Sawyer camp 14 miler

This Saturday, I ran the my first 14 miler at the beautiful Sawyer camp trail in San Mateo. I missed the warm-up and stretch exercise as I was late. And this time, unlike the last time, I was not fortunate. The lack of warm-up and stretch took its toll. The early part of the run was tough as I developed cramps in my left IT band. I almost walked the first 2 miles and was thinking of giving up when I met a team member, Jean Frederic, who stopped to teach me some stretching exercise for the IT band. After the stretch, I decided to give my last shot and run till the 3 mile mark and turn back. However, the stretching worked like a charm and soon the pain subsided. I decided to complete the run. It was an amazing experience. When I reached the 7 mile turnaround point, I was the last one on the team to reach the half way mark! I decided to pick up speed. I didn't want to be the last one at the finish line. The last 2 miles were physically tough but ego is a funny thing and it can make you do things your muscles don't want to. Long distance running is more a mental challenge than a physical one. My sore leg muscles and knee joint will testify that. The Bangra DJ dance party on Saturday night in the city didn't help either. This overdose of physical activity and nocturnal gyrations required a 13hr sleep recovery on Sunday.