And so it begins...

Small note first: future entries will be shorter, I assure you.

Well, I had my first big training yesterday out at Mare Island. I dragged myself out of bed at 6:30am- this, my friends, shows you the level of my commitment. When I got to the marina around 7:45, there were about 6 other women there, and we all huddled around a few of the cars and started chatting about who was doing which event. The runners seem to outnumber the walkers, and most people are training for the Nike Women's Marathon. I only remember one other person, my mentor, Shona, who said that they are going to Maui. Of course, I only talked to a handful of people, so who knows? I would say that there ended up being about 40 people there- all women. Well, there was one man, but he's a mentor and is on the cycle team, I do believe.

Anyway, we all signed in and got our instructions on water locations, course details, etc, and probably set off around 8:30. My job for the day was to walk 5 miles. Get out to the 2.5 mile marker and then turn around and come back. So, how did I do? Not so hot, I'm afraid to say. I started off at my slightly amped up walking speed, and I was able to keep that up for about, oh, three minutes. Cramp in the left calf.

I stopped and stretched, but nothing happened. Kept walking, still in pain. Stretched some more, people were passing me, but still in pain. At this point, I was seriously discouraged. I was thinking, "Am I not going to be able to do this? Can I not even walk a one friggin mile? I mean, I walk most days around town here, and I've only had this happen one other time. People were encouraging me, but I really felt like a huge loser. But I kept going. After I made it past one mile, and I had a group of women with me, I figured that I could make it to the end, especially since the water was at the 2 mile mark. Someone had mentioned that localized cramps can be due to dehydration, so I had hope. I also remembered that I walk on the outsides of my feet sometimes, so once I started trying to correct that, it helped a lot. What really helped was getting some Gatorade and pretzels in me.

Here's what you must remember: I'm not an early riser, I'm a new athlete, and I don't always listen to my own wise words. So I hadn't eaten and I hadn't been drinking anything. Stupid? Oh, yes. Have I learned? OH, YES. After the blessed drink, I stretched a bit more, got a bit of advice from a woman who is off to a big Alaskan marathon next week, and continued on with her until my 2.5 mile mark. My cramp was leaving at this point, and I felt a zillion times better. I felt stupid being the last person in (aside from the Alaska-bound, who had 4 hours on their schedule), but I also felt good because, once the cramp left, I was back up to my fairly good speed. I wasn't tired and, aside from the residual cramping, my legs didn't hurt or anything.

On the way home, I did have to pull over and stretch some more, afraid that my leg was going to seize up on me and cause moaning, crying, and an accident. I threw myself on the floor and had Seth rub my calf right away, he made me some breakfast, and I slept for 3 hours. Today I am sort of sore, but an easy walk should help a bit, and it also feels good.What did I learn? Eat, drink a LOT, stretch and then do it again, get new shoes, and I know that I can do this. And I can do it fairly well.

p.s. I think that where we were is a location that the Mythbusters use often. I haven't verified this.