Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Oh, you crazy little wall.

The first time I encountered the “invisible wall” I was in my 10th grade French class.  I got in trouble for coming in late, and breaking through the invisible wall.  You can imagine my surprise, confusion, exasperation… I really, thought I would never encounter this wall again.
Imagine my surprise when I met its older, meaner brother head on last weekend.  I had a 70 minute run, and didn’t think much of it.  That’s 8 miles – no biggie.  The weekend before I banged out 7 miles, easy. as. pie.
Mile One:  Whoo-hoo.
Mile Two:  Whoo-hoo.
Mile Three:  Whoo-hoo.
Mile Four:  Whoo-hoo.
Mile Five:  Yay.
Mile Six: Huh…
Mile Seven:  Wait a second….
Mile Eight: Dear God, What have I done!!
Hi, my name’s Andrea, and I was an idiot.  I admit – I didn’t eat right for this, and I paid dearly.  If I would have been carrying my cell phone I would have laid down on the trail, and called Karly to come get me in a little red wagon.
Bonking, Hitting the Wall – call it what you want… it sucks.  I don’t recommend it.  No amount of groovy tunes will pull you through. 
Fueling your body to run long distances is no joke.  I haven’t fully wrapped my brain around this, and so I have asked for help.  Thank goodness I am learning this when my long run is 8 miles, and not 18.
I have another 7+ mile run tomorrow, and you can bet your biscuits I will be preparing much differently.  Wish me luck!!
May your day be filled with premium fuel,
Andrea

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