Two weeks to go before I get to run my first half marathon this year….feels kinda surreal. Yesterday I did my last long training run on my own.

Normally I would follow my Hal Higdon plan for everyone long run which would have had me running 19k next weekend. However, I’m pacing the 10k at Valley Harvest Marathon next Sunday, I thought I would just add-on another 6-8k after pacing the race. I decided my body would probably benefit from a little taper and I’d stick with just pacing the 10k at 7 minutes/km or an hour and 10 minute finish.

Let me tell you about my long run yesterday…..

First I have to tell you about Friday night as it will come in handy later on! Actually, it started with lunch. Saï met me at my work and we went for lunch: Thai Food…delish! Hours later, I made pasta for the girls and baked sweet potatoes with cut up veggies, kidney beans and cheese on top (vegan cheese for Saï). I also had a kale salad for us. Once the girls went to bed we started to watch “McFarland”. After 45 minutes we cooked up a box of spring rolls and I shoved 2 pieces of left-over pizza in my mouth…apparently I was hungry. Oh …. we also had some wine; sangria to be exact.

Early in the morning my alarm sounded and I was up by 5:30 am. I did the bathroom thing, got dressed and ate a 1/2 a bagel with peanut butter. I was out the door at 6:04 and ready to run 17-18k on my own. It was extremely dark and felt a little dodgy. I had on my Night Runner 270 lights and my vest so I was seen by vehicles – most of my run was on the side of the road or on the sidewalk.

Around 25 minutes into the run there was a man on the other side of the road who noticed my lights {remember, it’s still extremely dark}.  As I came closer he walked across the street, didn’t even look to see if any cars were approaching and said something to me. I said good morning and kept running. After a little while my stomach started to rumble but went away just as fast…I thought nothing of it.

I took my “outrageous chocolate” GU around 7.5k and dropped the package in a garbage bin, took my vest off and turned might lights off. I kept running and decided to run up this hill and figured I turn around half way up it but I just kept running. It was a kicker, that’s for sure. My stomach rumbled a few more times but I just kept running.

Between 13-14k, I heard the honk of a car beside me but couldn’t figure out who it was. It was my friend Jolene in her husband’s car. Once I recognized her, the look of horror was washed off my face with what I hope was a friendly/surprised smile. It’s always fun to see people on your run when you don’t expect it.

As I got closer to home my stomach got worse but I thought I could wait until I got home. I crossed the street when there was a lull in traffic instead of waiting for the cross walk signs to change. I was so close to home…. about 1.2km to be exact. I had to walk. Not sure why, but I did for a few steps and then figured it was a silly choice so close to being done.

I had to climb up one more hill and it killed me but I managed to keep running at the top to recover. I finished 18k about two streets out from my house and walked back for a little cool down. My stomach was feeling fine at this point. As I entered the house and went up stairs I was greeted by the girls and Sai. I sat down to stretch with Hilary and after one stretch I ran fast for the bathroom. Well……..let’s just say I’m so glad I was home! No more wine or tones of food the night before a long run or my upcoming races!

I’m getting excited and nervous for PEI Half Marathon 🙂 Now I’m just going to enjoying my few runs/workouts this week, look forward to pacing next Sunday and celebrating {Canadian} Thanksgiving dinner too.

Ever have stomach issues when running?

Garmin (or other GPS users) – do you look at your splits after your run?

What’s your favourite feature on your GPS unit?