Hoo boy… it was hot today!

Vegas has been experiencing below average temps for the past several weeks, but the heat came on full force the past couple days. There was no time to adapt, it just hit everyone really hard. And most of us weren’t acclimated to running in it yet, so covering 9 miles was pretty hard for everyone.

We started off with a recovery clinic put on by my friend Dr. Donna, a chiropractor & athletic trainer. And while Donna has good information to share, I’m at the point where we can’t have any more clinics pre-running and we really need to keep the Team business (fundraising updates, news, etc.) to a minimum. We need to start running AT 6:00 AM, as opposed to 6:40 or later. It’s just too hot.

Several of my team members were struggling today. Many of them had to walk and they were beating themselves up for it. I tried to keep things positive, but after a while I had to tell a couple of them to just “Shut Up! Stop talking negatively because that’s just making it harder!” (Of course, when I tell someone to ‘Shut Up!’ it still doesn’t come across as very harsh.) I kept reminding people that by walking they’re actually being smart, they’re listening to their bodies because it’s hot and we were on a hilly course and it was the first time covering that distance. There were a lot of variables thrown in the mix for one day, that’s enough to be hard for even the most seasoned runner!

I had a hard time with sweat running into my eyes today. It seemed to be nonstop! And my eyes continue to burn as I’m writing this, several hours later. I think I need to figure out something different to wear… have any of you tried a Bondi Band? Maybe that would help?

Still, I was proud of everyone for pushing through. I did 9.1 miles today, not a lot of back and forth. Instead I paused to let people pass when I wanted to run with the back-of-the-pack. It was warm enough, I really didn’t need to add too much back and forth to my running. As it was I went through 2 bottles of fluids in my handheld… one full of nuun and one of water! The heat acclimatization cannot happen soon enough!

I am coaching a group of runners for the organization Team Challenge. They are fundraising for the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America while training to run the Napa to Sonoma half marathon in July.