Battling the Heat

Distance: 3 miles
Time: 27:33
Location: Granite Hills

*Note - This run occurred Saturday, June 11th.

I haven't been doing a good job of sticking to my routine. I went a whole week without a run, and it makes me very disappointed. Work has been pretty tiresome lately, and I've had a lot on my mind with that and house issues. After not running Friday night I finally got fed up with myself and determined to go on a Saturday morning run. My last run was the previous Saturday up at Granite Hills and it went pretty well. So I decided to hit the same area up but change the route slightly. Instead of looping around the school for mile 1 and 3, I decided to do the desert loop for 1 and 3 and loop the school for mile 2. I prefer this route because I enjoy running in the open desert along narrow trails rather than on streets. And for the first half of this run it was quite nice. I felt good and the air still had a hint of morning coolness (though it was about 11am). There were chipmunks and rabbits darting in front of me the whole way. The first mile went by in a flash and the second mile started out well also. But as I neared the end of the second mile I began to hit a wall. The cool air of the morning was all but gone and the afternoon sun began beating down on me something awful. This was actually my first run in the heat this year. Up to now it's been a rather cool spring. But that is now changing. My 2 mile time was just under 18:00, so I was on pace to set a 2010-11 PR. I just had to keep my last mile under 10:00. Normally that would be an easy task, but as soon as I began my third mile I was feeling my body temperature rise and my pace slow. I was running at what felt like a snail's pace. At one point, as I ran along a wide dirt road heading towards Mesquite, my body almost forced me to stop! I literally had to will myself to keep going. I was burning up and out of any energy at all. My last 600 meters was a struggle, but I slowly finished the run (without stopping) and ended up with a 27:33. I really didn't think I'd get a faster time than last Saturday, but I surprised myself. My first 2 miles must have been good enough to allow for a slow third mile and still get a 2010-11 PR. One thing's for sure, though -- if I had to run even 800 more meters I think I would have collapsed! The heat is a beast to contend with. I definitely need to set out earlier or go later now that summer is near.

In the end, I was happy with the result. My time dropped by almost 30 seconds, and I know now that even in adverse conditions I can handle 3 miles pretty well. Now I need to focus on running more frequently. One or two days a week is not going to cut it.