Running in the heat

Yesterday running in Columbia, MD was tough. I, of course, did not heed my own advice. When I left my house to run in the unusual 86 degree weather I did not take any water or Gatorade with me and decided that I would 5 miles. Brilliant, right? Around mile 2 I began to feel it, but I pushed forward anyway. At this point I am only half-way through my run around Centennial Park and I am not sure if I can make it the 2.5 miles back to my house.

Prior to continuing my story I feel it is important to share with you that I sweat more than is humanly possible. Seriously. I know that I tell people this all of the time and they look at me in that way that says, 'yeah right.' I ran a race one time in upstate New York in the middle of summer (think hot and humid). The race director was shaking everyones hand as they crossed the finish line. Everyones hand except for mine that is. He took one look at my sweat drenched shirt and passed me by with a light tap on the shoulder. That is how much I sweat.

So now you can understand how truly dumb it was of me to go out running in the heat with no water or Gatorade. Needless to say I survived (obviously or I would be writing this blog from the beyond and being featured on Ghost Hunters). But it taught me a lesson that for some reason has taken me this long to learn and that is that I need to take water. So, fellow runners, don't be like me and think you are above your own advice. Take your own advice. It will save you from having to write about it later.