Ouuuuuuuut and Baaaaaaack + Real Food Day 5

Sunday started bright still dark and early, for a 6am group run. I love, love, love the running group. There is no way I would drag myself out of bed that early to run alone.

Before leaving the house, I had my typical pre-run English muffin with peanut butter. Since I had a loooong run ahead of me (20!), I also had a Gatorade Prime. I was worried the B vitamins would make it taste, well, vitamin-y, but it was pretty good! I also packed a regular Gatorade, water, and a banana for after my run.

For mid-run fuel, I brought a Clif Shot and some dried apricots. I think Clif Shots are my favorite gel-type fuel. They're compact/dense, the mocha flavor is good (and has caffeine), plus they are 90% organic (whatever that means .) This was the first time I ate dried apricots during a run, and I loved it! They don't get smushed, they don't stick to your teeth, and they don't taste like chemicals. I will definitely use them again.

Even though we got an early start, it was by no means cool. When it's 80 degrees before the sun comes up, you know it will be a hot one! Luckily we were on a shady trail with plenty of water stops along the way. It was an out and back course, and 10 mile segments sounded hard, mentally. I decided 4 5-mile sections would be more manageable.

The trail is slightly uphill until mile 6, and then it starts grading down. Because of this, I thought the 3rd section would be the hardest. I would have already run 10 miles and then I'd have to run 5 miles (slightly) uphill. Boy, was I wrong.

I actually felt pretty good for the first 15 miles, and then I started breaking down. My legs and hips hurt, and I could not keep my pace up. I had finished all of my fuel, and my stomach was growling. I had plenty of water, but since I was sweating so much I think I needed to replenish my electrolytes. More fuel + Gatorade next time!

This is the same route I ran my 18-miler on a couple of weeks ago, so I included those splits for comparison. (Of course, it doesn't line up exactly b/c I turned around a mile earlier that week.) I think the biggest difference is the last few miles. I was getting slower and slower at the end of the 20 where I was able to speed up for a strong finish on the 18. My overall pace on the 18 was nearly 10 sec per mile quicker.

But don't get me wrong, I am very proud of this run! I was aiming for 20 miles at a 10:00/mile pace, and I'd say I got what I came for.

As I mentioned, this was an especially sweaty run. I mean, I sweat a LOT, and this was worse than I've ever seen it. I had to keep wringing out my wrist sweat band - sweat would run down my arms and collect in a puddle in the palms of my hands. My shorts were saturated and heavy - like I had just climbed out of a pool - and sweat was constantly dripping from them. It was insane.

My 20 mile training run from my first marathon was disaster. In fact, I had to cut it short at 19 because I was dehydrated, my legs were cramping, and I was near tears from the pain and disappointment. Although I was prepared for the marathon, that horrible run - the longest run I had attempted - had me so anxious on race day. This time around, I wanted to get in at least one solid 20-miler, to help easy my nerves. The race is still 7 weeks away, so I'm planning to do one more.

Ok, onto food for the day. After that super-duper long run, I had a lot of refueling to do. I typically burn between 80 & 100 calories for each mile, which means I had roughly 1800 calories to make up...on top of my regular calorie intake. I don't typically count calories, and I'm not trying to lose weight, but I like to pay attention around long runs to make sure I'm adequately refueling.

I immediately drank half of the Gatorade and ate the banana. That was enough to get me to the gas station where I picked up ice for my forthcoming ice bath.

I also grabbed this cheese stick because I didn't think I could make it home without eating something else. The gas station is 1/2 mile from my house...and I was driving.

Once home, I ate some cantaloupe and had some coffee. (Coffee + Ice Bath = Sweet Relief) Then I got to work on something with protein, carbs, and staying power: Baked Quinoa Casserole.

Holy yum. This was really easy because it was a combination of a few pre-made ingredients. I mixed together pre-cooked quinoa and some of the ratatouille that I mentioned yesterday. Then I added a chopped up veggie burger and some feta cheese. I mixed it all together in a casserole dish, topped it with finely grated Romano, and placed it under the broiler until nice and bubbly (5-7 minutes.) Perfect post-run meal. I had 2 full servings over the course of the afternoon.

I think my body was trying to restore it's electrolyte balance because I was craving salty foods all day. Later (after a 4 hour nap) I snacked on dry-roasted almonds and a couple slices of cheese (dang, more cheese?!) I also had a PB & J and some frozen yogurt.

(Man, I need to figure out how to adjust the white balance on this camera...)

I was pretty sure I was still a few hundred calories in the hole, so I packed the leftover casserole for lunch the next day. I'm usually ravenous the day after a long run, so it's good to have something filling on hand...or I'll get really cranky.