It was a Nice Hike....

I know, right?

Let's cut to the chase. Lessons learned from the training run at Limberlost yesterday:

a) I cannot NOT run for a month and expect to push my body 14 km without pain. I love my Advil.

b) Limberlost is a TRAIL. Makes Sulphur Springs seem like a nice paved walkway. Never mind that crazy hill at Sulphur Springs - when you have to climb and hike rock and roots in order to stay on the trail...'nuff said.

c) My MM and our running friend are both awesome supporters and were very kind to hike with me along the 14km. Read: I had to stop to walk A LOT and instead of leaving me behind, they kindly kept me company.

d) HEED is the best darn electrolyte sports drink in existence! Seriously.

Honestly, it wasn't the most encouraging run yesterday. My MM had told me Limberlost is considered a very "technical" trail. "Come on," I had thought "What the heck is a technical trail? How complicated could following a path be??"  Let's see....besides the aforementioned rock and root hills, we crossed small, slippery wooden foot bridges, slugged through bogs, went right into a small (and luckily shallow) creek, and our running friend went nearly knee deep into mud which was akin to quick sand. Geez, did I mention the mosquitoes??

But did I enjoy it? Well, oddly yes. And for lots of reasons. First, Limberlost is an incredible place. The 14km trail took us past 5 different small lakes, each with a distinct piece of scenery. I want to go back in the fall with my boys (when there are few buzzing insects) and do a day hike. I highly recommend it. Second, Limberlost is a true trail run. Now I really feel like I've really completed one (even if was just a fast hike as it was yesterday!). Third, this was the first time I actually "scouted" out a trail before a race. Yes, I realize I've only participated in one race so far but work with me here. The fact is, I wouldn't have known that between 1 and 2 km is a fairly steep hill, made up mainly of rock and roots that one needs to traverse up. Now I know and thus I also know not to sprint out of the gate too fast 'cause that hill is killer!  And lastly, I still managed to finish 14 km - my time was embarrassing but I did finish it and never gave up.

So the next three weeks are crucial for me. Train, train and train some more. So long chocolate chip muffins at Tim Horton's in the morning. Adios chocolate almond bars in the afternoons when I really needed them (once per week, I swear!). I may even say au revoir to my Heineken (note I didn't say bye to this but see you again!). Again, my goal isn't to race exactly but to finish. Yesterday proved that I can do 14 km but there is NO way I'm walking the majority of it on race day. I'm out there to run and run I will!