Made it out

I actually made it for a run this evening. 85F in 53% humidity and no shade are far from being my favorite conditions, but it went all right. I think part of my issue is that I don't really know the area and what roads are good to run on, so a lot of my efforts are wasted running on roads that turn out to be unsuitable; I never seem to fall into my stride because my environment keeps changing.

Regardless, on the short run, in the heat, with all the handicaps, I added about an extra minute and a half to my pace. I guess in the grand scheme of things that isn't terrible, but what is disheartening a bit is the loss of consistency. I found myself walking now and then, not from muscle fatigue, or even shortness of breath, but from a lack of energy as the heat surrounding me seemed to suck the life out of me. I honestly have no clue how my brother and his crew managed to run a full marathon in an environment of high heat and humidity, where other runners were dropping off the course (which was eventually shut down). Days like this make me respect them all even more.

At any rate, all is not lost. I think things will be fine once I am at home and running on familiar turf. I recently learned that the course of the half marathon is exactly the path I've been running all along, so I feel I'll have the home field advantage. All the perks of knowing my own mile markers and being able to gauge how I'm doing will help me out. Aside from all that, it's just beautiful - running south on the lake path is a real pleasure - one that I look forward to enjoying once I get back from here.