I ran four miles this morning.
I have many friends for whom that would be an easy weekday run, easily completed in under 40 minutes and ready to get on with their day.
For me? It’s the longest I have ever run. It took me close to an hour, and I had to tell myself to just keep moving the entire time. It was mostly pride that made me not walk. I ended up with a massive headache that hung around for our entire three-hour drive home, and only backed off with three bottles of water, two Tylenol, and a quiet catnap in my own bed.
I don’t know if it was simple dehydration, over-exertion, or some other trick I’m missing. Runners in the know, any tips?
Or, it’s possible I shouldn’t have three shots of tequila and a margarita the night before I run. Maybe. Though, in my defense, I get this kind of headache post-run even when there’s no hard alcohol involved.
All that said, it was as nice a run as I could hope for. Directly outside of my hotel was access to a beautiful, paved, flat trail that meandered back and forth across a quiet river. It was cold enough that I was fully dressed and ready to go, and then checked the weather and decided to give it another hour to warm up. But in my layers, I would happily take all of my runs on a clear 25-degree day. Beats the hell out of anything over 70 degrees if you ask me. I even felt, somewhere around that last half mile, that I could have gone to five miles if I really needed to. It would have been hard, but I could have done it. It gives me hope for my Thanksgiving race. I might go at a snail’s pace, but I seem to have found the pace that works for me right now.
I was thinking today, in the midst of my throbbing headache, why in the hell it is that I run. I don’t exactly enjoy it. It kinda hurts, sometimes a lot. It’s not something I have a particular talent for. I’m certainly never going to win a race, unless it’s me and a bunch of octogenarians with walkers. And yet, right now, I absolutely run for the race. I do it because the race is a clear and concrete goal, because the training plan is explicit in its steps to get to that goal. Because it’s still not enough a part of my routine that I can do it automatically, it helps me to have a sense of obligation. I also like that I can easily quantify my progress – that I ran farther or faster today than last week. As my friend Jane and I discussed a few weeks ago, there is so little in our day-to-day parenting life that has an easily quantifiable outcome, it’s nice to have a discrete accomplishment we can point to. (OK, in her case, it was an actual marathon. For me, it was four miles. To each her own.)
Anyways, on my last morning of mini-vacation, when I could have stayed lazily in bed until check-out time, I went for a run. And while I sincerely wish I could have skipped that pounding headache, I’m proud that I made the choice to go, and finished as strong as I know how.
YOU KICK ASS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
I know you don’t need it, but I’m super proud of you!
Awesome!!!
Based on what you wrote, I’d vote for dehydration, but I’m also a water-obsessed person (I *hate* being thirsty) so my solution to everything is “drink more water.”
Yes, You Kick Ass. Congratulations! (and I blame every headache on lack of water, so drink up!)
Fairly Odd Mother recently posted..We adopted Houdini
Another vote for kicking ass!
Great work!
Do you get the headaches when you do other forms of exercise (spin?) or only when you run? How’s your heartrate when you’re running? Is it possible you’re going too high? I know the times I’ve gotten headaches have been when I was really pushing it, and especially when it’s hot out, so I always attributed it to overheating and my heartrate being too high. But who knows! Maybe try an electrolyte drink after a run to see if that helps? I like the Nuun brand–they’re not too sweet and have a bunch of flavors to choose from.
Good luck–hope you get it figured out!
I think we were separated at birth because I feel EXACTLY the same way as you about running. I also don’t really like it and am not very good at it. But I did a 5 mile run one day while on vacation and I actually felt great while running. It was my first real “running” experience and I have yet to duplicate it. The thing about running is that you slap on some shoes, iPod with podcasts and just go. Which in a way makes it easy. The running part? No so easy. I think that hydration is the key, both before and after. A banana might help too but I suffer from leg cramps so that’s what I do. Good for you with the 4 miles. Just think, we’ll be crossing that 8K finish line soon enough!
AWESOME.
I get that kind of headache when I am too hot, don’t drink enough, or when I am going too fast.
So I would:
* make sure you are hydrated
* slow it down
or
* wear one less layer. You want to dress 20 degrees warmer than actual temperature.
And truly, sometimes I get that crap headache on long runs even when I am 100% prepared.
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I agree with the other commenters about hydration. I am sure you’re so busy that you don’t have a lot of time to remember about water, but especially with drinking the night before that could be a factor.
Oh, and really make sure to relax your shoulders and hold in your abs when you are running. If you hold a lot of tension in your shoulder and don’t support your back with your ab muscles, that could give you a tension headache.
HTH and I am seriously impressed with the 4 miles by the way! My daughter is 11 months old and I havent’ made it past 3 myself – and that’s with liberal walking breaks!
That’s awesome – go you!!! I think you will find it gets easier to add mileage and if you keep it up, you might even start enjoying it. I wouldn’t say that I like it yet, but I don’t hate it anymore and that’s huge! I love the accomplishment too when you go a little further or a little faster – it’s very tangible! I agree about hydration – when I was running regularly, I was drinking pregnancy-quantities of water. Electrolytes are good too.
Yay Liz!!! You are awesome. I think that running on your vacation is a true sign of success.
How is your breathing? When I’m working really hard, I hold my breath. That tends to bring on a wicked headache. I hope that you figure it out. Negative reinforcement is not ideal.
Nice work Liz! I am impressed! 4 miles is a long way!
I never really liked to run, but I loved the runners high after I was finished. I am not entirely broken hearted that my orthopedic surgeon told me running would be brutal on my spine. I will gladly stick with outdoor cycling an spinning classes. Although I lost weight faster when I “ran.” I think it was all the jiggling.
Four miles is serious business – congrats! I do believe the turkey trot is within your grasp!
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Water water water! That’s all I drink and I still get headaches after long runs. You can also gauge your dehydration if you have salt on your body after a run. 4 miles is HUGE! Congrats
. I run for the goal too, and somewhere in the middle the endorphins actually kick in and it feels amazing. Wish I could run with you!