Niki's Neverending Adventure

I did it! I ran 12 miles this morning!! Overall the run was pretty good! I got up around 7:30 and was out the door around 8ish. This was this first time I did my long run in my town which makes for a lot of hills! It wasn’t bad though! The weather was nice, I almost wish it was a little cooler. My computer said it was 43 degrees when I started, so I wore capris, a short sleeve shirt, and a long sleeve light shirt but almost immediately I was ready to shed that long sleeve shirt! I stashed my water and gel on my porch so I looped back every 3-4 miles to get water. Since I had such bad side stitches last week, I opted to NOT eat anything before my run. I know some of you may think that’s crazy, but I just feel better when I am running with nothing in my stomach. This is fine when I can just get up and head out but will pose an issue on race day since I will be up about 2 hours before the start to get ready and get to the race. I am planning on mimicking race day on my 12 miler next weekend so any fueling suggestions? I need something small so it won’t bother my tummy but substantial enough so I’m not starving. I’ve tried oatmeal, toast with PB, and cliff bars. Oatmeal and toast with PB are major fails but 1/2 a cliff bar seemed to work ok most of the time. Any other ideas would be great!!

 

Ok back to the run… So the first 4ish miles were great, stopped real quick, got some water, and started again. The next 4ish miles were also not bad, more hilly than the first but still ok. No side stitches or tummy troubles at this point. I was making a point to keep a nice slow pace seeing as I really wanted to finish this run and I normally don’t do my long runs on this many hills!! I took a Green Apple Power gel around mile 8 with more water. Really like that flavor! I really am a fan of gels! Around mile 9ish, I started getting a bit of a side stitch but I managed the last 4 miles without too much difficulty. I had to take a couple walk breaks to stretch my side out when it got unbearable but I was ok with that.

 

My time was 2:12:xx for 12 miles with an average pace of 11:03. A little slower than usual but not bad considering the hills and the walk breaks I took toward the end. I am really happy with this run!!

 

I am also happy to report that the awful sick feeling that I have been experiencing after my long runs was no where to be seen today! I actually was able to eat not long after the run and took an ice bath! Ice baths are kinda fun :) I sat in the tub, shivering, drinking hot tea and listening to Christmas music! I lasted 15 mins and then got out. Hopefully I will not be too sore tomorrow so I can do a short recovery run. Overall, this tremendous 12 miler was a win in my book!

 

I also decided to do some baking today and used Megan’s recipe to make Mini Pumpkin Scones!

 

 

They turned out really good!! I made the icing a little too thin because I ran out of powdered sugar so it’s more of a glaze. But, it still tastes awesome! And you know I sampled one already :) Great recipe Megan!!

 

Tonight’s the last night that Georgia gets to stay with me because my parents are back in town tomorrow. So, we are having a girl’s night!! Yummy food, wine, and catching up on the DVR and blogs! Sounds like a great night to me!! Hope ya’ll are having a great weekend!!

Posted in: on Saturday, November 14, 2009 at at 5:40 PM