Post Race Slump

Our happy pre-race selves.

The man and I ran our first 5k road race a little over a week ago.  We were both very excited, and anxious- but it was our first road race and we weren't sure what to expect. We did reasonably well- finishing smack dab in the middle of the pack.  There were 150 runners, and we were numbers 74 and 75 to cross the finish line in just over 36 minutes. For a couple that just seriously began running in the month of May-  I'm pretty proud of how we did.  But in the week and a half that has followed that race, I'm having a hard time gearing up to run every day- which is not something that I experienced pre-5k.

I think that there are a lot of things that played into the slump that I'm currently experiencing.  The man was sick the day of the race, and in the days following, he continued to get sicker and because of that, he wasn't running.. so I didn't either.  Instead, we had a Breaking Bad marathon, and I listened to him moan and groan about how awful he felt.  I also took very good care of him.   But I didn't run.  Five days post race, I couldn't seem to pry myself off of the couch... and I wasn't sleeping at night because the man was tossing and turning and not sleeping well because he couldn't breathe through his nose. He also wasn't eating anything more than soup and popsicles... meaning I wasn't cooking meals for us, and I was sort of just snacking on things here and there.   Does anyone see where this is going? Probably not... I wasn't sleeping, I wasn't eating well... and I just didn't have the energy to get myself off of the couch to run.  So, on Sunday, when the man was feeling better, we went out for a short 2 mile run.  I didn't run yesterday, as I wasn't feeling well... and today I decided that this slump has to end. I like myself better when I get in a good run.

When I started out today, I told myself I would just do two miles, and then be done... but when I got to the point in my run where I had to choose between the short route or the long route, I took the long route. I finished my first mile in just over 10 minutes... and the second in just over 12 minutes... and while completing the third mile, I was suddenly EXHAUSTED. I had to slow way, way down.  So slow, in fact... that a woman stopped me (Honked her horn at me!!!) to ask me if I needed a ride.  I politely declined and picked up my pace (and the pride that had landed on the pavement.) a little bit. I ended up with a 14 minute mile average... meaning the third mile took me 16 minutes. I have NEVER in the entire time I've been running been that slow. And as I'm running, I'm thinking about why this run was so hard.  And I realized that I haven't eaten any protein or carbohydrates in three days. That has to be the reason why. Right? Someone tell me that's what it is.... because otherwise, I can't explain it.  The moral of the story here, is that my body was running on empty- and if I don't fuel my body properly, it is not going to do what I want it to do.

When I hit 2.5 miles, it started pouring... and my happy and fun running music was interrupped by the most ridiculous noise. I looked down at my phone to find a flash flood warning, so I made my way home and had a quick cool down and a stretch.  Then I stuffed my face with a Mahi taco, and a Garlic Shrimp Taco from Surf Taco with some rice and beans.  I don't feel quite so tired anymore. Tomorrow, I'm going to run again... (Because our next goal is a 10k- something I can't even fathom right now...) and hope that I can ease myself back into the habit.  Because when I'm done with a run- I feel like I can do ANYTHING.  That's a powerful feeling.

 

Post-Race  With our trophies.