Happy Marathon Monday and good luck to everyone running today!!!

Who knew getting in an 11-mile long run this weekend would be such a challenge? It took me three tries before I could actually get it done.

Attempt One:
It was my short day at work Friday (meaning I only had to work eight hours instead of my usual 9) so I got off plenty early in the afternoon and had every intention of knocking out my 11 miles since it was supposed to rain all day Saturday.

Unfortunately, my stomach had other plans. It cramped miserably from miles one to three, and left me hustling into the bathrooms at the park thinking I was about to toss my cookies. Although I didn't, I decided it was time to throw in the towel and slowly walked the 1.5 miles back home. I'm pretty sure lunch just wasn't sitting well.

Attempt Two:
Even though I didn't get to bed until 2:30 a.m. Saturday morning after a night of swing dancing and IHOP, I was still wide awake at 9 ready to go on my run. The weather, however, had other plans. It was pouring rain.

I stepped outside, thought about it for a few minutes and decided I'd rather not be squishing in my shoes for 11 miles. I went back inside and curled up with some Netflix instead.

Attempt Three:
After falling asleep at 8 p.m. Saturday night and getting a full 12 hours of sleep, I finally felt ready to tackle my 11 miles for real Sunday morning. It was a gorgeous day. The sun was shining and even though there was a really strong wind, I didn't mind because it was keeping me cool.

The 11 miles were a struggle though from beginning to end. I think in large part it was because my fueling and nutrition were just completely out of whack. Between napping and running errands on Saturday, I didn't eat as much as usual, and I definitely didn't eat my normal night-before-a-long-run, carb-heavy dinner.

I also didn't have any Gatorade or Gu with me on the run, so really, it was just a giant fueling fail.

At the end of the day, I got the miles in though, even though they were some of the slowest I've averaged in a long time. It might have taken me three tries, but I was determined to make that long run happen.