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.

Finally... My first ten mile training run in the books.

This run seemed to avoid me over the last couple of weeks as schedules didn't mesh and stomach issues arose. Its been tough trying to get to this milestone, but I finally got there and I feel like I've accomplished a significant goal on my running. I feel like i'm close to being ready for first half.

I started out as slowly as possible, which was about a 12:15 pace. I actually still felt that I wasn't going slow enough... So I slowed down even more in my second mile and by that time my average pace was 13:55 or something similar (I could've easily just looked it up, if it weren't for technology... But I'll get to that later).

Miles 2-5 were a breeze... It felt like a regular weekday run, where I normally do between 4-5 miles. By this time, I had been running for about 51 mins as I checked the Map My Run app on my phone. I took an energy gel and kept moving. I deliberately reassessed how I was feeling around mile 6 and I was feeling good.

I don't know what it was, but mile 6-7 seemed like it would not end. I don't know whether it had something to do with this specific portion of my route being new or what, but time seemed to move slower.

I noticed a gas station and felt like I needed to get water, so I went in the gas station, purchased a .99 water and continued my journey. That was my only stop, I'm pretty proud to say...
Because running nonstop is important to me, I justified it as if I were to stop at an aid station during a race. So it wasn't that big of a deal.

What I did through this pit stop, was
confirmed, how much I don't like running with anything in my hands. This water bottle didn't bother me as much as I thought it would, but it just wasn't comfortable.

Its mile 7, and i'm staying steady. I don't feel like I am moving that slow, but i'm definitely not moving fast. I'm on the way back to the start of my run and I move through mile 8. I get to mile 8.5 and I realize i'm not too far away from my start. I've got to create mileage if i'm gonna get a full 10 in. My start (where my car was parked) was only .5 miles away. I decided that I would do an out and back of a mile.

I reached mile 9 and I didn't feel bad, buy I definitely wasn't fresh. "Only 1 more mile to go..." was my mantra. I had come this far, there was no way I was gonna stop at that point. There's something about that double digit number compared to, well, 9.

As i'm willing my way to 9.5, i'm counting in my head, what I feel the distance of each quarter of a mile should be. I felt like I reached 9.5 and it was 9.45 miles. I say to myself "whatever" and head on back towards my car. I figured the parking lot that my car is in would complete the ten mile distance. I decide to pump my arms as best as I can to open up my stride. My stride is opening, but I don't feel like i'm going anywhere. I don't quit, I won't stop until I hear my phone say my distance, time and split time.

Finally... The voice on my phone announces: 10 miles, muffled total time, split time- 11:54.

I stop the workout, get to my car, attempt to save my workout and begin driving home.

I get home and look to my app to review my stats and the workout is not there!!! What!?! All that work and nothing to show for it but sweaty clothes and a tired body. Unbelievable!!

Technology... It can be a great asset at times, but it can be an annoying thing at times as well. I guess the best overall technology is our bodies and minds.