Taking my training to the Blue Ridge Mountains of NC

About a week ago, I was in Asheville, NC for a spiritual retreat/conference and to see family that I haven't seen in a while. This was an opportunity to get away from the daily grind, take in some new sites, some fresh air, and obtain some good old soul restoration. We had reservations at the Crowne Plaza Resort, which is a pretty nice hotel in the Blue Ridge mountains of Asheville, NC. We arrived early Thursday morning around 5am and stayed through Monday, May 20. It was a pretty tough drive, considering we left later than we wanted, going and coming. But, thank God for traveling mercies. My training week started very late, as my first run did not come until Wednesday, due to some scheduling conflicts. My normal training weeks are Monday to Sunday. I was getting a little anxious because my week was slipping away from me and I had a goal of 20 miles for the week. That run on Wednesday morning was only 2 miles, but it was something and I was beginning to relax. I decided that I had no choice but to stay diligent for the rest of the week. I had made plans with one of my brothers to workout together during our time down there and that was to begin on Thursday. After arriving at 5am, Thursday morning, 6:30am was when the alarm rang for getting a run in. Can you imagine running after driving all night and on 1 1/2 hours of sleep?? Surprisingly, I felt ok and wasn't terribly tired... I set out to do 5 miles. What I didn't realize was that we were in the mountains!! I figured, this would be a regular 5 miler that I can get done with no problem at all. Well, that wasn't the case... There were inclines, I had never experienced in my life!! I'm a road runner and have not done any hill work or anything. That would all change today. The second thing that didn't hit me until the next day was the altitude is higher!! Which is why I was sucking air early in my run!! I couldn't believe how difficult this run was. But, I got through it. By mile 3, things were coming easier. I ran 5 miles and was happy that I was able to get my miles in. Friday, I decided to hit the gym and do some strength training. I got 3 miles in on the treadmill and went straight to the dumbbells. Friday's training went well. Saturday, I set out to do 10 miles... but, it rained. It didn't just rain, it poured. So, back to the gym I went. I had purchased some new socks, some Under Armour Dri-Fit socks. These socks were supposed to wick away the moisture from my feet. Which they did... Right onto the treadmill belt. While running on the treadmill, the sweat from my head and from my feet began pooling on the treadmill belt. My feet were sliding and the grip on the bottom of my shoes was slipping. I got off the treadmill and decided to try another. Same problem. I ended up doing a total of 7 miles and calling it a day. As I walked out of the gym, all you could here was squish, squash, squish. I sounded like I ran through a river with my shoes on. I rested on Sunday and before getting on the road Monday morning, I decided to start the new week with a final run in the mountains. I put in 4 miles Monday morning and felt great going back home. I knew that this week of training in the mountains would benefit me in the future. Overall, this week of training a great experience and I look forward to seeing how I have improved.