Running in Florida

Saturday the 18th we had an early flight down to Orlando to drop off Ralph with my parents before heading off for vacation! Had I known at what point in a running training schedule I would be before buying the tickets, I might have avoided a 15 mile attempted run in high humidity and temperatures in the 80s, but I did not. The smart thing would have been to run in DC then fly, but instead we ended up with the reverse. Flying in the morning and an afternoon Florida run.

Bennett and I have both run in such conditions, and hotter ones, but that was when our bodies were acclimated to summer temperatures. This was definitely not the case. So we started out, knowing that we would need lots of fluids and electrolytes to make it through the run. We meandered all around my parent’s house, and I was once again impressed with how many nice sidewalks there are in that area. The heat and humidity was definitely getting to us long before we were even half way though. Each mile seemed much harder than it should.

The highlight of the run was being chased by two very friendly dogs that took our running by their house as an excuse to go for a run. They were really cute and full of energy. They gave their family quite the hassle in being caught. We ended up having to run back to their house to encourage them to go back to their family instead of coming with us.

The low part of the run was not being able to do the full 15 miles. Around mile 11 Bennett started feeling ill and dizzy from overheating and electrolyte imbalance. I was doing better, and would have forced myself through the last 4 miles, but I felt totally icky as well. So 15 miles became 11 miles, and we returned to my parent’s house in defeat. Stupid heat and humidity! I really can never decide which I hate more, extreme heat and humidity or the cold…