Anyways, long story short, I stayed up too late on Saturday night and woke up again at 2:00AM feeling nauseous from not eating enough for dinner. I took a Gravol and went back to sleep hoping I'd feel better for my run on Sunday morning. When I woke up I was still feeling nauseous, but I really wanted to get my run in, so I took another Gravol and headed to my local run club for a long run. I had 13km on the schedule so I knew that I at least wanted to get that done, but I wasn't sure what the rest of the group would be running. I got there and the only two options this week were 7 or 18km. Hmm... Not ideal but I headed out for the 18km intending to cut it short somewhere along the way.
As we got going, I felt horrible and really sluggish. I was really starting to reconsider doing 7ish kilometers, but I never managed to turn myself around. I just kept going and tried to let go of keeping up with the group. When you run with a group it's so easy to chase or follow the person in front of you which works okay for a few kilometers but after that, things tend to fall apart if you're going faster than you should. I slowed right down to an average pace of 6:30/7:00km including my 10/1s. Within 1 kilometer or so, I found myself all alone but feeling a lot better.
I sort of had to laugh at myself a little bit because I know all of these things and yet I find myself making the same mistakes. I think part of my pacing issue stems from the fact that running has become a lot more social for me over the past couple of years and meeting lots of new friends. I often find myself trying to keep pace with people for fear of missing some good conversation but when you are so out of breath you can't talk, there's really no point ha ha. I enjoy running with a group but it is very important to remember that you are the only person that will get yourself to that finish line.
I threw away the route about halfway through and decided to do my own thing and even though it was a cloudy grey day, it was a really beautiful run for me. Sometimes all I need to clear my head is a couple of hours with myself and the sound of my shoes hitting the pavement.
In the end, I didn't really cut it short and ran 17km exactly, ending in the chocolate milk aisle of the grocery store!
It always amazes me how a run can end so differently than it started. If you're struggling finding your happy pace I urge you to head out on a solo run and see how you feel.
Did you run this past Sunday, how did it go?
