Today was one of those mornings. I woke up at 5 am (15 minutes before the alarm) and really didn't feel like running. I thought I would get dressed, show up and maybe just sit and wait for everyone to do their miles.
By way of explanation my allergies are horrible this year. I don't remember it being this bad last year. In a bad year my face itches so much it feels like it's on fire. It make me tired and if my sinuses do get backed up I have trouble breathing. Yesterday was one of those days and although I didn't have the symptoms when I woke up I was still worn out and the nice weather was sure (I thought) to bring it all back. So in short (too late i know) I did not feel like running. As if that wasn't enough I also missed the exit off 422 and had to back up to get off at Oaks. Fortunately at 6:30 in the morning there wasn't anyone else around to care.
The enthusiasm of the group is too much to ignore. I got caught up in it and decided that I was going out and whatever happened happened. Start slow, see where it goes. I wasn't sure who was doing what intervals at first and not having a watch I decided on 1 mile and break and so on. However, I caught up with Julius who said he was doing 4 and 1's and that sounded more appealing so why not. by this time I had 2 miles done and was feeling ok.
There is something about running that seems to help the allergy reaction (temporarily anyway, more on that later) I can only think that it's because getting the blood moving keeps anything from sticking (dumb word but best I can do) and so the irritants can't settle in anywhere. At least that's my theory and i'm sticking to it for now.
So I stuck with Julius for most of the run. He runs faster than I do but I decided now that I was out there that I was going to give it my best effort. Had I been alone I would have slowed down. I don't think I was pushing too hard, just pushing more than I would have if alone. One of the many benefits to a group run :) Around mile 6 or so Jeannie caught up with us. She had been doing 2.5 and 1's and said she wanted to catch up so she switched to 5 and 1's and really must have turned it on. Great job, Jeannie! Somehow we also ended up with Mark who had been way ahead but stopped for a bathroom break. So the four of us more or less stayed together to the end. Jeannie and I switched back to 2.5 and 1's after awhile. Her pushing to cathc up and my trying to keep up with Julius had us both feeling the effects. Julius went ahead then but somehow we all were togehter again with just under 2 miles to go.
The last 2 miles we had a few gusty headwinds. Always interesting. This led to a goofy discussion about breaking wind. I'll spare you the details.
We finished strong with a good last 1/4 mile. This was Julius' first attempt at 15 and he did really well! Go Julius. And thanks to Mark and Jeannie for great company and encouragement.
I had a gu at the 5 and 10 mile mark. I had to refill water at the Collegeville Diner (thanks Jeannie for that too.. there's safety in numbers when you decide to just barrel you way in and get what you need!). I had a bit of stomach discomfort toward the end because these gus were the last two of my stash with caffeiene. I had forgotten to go get more before Saturday and I didn't want to waste them anyway. I took an Endurolyte at mile 4 and 8 as well.
As for the allergies, the day was gorgeous and with wind I was still taking in stuff. So after the run and after the endorphins passed on and my blood wasn't moving things around the symptoms crept back in. And right about now I'm ready to rip my face off again. BUT I had an awesome run, with great people and it all started because I got out of bed and went to meet USAFit/Philly.
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