RUNNING SUCKS......sometimes

 

Not really.

I love running. I love everything about it. Being outside. The feeling of accomplishment. Knowing that you are doing something good for yourself and your health. And it doesn't hurt that there are a lot of good looking runners here in Austin to keep you distracted.

However, yesterday was by far the absolute worse day of running i have ever had in my life. Hands down, no doubt about it. I have analyzed every bit of the run, the time leading up to the run and of course, the nightmare that continued after the run. What happened is beyond me and I can only guess it had to be some sort of bacterial infection. 

Megatron and I headed out for a 16 mile run to the Travis County Expo Center to watch the Longhorn Half Ironman. On the way out, I knew it was getting hot and the hills were starting to take a toll. 8 miles should be absolutely no problem for me and it was starting to be a struggle. We watched the race for all of 5 minutes and decided to hit the road back before the temperature became even warmer. Well, less than a mile or two on the return route, things went from bad to worse. I started getting headaches, shortness of breath, having to walk every tenth of a mile or so and felt like my body was absolutely baking. All I could think about was how in the hell I was going to run 100 miles for Leadville if I am suffering this bad on only a 16 mile run!

We continued on. Walked a .10 of a mile, ran a .10 of a mile. It took forever!!! Over 3 hours for 16 miles. Unheard of. Somewhere around mile 12, the dry heaves started along with chills, stomach sickness and all over discomfort. This is where my stubborn attitude and the need to never quit will possibly really hurt me one day. I should have stopped, called for help, done anything to get home safely.

Once we finally made it back, I thought everything would be ok. This was really just the beginning.

I sat down on the floor, or rather collapsed onto the floor and was in a lot of pain and discomfort. After about 30min., it started. Vomiting, diarrhea and keeping absolutely nothing down. If there is one thing you need to do after a run with that level of exertion, it is to rehydrate and ingest carbs, protein and sodium to recover quickly. Instead I was spiraling downward quickly. My feet started to cramp up first, followed by my calves, abs, back and finally my quads after about 2 hours of back and forth from the bed to the bathroom. I was becoming more and more dehydrated, unable to think clearly and my entire body was starting to cramp up. It was one of the worst experiences I recall ever having been through. 

As I said before, I am stubborn. I do not ask for help easily. This case was different. I finally gave in and asked a friend for help. He responded immediately and brought over some Pedialtyte and at that point I should have gone to the hospital, but I refused and was not able to really think and rationalize for myself in the first place. Later, I found out I had lost over 10lbs and probably every bit of fluid in me. I finally started being able to keep fluids down later that night and the road to recovery began.

I kept going over in my head what to take away from all the this. What's the lesson here? Silver lining?

1. Don't be stupid. If you are in danger, ask for help. Fuck your ego.
2. Be glad you can run and be grateful for the body you have, but be smart.
3. Friends are so important.
4. Good to let others (clients, family, friends) know there are struggles and failures. All the time. Don't give up.
5. Lastly, I got through this. I will survive.