Another Saturday long run with the TNT group. It was definitely a mixed bag today, with good and bad points.
Good: It was supposed to be a 13 mile run, which means .1 less than last weekend’s run. We could totally lie to ourselves and say it was a fall-back week.
Bad: Um… we missed a turn on the route. One of our coaches flagged us down and got us back on track, but we ended up doing 13.5 – 13.7 miles. (Conflicting numbers on Nike+ and Garmin systems, is anything truly accurate?) Oops…
Good: The temperatures were pretty nice throughout the entire run, so it wasn’t entirely uncomfortable. I think it was probably around 80 (which is hot to many people, but was pretty reasonable for us desert-dwellers.)
Bad: Jim had a bit of a cold, so he wasn’t feeling that great. Fortunately the cold wasn’t in his chest much. That would have made running really rough (and probably unwise) for him. About 7 or 8 miles into the run, Melinda tripped on some stupid metal loop and fell. Her knee is banged up and she has a bruise on her hip. One of our coaches had to drive her back to the start point. Hopefully both Jim and Melinda will be feeling better soon. They’re my best running buddies, I need them! (Wow, that sounds incredibly selfish. I want them to get better because they’re great people and I love them as well!)
Good: I finished this run in about the same amount of time as the ET half-marathon last weekend. Pretty good, considering we ended up going further than we were supposed to! Plus we were very pleased that we finished it by 7:30 AM. Whole day still ahead of us!
Bad: My toes were on fire by about mile 10. All of my muscles from the waist down were burning (a good burn though) at the end, but my toes were so uncomfortable. They just felt hot and uncomfortable. They have felt like this by mile 10 the past several weeks. I need to figure out something to alleviate this!
Overall I’m still going to have to rank this as a good run. I finished feeling strong. I drank Cytomax the entire run and actually came to appreciate the flavor (it’s not as overly sweet as Gatorade, something I have a hard time stomaching).
My husband is finishing up his treadmill running now. I’m looking forward to a nice big salad at Cafe Rio for lunch. They make the best whole-wheat tortillas.
Jill Will Run 
Sounds like you did well! I can’t believe 80 “wasn’t that bad”. I would have been dying!
I’ve never heard of Cytomax. Sounds good if it’s less sweet.
Thanks Jill….I heart you too! So…toe burn huh?? Try Toe socks. They are awesome and I love them. Oh and try not to “dig” when you run. HA HA HA
Karen: I guess the temperatures are all relative to what you’re used to! My first taste of Cytomax was terrible. I didn’t think I ever wanted it again. But that was served in a cup and I swallowed more of it than I could immediately tolerate. Sipping on it from my bottle was a lot better. Plus I mixed it myself, maybe the mix I got before was bad!
Sloanie: I should have picked up some Injini’s when I was in the store earlier today, huh? I’ll have to try those out, maybe on a short run this week before trying them on the 15 at Red Rock?
Hey Jill, I have the same problem with my toes. i have found the Injinji socks to help in keeping them cooler. I also have different insoles made by Sorbothane, that have cushioning in the front and back part of your foot. You might want to try them – they do help somewhat. Also, sometimes I find that my “under the toes” area hurts when I am running more flat-footed – when I start to feel the pain, I try to pay more attention to my running technique.
Hope that helps.
tgorourke: Thanks for the Injini recommendation. That’s two votes in favor of those now, so I’ll have to pick up a pair tonight. I’m also going to look up those insoles now too. I love learning about all the products available out there!
Hey, good run.
I was finishing my long runs with bloody shoes and socks for every run over 13 miles. Turns out my shoes were NOT big enough. After a while your feet start to sweat and swell and my toes were hitting the ends of the shoes. Uggg.
Did the TNT Rock N Roll SD in 2004. Was a good experience for me.