Yesterday I ran 20 miles for the fifth time in my life. And man, it wasn't pretty. Actually, it was a gorgeous day, with a high of 78 and sunshine galore, but that was also the problem.

After 1.5 miles, when the group usually stops to stretch out, I was already completely sweaty, and it was a humid 65+ degrees. Around mile 6, the sun broke through the clouds and we started to feel pretty warm, which translated to heavy-feeling legs and a sluggish pace.

I knew that dehydration was a danger on this run, so I drank plenty of water and ate electrolyte jelly beans at every stop. But after the mile 12 stop, we didn't see the coach again until the end... which meant that me and my two running partners finished the final hour of a three hour run with no water, no fuel, and cranky attitudes. It was pretty brutal.

But. Now it's over. I'm not really all that sore, and I began to feel better after we improved our moods over eggs, bagels, coffee, and juice, dining outside in the sunshine. So in the end, it was a good run, even though at the time I was suffering. I just couldn't beat my grumpiness with such dehydration and semi-heat stroke.

Enough whining! Happy to be on taper, knowing that the race will be better than any of these training runs, and (according to Hal) what happens on any individual training run won't matter on race day.

And, I felt ecstatic about the summery weather for the rest of the day, especially lounging and icing my legs here: