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November 14, 2004
Missing Husband and Gaseous Clay
Albeit windy, yesterday was another fabulous day for a run. Since the club was only planning on running 13 miles, and I had 15-16 miles on tap, R. and I arrived at Iwo Jima a half hour early so I could get in three stealth miles. (By the way, stealth run definition as coined by EZ: Miles completed stealthily before the official start of Saturday Long Run.) For my first three, I ran toward Arlington Cemetery and Memorial Bridge. It was especially windy on the bridge, but having the sun, the beautiful DC sights, and other people out and about made me happy. And on my way back up the Iwo Jima hill, I realized that I wasn't the only one who was completing a stealth run. Three other girls from the club had done the same in the opposite direction.
Once we started the official route though, I quickly remembered how out of hill shape I am. Potomac Overlook Park is probably one of the hilliest routes we do, everything from the climb on Custis Trail to the rolling hills Nelly Custis Road all the way to the hilly loops in the park. I was supposed to be going an 8:30 pace, but my GPS was telling me that I wasn't being very consistent. Oh well. Once I hit the trail, I was running by myself because most people were cutting it short to run Philadelphia Marathon next week or had recently run a fall marathon. Last time I did this course, Becky and I ended up on some other neighborhood road. So once again, I was relying on my cue sheet. At one particular intersection, I wasn't sure which way to go -there were no red markings. Luckily, some guys came from behind, and I proceeded to run with them. One guy had a heart catherization (sp?) two weeks ago and looked in fine shape for having surgery. We ran three laps on the mulched trail.
On our way back, we realized that we were supposed to run four loops to get in the 13 miles. It was too late to turn back, so I decided to run Mount Vernon then back up the Iwo Jima hill to tack on some miles. C., the guy who had surgery, happily joined me and helped the remaining time go by quickly as well as kept us at a respectable pace. When arrived at our start point, almost everyone had already left for breakfast at Whitlows. Our interim refreshments guy was still there with Gatorade and with a couple other people. Noticeably missing was my husband, and none of them knew where he went. I assumed he made a quick trip to Starbucks. Minutes passed and I was getting cold standing around with no pants or warming layers, so I hitched a ride to Whitlows, thinking maybe he went there instead.
No hubby at Whitlows either! Everyone thought it was funny, but I was cold and hungry (for sushi buffet...not breakfast food). He showed up frustrated about 20 minutes later. Apparently, one of the guys I was running with told him that I might be lost on the trail (why? because I still refer to the cue sheet??), so he went on a manhunt up and down Lorcum Lane and Nelly Custis. He thought I was running 14 miles not 16....ah, men don't listen sometimes.
So that was my long run. About stomach pains, since Thursday I've been having on-off areas of pain in my upper belly area, right under my ribs. I was attributing it to gas because I was burping and flatulating (sorry!) so often; that is, until last night, when the pain moved to my mid-section. And it was sharp pain this time. I couldn't even eat my dinner. I just wanted to go home and clutch my stomach. R. tried to take me to the emergency room, but I said let's wait until Monday to see if this is still a problem. We went over what I had been eating the past few days. Nothing really seem to stand out except that I had started drinking Cytomax after runs, so he suggested that I stop drinking it for a few days and that maybe it's an allergic reaction. I'm feeling okay now, and I just hope the pain stays away for the rest of the day. I've got too much planned, including a swim later on today.
Posted by Leilani at November 14, 2004 09:57 AM
Comments
Wow...a lost hubby. Glad to hear that he found you. Goes to prove that some men just don't listen :-) Hope that your tummy feels better soon. I've heard some not so nice stories about Cytomax, so that could be the culprit.
Blondie
Posted by: Blondie at November 14, 2004 06:33 PM
Maybe it's all the Mighty Mo Munchies? Snack foods do a number on me sometimes ...
Posted by: jenandmats at November 14, 2004 09:40 PM
I'm catching up on blog reading (backwards...) That is scary about your tummy, I hope you are feeling better.
And if you want to talk about out of hill shape, come see me! I would have been happy to get lost this time just so I could walk. :)
Posted by: becky at November 15, 2004 06:40 PM
Ouch - your stomach woes sound really, really painful. I have not had much luck with cytomax - I tend to rely on watered-down gatorade or just plain water. I am glad to hear that your husband found you - my boyfriend tends to go out looking for me when I am gone for a long time (but I actually do have a habit of getting lost! Sometimes I wonder how I found Boston so easy to navigate, but I cannot navigate a grid like Chicago - too funny).
Posted by: bridget at November 15, 2004 07:27 PM