Running probably isnāt the smartest decision Iāve made seeing as just two months ago I couldnāt go up the stairs without needing to sit down to catch my breath. Yet I have decided that running is the thing that will save me from all this frustration. Because, honestly, being incapable of doing something I used to do well is incredibly frustrating. Sure I was running incredibly slow with lots of walk breaks before, but that was mostly because I was just out of shape. Being out of shape is definitely easier to fix than potentially permanent lung and maybe even heart damage.Ā
Stupidly, I had signed up for several races this fall. The Wonder Woman 10k of course because I cannot resist anything labeledĀ āWonder Womanā and the OUC Half Marathon in Orlando (the virtual option). I have done the OUC half for the past three years so missing a year just seemed wrong. I realize that life changes and such, but right now having a tiny bit of consistency sounded like it would fix all my problems. I realize in hindsight that that argument rarely applies and in fact consistency and normalcy could actually hurt me more. But hey, itās 2020 and so is hindsight.
Given that I am now signed up for these races, I figured I should probably actually do something to get ready for them so I donāt completely die, just partially. Seeing as the OUC half is December 5th and the 10k results are due November 11th, I figured I could now use the 10k as more or less a halfway mark in my training. I can more or less get through a 5k right now so at least Iām not starting completely from scratch.Ā
Iāve been adopting something called the Jeff Galloway Training Method. Have you ever seen those people during races who seem like they must be dying because they run for about a minute and then walk for 30 seconds then take off running again? Apparently thatās the Galloway Method. The Viking in me believes that itās most honorable to just run the whole thing and never walk, but the Viking in me also signed up for those races after surviving a deadly disease. Thatās to say, the Viking in me is often very incorrect and makes stupid decisions out of pride. The Galloway Method has actually proven to be more effective in many cases because the tiny walking breaks allow for the legs to recover just a bit; however, the breaks are never small enough to require a noticeable running pace change to make up the time. Given that my lungs can survive about 3-5 minutes of running before Iām gasping for air and feel like death, the Galloway Method might be the only way Iāll ever get through any run for the foreseeable future.
I gave this method a try yesterday while attempting a 10k run. Iām not sure why I thought I was ready for such a grand feat. My guess is my Viking took over and decided that I was going to do it whether or not I was ready. Damn you, stupid Viking... Turns out, as pretty much anyone could have deduced, I was not ready for a 10k. I barely made it through the 5k. Since I live in Florida and itās never not hot, even at night, I was sweating profusely by the end of the first kilometer. By the 3rd kilometer, I had to extend one of my walking breaks from one minute to five minutes to catch my breath, which was still ragged and wheezing when I started the running cycle again. When I reached the 5k marker, I just gave up. I was tired, thirsty, out of breath, and the ice cream and stir fry I ate right before running had turned into a molten ball of lead in my abdomen.Ā
This was when the anxiety decided to step in for a bit. Quick note about running anxiety: apparently some runners are prone to panic attacks while running because their bodies are having so many panic attack symptoms just from running (elevated heart rate, sweating, shortness of breath, etc.) that the body actually triggers a panic attack. This is definitely one of the more stupid evolutionary developments our body has ever made. And yet, this is what my body decided to do. It was difficult to notice between the COVID wheezing, the running wheezing, and the humidity. I only noticed it because my brain started saying that I was going to just fall over and die and no one would notice. Or worse, someone would notice and that would just be embarrassing. Plus I didnāt have a mask. What if someone approached me without a mask? What if the ambulance didnāt have a mask for me?? HOW WILL I PAY FOR THE AMBULANCE???Ā
Thankfully, that last spiral helped me catch the anxiety pretty early on. I was able to call my sister and talk with her about random nonsense for a little bit. While she wouldnāt have been able to actually do anything to help me physically, it was a good distraction. I highly recommend having at least one person that you can call during moments of running anxiety. It helps to have an external person tell you to take a deep breath.
Definitely plan out your water too. This was something I did not do. Plunking some water bottles down along the route before running is ideal. I even have little water bottles that can be carried easily. Yet I did not bring these with me or put my water out before the run. This lead me to the gas station at around the 7k marker. Since I had no mask, I tied my shirt around my face like a hot pink ninja. The gas station had a soda machine with the blue Powerade, which conveniently was what I wanted. Then to decide on the size. My options were Tiny (small), Medium (medium), Mega (large), and Maximum (child sized???). I felt that calling a small sodaĀ ātinyā was rather inaccurate given the fact that a small coffee in Iceland is less than one shot. If anything, the smallest size in Iceland should be calledĀ ātiny.ā However, I supposeĀ ātinyā was accurate in comparison toĀ āMaximumā which was an entire 45 fl. oz. Naturally, as an American, I selected Maximum. This cup was so large my Viking-sized hand cramped up trying to carry it, which was honestly one of the most American problems Iāve ever had maybe only second to hurting my jaw trying to stuff my burger in my face.
I did finish the full 10k, running the first half using the Galloway Method and walking the second half with a much too large bucket of Powerade. It was definitely a struggle I was not yet ready for though. Thereās no shame in taking it a bit easy, I guess. All we can ever do is listen to our bodies and let them tell us what we need. Hindsight may be 20/20, but that doesnāt mean that foresight has to be blind. Donāt let your stumbles become faceplants.
