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July 30, 2005
Playing Doctor
I've been complaining about being exhausted, running slower, and overall lethargy a lot recently, and it all culminated today on my run with Becky. She was in town visiting, and I was really looking forward to running with her for ~3 hours and really catching up. We met at 6:15 to run some stealth miles before meeting with our group at Iwo Jima and then departing on our own route, through Georgetown up Rock Creek Park. I immediately felt out of breath, which I attributed to the humidity and carrying my frozen Camelbak. I ditched the Camelbak and carried a bottle of water and Gatorade instead. That felt better for a bit, but I could just tell it wasn't going to be my day. If it weren't for Becky, I would have stopped much sooner because my hips were tight, my heart rate was way high for the easy pace we were going, and I felt all around like doo doo (so eloquent). But I didn't want to ruin her run, and we ended up with 2:30. Afterward, we went to Whole Foods and enjoyed Jamba Juices and muffins outside. I miss her soooo much and hope she and Matt move back to DC after grad school!
When I got home, I crashed for an hour, and then R. and I had lunch at our favorite sushi buffet. Did I mention they brought kimchee back? That and the new cold buckwheat noodle soup are my favorites. Anyway, before lunch R. (who studies health/medicine as a hobby and was an EMT) took my heart rate and blood pressure. The latter was normal but my heart rate was kind of high for not having exercised in a few hours. We talked about my training and what I've been eating, and after I did some quick research on the internet, I've concluded that I have anemia. Now, I was diagnosed in 1997, but it hasn't hit me this bad since then. The symptoms were similar but I wasn't exercising nearly as much then. It seemed such a distant memory. One website said: "In the first stages of iron deficiency, the athlete's performance begins to decline. The athlete may complain of burning thighs and nauseas from becoming anaerobic. Ice craving is also common." No burning thighs this time but definitely everything else. I eat ice like it's going out of style; it'd be a miracle if all my teeth don't fall out. My times this summer have been getting slower (forget the heat), despite the fact that I'm in better shape than last year. Another website mentioned "spells of fast heartbeat and breathlessness in training." Absolutely! My doctor in '97 gave me a pamphlet that also listed dirt cravings. Luckily, I haven't had those because I don't think dirt is part of a healthy diet.
I feel slightly comforted now knowing what ails me (I think). After the run, I briefly considered abandoning my training plan and switching to lower mileage/more quality, but I'd really prefer to finish out Pfitzinger's deal. If it doesn't work for me, of course I'd be disappointed, but then I could switch gears. No need to be hasty. I will attempt to be more diligent about taking iron, eating iron-rich foods, monitoring how I feel after my period, and cutting back some miles if I continue to feel breathless/lethargic or worse. Granted, I already forego the latter if I do the sprint triathlon tomorrow, but I figure it's a low key one with a pool swim that I can take real easy. And after that, then I'll try to make myself take a couple days completely off. Just thinking about unwanted days off makes me antsy.
Before I go pick up our pepperoni and basil pizza, I swam a mile last night. I never really counted biking or swimming as activities that would deplete me of much (it's cross training after all, right?), but it seems that endurance sports *period* adversely affect red blood cell count. I guess more so after multiple long workouts in a day. Ah, it's always a learning process. We'll see where my body takes me from here.
Posted by Leilani at July 30, 2005 08:03 PM
Comments
That's a pretty race entry title don't you think?? :)
I wanted to say good luck in your quest to ingest and absorb more iron. I hope that helps and you start to feel better. I wonder how long it takes to raise iron levels.
I hope the tri went okay this morning and was fun.
Take care!!
Posted by: Audrey at July 31, 2005 02:32 PM
I hope you are feeling better soon! Good luck with the iron. If you don't already, I would suggest a liquid supplement (vs a pill) as it's absorbed better. Always take your iron with vit C (ie: orange juice) as that too helps absorption and of course the best source of all is red meat (better absorbed than any supplement around!). Sorry if you already know this stuff...the dietitian in me couldn't help myself... :)
Posted by: Beth at July 31, 2005 08:05 PM
I've heard from my doc that one way to tell if you're anemic is to see the inner part of your lower eyelid: it's supposed to be pinkish but can be whiteish when anemic.
Posted by: Nanda at August 1, 2005 12:13 PM
Sometimes knowing what's wrong is half the battle. I hope you start to feel better and more energetic soon!
Posted by: Barb at August 3, 2005 03:39 PM