Oh the Pain

I had a big plan yesterday to run from work back to about a 5 minute cab ride to my house...and I did it! The whole 6.5k of sheer torture and pain. There were a lot of stops to stretch, drink water, crawl, walk and a lot of moments where I 'ran' so slowly I might as well have stood still.

I don't think I can even begin to describe the agony that I (as a poor runner in the first place) experienced from 2k onwards. I had tried the same route last year once and I got up to 2.5k before I gave up and took a taxi home. Yesterday I got to 2.5k and pressed on. From the start my shins were giving me a bit of grief, maybe because they weren't used to running on the pavement, but that pain went away and was replaced by just general pain all over. I had my famous stitches for the last 4.5k and had to stop every now and then hoping that that'd get them to disappear. I tried breathing properly, I tried running without bouncing...basically I tried everything possible, but they were there to be my constant companion all through the end.

Now imagine me running like I'm about to reel over (and really, I use the word 'running' here very, very loosely) and then suddenly realising that the route I chose has got all these uphill slopes. Real fun huh? I wouldn't go as far as to say they were hilly routes, but they were sloped upwards and I was entirely miserable.

You'd think that after all that running I did I'd be able to have a wonderful night's sleep, but despite going to sleep at half 10, I woke up at about 1am freezing cold. So I turned off the a/c and an hour later I was feeling warm, so I turned the a/c back on. This went on the entire night which effectively meant I didn't actually end up getting much sleep, much less feeling well-rested!*

Today, my legs are throwing a tantrum. In fairness, they're being rather nice in spite of it, because they're not too sore, but they are awfully stiff. Hopefully if I stretch them out a bit tonight they'll be good to go tomorrow. I'm planning a short run on the track with my sis then. Be nice to treat my feet to a nice, cushy surface for a change.

What I did last night
Ran (Walked/Crawled/Stood Still): 6.5k in 54:02 minutes

*Apparently a lot of people experience the whole waking up in cold sweat (I was just cold, no sweat) after doing their first long run....whilst it makes me feel as if I've made the leagues of better runners, it seems rather pathetic that my 6.5k run actually constitutes a 'long run' to my body.