie B said...

girl i am so so SO proud of you!! you totally kicked some ass. nothing like a 20 miler to give you a boost!

i agree that an 18 miler in 2 weeks will be just fine, but if you feel like you need the 20 one more time to give you that mental edge of "just so i know i can" then do it.

i am so damn excited for your marathon i can hardly stand it!

Anonymous said...

WOW! AWESOME!! It's so inspiring to read your post :)

David said...

Awesome job, Jess! You rock like CC Deville. :-D You earned the show tonight and the relaxation tomorrow, in spades!

I never liked GU gels. I really like Carb-BOOM gels, which are all natural and tasty, and I like Accel Gels, which are a little less tasty, but have protein in them for more sustained energy.

Tiffany said...

I did 2o miles this morn too! It was awesome! I am in the worst physical pain on my my life!

We are on the EXACT same training wavelength :)

L*I*S*A said...

Way to go running partner!!! I'm psyched for ya.

I'm with ya on the GU. I had one earlier in the training season and it almost made me puke. I still haven't found a replacement.

Anonymous said...

Excellent way to start the weekend!!

home rehab

Margo said...

Great job Jess!! I wish I had your speed!

Not a fan of GUs either, but really like Cliff Black Cherry Shot Blocs with caffeine!

J~Mom said...

Niiiiiicccccccccceeeeeeeeee!!!


Bet that felt great and now you have the weekend to hang!!! Awesome job!!

Mary Gee said...

Wow. That is a great run. I love GU, my daughter HATES it.

Anonymous said...

What a great job, Jess. Your's is one of the first LR reports of the weekend, and glad it went so well.

I keep thinking there have to be some candy products out there that provide just as much sugar and carbs and are more fun to consume.

Enjoy your poison--sounds strange--and keep rockin'!

Scott McMurtrey said...

Rock and me-effin roll!!

Anonymous said...

found your blog through half-fast i think. i love your sense of humor and your progress/process is inspiring! congrats on the 20 miles!

runner26 said...

I thought of you when I woke at 3am for a bathroom break. I wondered whether you'd be getting up for a run---I was right! Great job on the twenty. It's just what you needed!! Now have some fun this weekend. You deserve it!

Colleen said...

Nice work! I am impressed. Just a thought, have you tried the Sport Beans from Jelly Belly??? I heart them. I am a fellow GU hater. Who can hate the Jelly Bellys (bellies?) that taste like gatorade?? Yummo.

Mendy said...

SWEEEEET!!!

So happy for you, Jess! Those are fantastic consistently held numbers for your run. Great job! I know you are on cloud nine having that behind you. You rock!!!

Hope you had a blast at the concert! (I'm a little late responding, I know) but, I'm back now, and will be able to catch up daily.

Awesome!!!!

Rich said...

Great stuff! Congrats on the 20.

Have you tried the Expresso Love GU? If you like coffee, it's close enough.