June 24, 2017

I left on my long run a little too late.  It was already 80 degrees. And my stomach felt super bloated.  All a bad combination!!  I warned Greg that I might not make it.  I made him promise that he would come save me if I needed him to.  He said he would, but also gave me some words of encouragement.

I stopped at Mr. D's gas station and used the bathroom (1.5 miles into my run), then I stopped at Maverick to use the bathroom (2.25 miles into my run) and things were not looking good!  I bought a gatorade at Maverick and tried to push on.  It was super hot already!  I started down the trail and it was a pain in the butt (literally) to keep running.  By the time I made it to the bathrooms at the 5 mile mark, I didn't know how much more I could take.  I used the bathroom again.  I was super hot and sweaty and sick.  I texted Greg and told him that I was definitely going to need him to come pick me up.  Well, to my surprise, he texted me back a pep talk.  It was something like this: Nope.  You can do this!  I believe in you.

I had to smile.  I didn't need a pep talk!  I needed to be picked up!  So I told him as much.  He texted back again.  It went something like this:  You are stronger than you think you are.  And you need to do this!  Keep going!

I was actually a little mad.  Mentally, I was done.  And physically, I was in pain.  But his pep talk made me a little mad.  Did he think I was quitting too soon?  Didn't he know how hot it had gotten?  Somehow my competitive nature took over.  And I decided I would go a few more miles and then call him to come get me.  So, I took a sip of Gatorade and started slowly jogging back along the trail I'd just run.  I checked my mental attitude and decided that rather than call Greg to meet me somewhere, I would go until I couldn't, and then I'd call Greg and wait for him.

For the next hour, I slowly plodded along, in full sunshine and ninety-degree weather.  Pretty soon, I was passing the gas stations.  Pretty soon I was pumping my arms up the huge hill on River Rd.  Pretty soon I was turning into my neighborhood.  I kept dumping water on my head and stopping for a minute in a shady spot.  I was super hot and sweaty!  I nearly cried when I saw my house come into view.  Had I really done it?  I had just run nearly ten miles.

I ran straight to the pool, and as quickly as I could I shed my shoes and phone, and jumped into the water.  It felt so great!

I ended up being so proud of myself for enduring through such difficult circumstances.  And I was really grateful for Greg, for pushing me on a day when I just wasn't feeling it!  Earlier he had told me not to take so many running selfies.  While I was running, and dying of heat, I texted him to let him know that his punishment for not coming to get me was that I was going to take a whole lot of selfies!  So there!

Straight out of the pool!  It's so dang hot!