Five Guys and Six Miles

So, this was the plan for yesterday...run two laps around the lake (2.5 miles) then get in the gym and work on abs and arms. Yeah, um, I went to Five Guys instead. For anyone not from the DC metro area, Five Guys is the the best hamburger place in town. After consuming what probably amounted to over a pound of food I did walk around the lake once, but there was no running, and no lifting...oh well, I guess that is what "off" days are for...no, probably not.

Because today is the Fourth of July, I was left to complete the weekly distance run, 6 miles, on my own. When I awoke at 7:00 this morning I was reasonably daunted by the task at hand - I was going to be running alone because of the holiday, it was going to be the furthest I had run to date, and I had fueled my body with a greasy yet yummy cheeseburger the night before. I hastily chugged a bottle of water for hydration on drive to the trail.

I got on the W&OD in Ashburn by the Carolina Brothers BBQ place at mile marker 27.5 and planned to run out 3 miles to mile marker 30.5, then turn around and come back. At the first mile marker, so 1/2 mile out, I realized that in my anxiety about the run I had forgotten to go pee. And I drank a bottle of water on the way there. Awesome.

The first two miles were rough - it seemed like I could not get into a good pace, my knee was making some sort of clicking noise, I thought something was stuck to the bottom of my shoe, aaaand I still had to pee. Then something happened. (no, I didn't pee) My breathing, my pace, my arm swing - it's like it all aligned. It became so much easier, I was actually enjoying the sounds of the morning, and perhaps for the first time was not solely focused on the degree of pain associated with each step.

Until about mile 4, at which point I realized that I really, really had to pee. I do not use public restrooms, I certainly do not use porta-potties, I do not go in the woods. I thought about all of the above. Then I snapped back to reality and decided that I would rather pee in my pants. This made for a long final 2 miles. I did make it though. On my own. No walking.

When I got back to my car I looked at my stop watch (i.e. cell phone) and apparently it took 1 hour and 20 minutes to run the 6 miles. No wonder I was not in pain, I was running a 13 minute mile.

What I Learned: 1. Do not eat Five Guys the night before you run. 2. Do go pee before you run.