Five Things About Summer Training
Happy Monday everyone! I hope you had a wonderful weekend. It’s been a bit quiet around these parts due to some technical difficulties last week but it’s all been ironed out! I’m back with posts scheduled all week! Today I’m coming you with a bit of a light hearted post. As you know, I’m training for the Chicago Marathon and I’m in hot and humid Texas. Summer training is no joke here! Here are a few of the wonderful things I’ve learned:
- You think you aren’t a heavy sweater? HAHAHA. Five minutes into my run and MY KNEES ARE SWEATING. Really? Maybe I just never noticed it before but I literally fling sweat drops as my arms swing. Just run in your sports bra, it’s much lighter than a shirt drenched in sweat.
- You don’t run with any form of hydration? Get ready to get a headache and question your life choices. Running with water/electrolytes is a must down here. Especially since you’re sweating within seconds of going outside. Trust me, carry something with you!
- Want to point out the sociopath in your running group? It’s the person who runs in the middle of the day IN TEXAS. I mean, I get waking up later but don’t run right at noon y’all! It’s just the express lane to dehydration and sunburn. Ain’t nobody got time for that!
- On that note, I KNOW that getting up early on the weekend sucks. However, if you’re doing that long run early to avoid the heat, you also have to factor in time to FUEL for that long run. I have to wake up at 4AM to eat for my long run that starts at 6AM because I want to beat the heat. Any earlier and it means waking up at 3AM. Sleep is overrated.
- Watermelon after a long run is LIFE. Seriously, when it’s nice and cold and you’re hot and nasty, nothing tastes better. Except maybe a pickle if you’re a really salty sweater, haha!
This summer heat is brutal but it’s nothing a little humor can’t cure. This is seriously the first time I’ve logged longer runs in the summer so it’s basically all new to me. It’s been a learning experience but I’m glad that I have a good group helping me out this time. And when I’m annoyed with having to wake up early and run, I just remind myself that it’s way better than having to run doubles multiple times a week.
Have you ever trained for a marathon in the heat of summer? What’s something you’ve learned?
