Surviving the heat

Is it Autumn yet?

This heat is getting pretty rediculous. Every day I find myself wishing all that rain would come back so it would wash away all this God-forsaken heat! I thought last Saturday's 10.5 mile run through Tanglewood was a hot one. That was down-right freezing compared to this past Saturday! We did 16.5 miles (including hills) & I honestly thought I was going to have a heat stroke. I started just after 5:00 am & by the time I finished 4+ hours later, the heat index was already at 106º. If it weren't for my coach putting giant coolers full of ice water out every 2-3 miles, I'm sure I would have had a heat stroke. I must've poured at least a dozen glasses of ice water over my head & down my shirt. Plus, about every 5 minutes or so I'd pour more water from my fuel belt over my head. It was miserable!

When I was on my way back to the park after completing the parking garage, I heard whistles & yells. I looked across the street & saw my old coaches on the deck at Biba's diner waving me over to them. I ran over to say hello & they told me I needed to quit running & join them because it was too hot. As hot as I was, I couldn't allow myself to quit. I had to finish. They kept trying to convince me to stay, but I stood my ground.

You see... this past Saturday was a special anniversary for me. Exactly 1 year ago that day (August 11, 2006), I bent over to pick something up off the floor, & suddenly couldn't stand up. That was the day 3 discs in my lower spine decided to rupture & thus began weeks of barely being able to walk, followed by months of terrible pain & physical therapy. I lived on my living room couch because it was too painful to sleep in my bed, I could only move my feet a few inches with each step because to walk a full stride was excruciating & I was taking prescription drugs to help with nerve damage.

Fast forward to this past Saturday & I was determined to prove to myself that I was finally strong enough to do every damn thing my coaches & Mother Nature could throw at me. And prove it I did. And I am even more determined than ever to get even stronger. I will not let this injury define me.