Run, run, run...WHY?!

Another run this morning...Nine miles today.

And they were nine hard miles, let me tell ya.

I made the mistake of having a filling breakfast before the run, and wow, did I feel that for the first few miles. And then at about mile four, there was a pretty significant hill that honestly cleaned my clock.

I did have the foresight to stash a bottle of Gatorade behind a sign at the 5 mile point, and that was a big boost. By the time I hit mile 8 however, I was pretty well spent. I had a few short walking moments that last mile, but I finished strong and brought it in in an hour, forty minutes.

Too fast.

If I discounted the walking bits, I was still close to a ten-minute mile all the way through. I need to slow down to stretch the run out, but I'm finding that the more I'm running, my pace keeps picking up. This is good, because it means I'm in better shape, but if I can slow down, I'll get more distance.

And the eating. I just learned today that you don't eat heavy an hour before a run. You eat lots of carbs the preceding days but little to zip the morning of. Today's run drove that lesson home in spades.

Anyway, the "why" part...

Sunday morning, I'm running the Army 10-miler is Washington DC.

Two years ago in a hospital, I promised myself (and anyone who'd listen) that I'd be running this race. And while I had my doubts as to my ability to do it this year, those are pretty much past, and I'm going to do this.

So wish me luck, because Sunday morning we're going to see if I can't do ten miles and collect one of those neat commemorate finishing coins. But I'm going for it, and in a few days, we'll see what we'll see.