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July 29, 2006
Well Done
If you had poked a fork into me like a Thanksgiving turkey to see if I was done today, I'm pretty sure that the fork would have bounced off my hardened, burnt, crusty skin with a distinct pinging noise. I was thoroughly cooked by the time I got back from my run. I spent 1:30 on singletrack trails. It was 100 degrees. The sky was cloudless. Ah well, at least it's a dry heat. I don't think I was alone in my misery, though. It seems that running bloggers from across the country are lamenting persistent hot and humid running conditions. I've got to say, though, that I didn't feel any comraderie out there in the heat alone today.
I've been doing a lot more trail runs lately, mostly alone, and carrying my bear spray to ward off any critters on the trails. Thus, I didn't want to carry water and weigh myself down even more. That was a definitive mistake. I began to feel the heat by mile 2. At mile 3 or 4, there was a small creek that I used to temporarily douse the fire, and it felt like heaven. By mile 6, small uphills looked like unconquerable mountains. By mile 8, I was so glad to start the downhill back to the trailhead that I nearly cried. Around mile 9, I saw a coworker on the patch of pavement from the trailhead to my house; later she told me that I looked like death when we passed.
When I returned home and looked in the mirror, I was met with a most disgusting view. Gracing my red face were white salt streaks and temple worms. Temple worms? I've never had a temple worm before. This guy seems to think that leg and temple worms go hand-in-hand with good fitness and low body fat. To that, I add that I think temple worms (at least in my case today) also result from dehydrating oneself beyond oblivion and irreperably collapsing most of one's body cells. I was not impressed with how I looked.
I found myself laying on my cool, wooden floor with a bottle of Gatorade. That, combined with a cold shower and 2 liters of water (after which I was still 2 pounds down in body weight, or about another liter of fluid low). I began to come around then.
Hey, maybe I got a good tan out of the whole thing.
Posted by Meghan at July 29, 2006 2:47 AM
Comments
Like real worms, temple worms signify fertile soil:potential ground for PRs. Don't write them off solely as dehydration; you have worked hard to get them. Remember that.
Posted by: duncan at July 29, 2006 3:26 PM