Oh, hail!

Last night's run was, in a word....wild.  I sat trackside in my car for almost half an hour waiting for the drizzling rain to subside before I started my run.  I could see the back edge of the cloud, so I figured I could wait it out.  Right before the back edge got to me, though, the rain stopped, so I decided to go for it.

I hate running in the rain.  It's the cold, the wet, the fear of slipping....but mostly, it's the chafing. Gah!  I really hate running in the rain.  Unless it's in the middle of summer, and dead hot.  Because then, it's refreshing.  And I'll suffer the chafing on a seriously hot day, if it means getting through my run.  Besides...in heat, you don't stay wet. 

But this time of year....well, that's a completely different story. 

I had made it halfway through my warm-up lap and was on the far side of the track (always) when the rain started again.  At first, it was just a drizzle, but it was enough to make me miserable.  But by the time I had finished that lap, I figured I was already wet, and I really, really wanted to finish my run.  So, I kept on. 

In the middle of the first interval, the wind picked up.  And when I say wind, I really mean gale.  It was ferocious, and by 'ferocious', I mean 'blowing track equipment into the track' ferocious.  My arms went numb, and so did my calves, all exposed to the elements.  But I kept on.

Coming around the far side of the track the second time, I noticed that the rain drops were getting much bigger....and then they started bonking off the top of my head. Hail.  Not big hail, but big enough.

Great...so now, I'm freezing wet, AND getting bonked in the head.  But I kept on, and I FINISHED MY FREAKING RUN.

 



And even in such a strong headwind, I managed to do better than last week.  Well, at least until the last interval.  I was completely sapped by then.  But I'm proud of myself, and I just proved to myself ONCE AGAIN that I do have what it takes to get there.  I just have to keep myself steady, and put in the work.

Oh, did I mention that the rain stopped completely right about the time I finished my run?  Yeah...

 My weigh-in this morning was not what I'd hoped for, but it was what I'd been shooting for, so I consider my goal obtained.  After all that partying last weekend, I was really looking for maintenance this week, and that's what I got.  No movement on the scale. That being said, I can still tell subtle differences in my body, so I know that I did lose some fat and gained some muscle, which pleases me greatly.  Next week, I do expect to see a loss, so we'll see.  For now, it's back to work!