Run Buffs Run!

Only ran 3.5 miles today. I ran two miles of speed workouts (8x400m) to keep my legs sharp. My splits were as follows: 68,67,69,70,70,70,70,68. I did not feel like I ran particularly fast today, but somedays that just happens. I am not going to run anything extraordinary this week, or push myself to the max because I want to be prepared for next Saturdays time trial. As the week goes on, I am going to taper my workouts.

Ran 9 miles total today at an average of a 5:50 mile. I began at a slower pace 6:30 and eased my way into a faster pace, clocking miles 6-8 at a blistering 5:35 pace. It felt good to work give my legs a good workout, though. I also met a friend that I knew last year in engineering while running. He only runs twice or three times a week recreationally, but ran with the cross country team for a day last year. He said that the training is very intense, and he ran with them on one of their "easy days". In all, my run today was a very good workout. It especially helps when you have someone else to talk to and keep your mind off of the pain.

Ran the CU time trial course today, but did so at very slow pace (7:00 min mile) to get a good feel for Saturday. The course is kind of bumpy, and has a good amount and ups and downs. It seems tough to get a good time, but I am sure that when that adrenalin starts pumping it will seem far more achievable. I ran with another prospective team member, who is also trying out for the first time. He was an 800 meter runner in high school and seemed like he was decent. In all, an easy workout. I am beginning to taper my workouts so that I can perform my best on Saturday.

Ran 8 miles total today at about 6:45 pace. Nothing special, but a good leg-stretching run. Felt very good and I was never short of breath, which is good because when I first started running, I felt winded after two miles at this pace. I finished with an 800 meter sprint.

It was very difficult to pay attention during class today with such an important run awaiting me tommorrow (differential equations can wait!). I feel nervous knowing that this run can determine such a great deal about my running future here at CU. I ran yesterday for three miles at very easy pace, just to keep my body in rythmn, and took today off. I know that I worked very hard to get into the shape that I am in, so I guess that I need to trust in my training, and let that take me where it may.

I ran the CU time trial this morning. It was a cold and wet morning, perfect for running. Saying that I was stressed would be an understatement, so when the gun went off, I immediately jumped to the top with the CU runners. I was surprised, because I expected them to be going quite a bit faster. One other runner attempted to take an early lead, but it was to no avail. I stuck with the CU runners with ease for the first two miles, and then it happened. I felt as if my vision were narrowing, and my legs truned to spaghetti. This feeling progressed until I had to almost hold my head up with my hands so that I could look forward. My pace slowly dwindled from a 5:20 mile something much slower. At that point, however, I was becoming delirious and lost any real thought process. It was more of catching myself when I was about to fall rather than really running. I probably gave up a good 20 positions after the ordeal began. With about 3/4 of a mile to go I approached a steep hill. It was not particularly long, but it was intense. People on the side must have been laughing at me because it took me a solid mintue to scale it. The main problem was that my balance was very messed up, so I swayed from side to side, trying desperately not to fall. I finally came across the finish line, not knowing what time I had received (I looked at my watch but I was far too delirious to comprehend what my time really was). Luckily, my parent were there, and seeing that I was in terrible shape, drove me to the hospital. On the way, I puked three or four times and felt terrible. At the hospital they hooked me up to an IV and layed me down. They monitored my heart rate and blood oxygen level. They also took blood samples to test for a lack of electrolytes and low blood sugar. Slowly but surely, I regained "consciousness" and began to feel a bit better. After an hour and a half, they released me. The blood tests showed that I was not lacking electrlytes, but my blood sugar level was high (265), suprisingly. They told me that the stress is probably what did me in, and that this is a fairly common occurence for serious runners. I felt like I ate a lot of carbohydrates and comsumed plenty of electrolytes the day before, so it seemed weird that something like this would happen. I know that the tempo is not what got to me either because I am used to running this fast with no previous problems. What especially agitated me was that the winning time was 26:55, which I know I could have beat, had my body not "shut down". I am going to talk to the CU coach and see if I can prove myself another time, because today was obviously not the "true" me. What feels the worst is knowing that my time was a false representation of my ability. I am happy, however, to be ok and well. I feel a bit tired, but I plan on resting for the rest of the day to regain strength.