(Photo credit: http://www.fuelrunning.com/quotes/2011/09/23/respect-the-distance-or-the-distance-wont-respect-you-itll-eat-you-up-spit-you-out-and-make-you-beg-for-mercy/)
The caption above sums it up perfectly (and I like the picture the blogger chose as well). But yes, if you don't respect it, it will own you and you will beg for it to all be over!!!
And this is exactly how I felt this morning...
(Photo credit: http://www.brightonelephant.co.uk/#!The-Beauty-of-Goodbyes-–-When-TV-shows-won’t-let-a-Series-End/cjds/557992dd0cf293eac80b099e)
I seriously failed this morning. And where it all began:
1) I decided to lay in bed an extra half hour because "it should only take me 2 hours"
2) I've done more than this, I don't need water
3) Let's try to go a different route
4) Oh and yes the lack of respect again... "it should only take me 2 hours"
Yeah... FAIL!!!
Most of the slights weren't a big deal. Taking more than 2 hours and going a different route really didn't mean all that much. I have a flexible work schedule (at least right now) so time wasn't an issue. But the real issue was being naive and thinking that I don't need any water. That really hurt. And what I realized as I was suffering was that my normal route along the beach has water fountains which I pass multiple times and typically use on the backend of my runs. And my new neighborhood route (which is typically my 10k Thursday run) doesn't have any water fountains because it's through the neighborhood!
But yes, as I suffered through the final 6 miles and really struggled to finish those last 2 miles, I really honed on the mental game that is endurance sports. Respect the distance, it's a marathon not a sprint and be prepared! The good news is that I still got my half marathon run in and I should have enough time to fully recover my body for the half ironman this weekend. But boy will I definitely be respecting that race!!!
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