If it doesn't kill me...

Today I ran my longest run yet. Eighteen miles. It was...hard. Because I'm not able, for a variety of reasons, to make it to Team practice tomorrow, I ran the miles at home near my house. I'm very grateful that my friend and fellow Teammate needed to get in an 11-mile run, so she kept me company for a large part of the run. The first 11-miles were not bad at all. It was nice to have company!! We had some killer hills, because that's what happens to be near my house, but overall we had a good time and it didn't feel like it was an extreme effort. My last 7-miles, however, were a different story. I had to head back out and back up one of the bigger hills of our previous route. I think that mentally tackled me before I even got to it. Halfway up, and about 13 miles in to the whole distance, I had to walk. I walked for probably a half mile at that point, and I walked for short stretches through the remainder of the run.

In addition to the hills and long distance, I had to run later in the day than I'm used to running, and it was starting to get warm. So warm, in fact, that by mile 15, my feet had started to swell so much that I had to stop and loosen my shoelaces. I drank well over 64 ounces of fluids, and was still feeling dry. My legs were starting to feel like they were swelling, too. Maybe it was all in my head, but I actually felt like my thighs might burst through my shorts! By the end of the run, almost every one of my toes had a blister on the end, my legs felt like lead weights and I was chafed in brand new places. But I finished deliriously happy because I did finish. It was hard, and it will get harder, but I know if I didn't die, I must be getting stronger!