20 miles is far. Really far.

Sunday morning started off around 6 with a set running time of 7. Melissa met me at home, and humored me while I finished my coffee and ate a piece of toast. Finally we headed out around 7:15 with 20 miles on tap. The first couple of miles were slow and I was a little disappointed when my Garmin said we were running a 12:05 pace.

Around mile 3 my bean burrito (bad choice) from the night before caught up with me and I had to make a pit stop at a gas station. We did two loops, the first being 12 miles. I started fueling early but I think I might have over-fueled and used too many gels with caffeine. I took a Gu at miles 5, 9, and then 13 before starting the second loop. Our miles hovered between 10:30 and 11:00 on the super-hilly route. We stopped to stretch at mile 10 and continued on. When we hit the planned stopped point to get more water at mile 13, Melissa made the tough decision that her run for the day was ending there. I kept telling her that I knew she could finish but at the same time I didn't want to push her too far if she wasn't feeling it.

After saying our goodbyes, I took off (with her Garmin since mine died) to finish. I went a different route than planned because there was a race going on where I was going to run and I didn't feel like getting passed for the next few miles by tons of runners haha. I did a mismatch of miles through main roads and neighborhoods, refueling one more time at mile 17.

The final stretch was tough but I was able to continue running the entire time, which was my goal. Overall pace averaged 11:00 which I am okay with. It was hot and long and I'm really glad I was able to get this under my belt.

I refueled with a giant egg burrito, chocolate milk, and a strong IPA. I feel pretty good today, other than the 360 degrees of chafing around my rib cage from my bra. Ouch. Long runs from here on out include 12, 20, 12, and 8 miles. I can't believe the marathon is so soon!

And just because, here's a pic for you :)