I had a terrible awful thought yesterday. "Maybe I should quit this running thing," I said to myself after a debilitating 8-mile long run and post-run headache had me incapactitated for nearly the entire day. Even if it weren't for the utter exhaustion, I thought back to how badly my right hip started to ache after the sixth mile and it made me wonder if I was really meant to do this half marathon thing. Of course, getting up this morning and feeling well rested and non-achy (I went to sleep at 9pm last night because I was so tired), I'm not quite ready to quit, but I'm also starting to feel realllllly nervous about whether or not my body will actually hold up for a full 13.1 miles.
Allow me to vent for a moment:
- I had to do my 8-miler on the treadmill due to non-stop rain yesterday. This meant that I could bring two bottles of water (16 oz each) and my new Jelly Belly sport beans with me, and rest them easily on the ledge with a water cooler merely steps away. I broke away from the treadmill three times to refill my water, meaning that I effectively drank FOUR 16 oz bottles of water in 2 hours. That's probably good in terms of staying hydrated, but how in the heck am I going to get that much water during the actual race? I did buy myself a hydration belt from eBay that holds four 6 oz bottles, but that's just 24 oz, and therefore isn't going to last me very long. Apparently the water stations during the half are 1.5 miles apart, so I may have to literally stop for a minute each time to sit and refill my water bottles with the freebies they give out. Otherwise I really think I will pass out.
- The Jelly Belly energy beans certainly helped increase my overall energy level, but after a while they just became too darn sweet! I have a huge sweet tooth, so I was surprised at myself, but I just couldn't stand to get another one down by the time I neared my second pack. I wonder if this is an indication that my salt levels were too low (hence the reason I was craving salt?). I also sort of felt like I was going to puke at times...is that normal? Sorry for the TMI...
- I am STILL not able to run continuously for very long at all. I probably walked half of my 8-miler yesterday at a 15-minute per mile pace, running every so often for a minute or two at a 13/14 minute per mile pace. I did get a good 10-minute running streak in there at around mile two but then I got so exhausted that I just felt like my body was going to crumple into a little ball. I would have thought that by now I would be better at this!
- Then there's the headaches. OMG, I have never had worse headaches in my life. It can't be from dehydration considering how much I drank, and the Jelly Belly energy beans are supposed to be full of electrolytes so I'm not convinced that's the problem either. What I do know is that I had to take 6 advil yesterday throughout the afternoon to make it fully go away, and although it subsided after two naps (yes, I took two, one-hour naps yesterday), it picked up again every time I stood on my feet for more than a few minutes. Am I going crazy?
- Final rant: my hip. This is the second time that it's started to bug me during a long-run, and interestingly both times the pain began around mile 6. Anyone have any recommendations on what to do when something like this happens, or how to prevent it from happening? I could try taking some ibuprofen before the race? If my hip starts to act up, I know I won't be able to finish.
On a positive note, it is pretty amazing to think that since I started training in April-ish (those first few months don't count for much since my training was so sporadic), I've run/walked over 70 miles...certainly progress!
Thanks for sticking with me during this difficult journey. Appreciate all the support and advice!
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