How Not to Prepare For The Army 10-Miler

Back when you were a young lad (is there any other kind?) and a test was upcoming, did you ever kind of study the material, but realized there was no way you'd do as well as you could've if you had given it your all? Though this hasn't happened to me since college, I'’m about to break my streak with this Sunday'’s Army 10-Miler. A few months ago I announced the benefits of a new found running addiction that lasted a few months until my knees and ankles took turns telling me that regular running can't be sustained. My body breakdown spread to my SO whose knee began locking-up on her and can no longer run on inclines.

I'll keep up with people like this for the first second, then they'll be a blur and I'll be struggling.

Fast forward (because just forwarding oneself isn'’t fast enough) to the present day and we'’re three days from a race that I haven't practiced for, let alone ever run as far, and I'm a little worried. There i’s a "Recovery Bus" that scoops you up if you can'’t finish under the 2-hour, 30-minute limit. I will not let myself get on that bus. I can certainly walk 15-minute miles so I should be fine as long as I can keep that pace when my body has already given up on me. If thereÂ's any saving grace, Columbus Day should give my SO and I a chance to recover enough to get out of bed for work on Tuesday.

Is this really the best picture the makers of Nip Guards could find to show how it's applied?

Until my race wrapup blog, I just have to pickup my race packet and timechip, and triple-check that I've got my running socks, shoes, t-shirt, and of course, ample amounts of baby powder for those areas sensitive to chaffing. I hope 10 miles is less then the minimum distance needed for any nipple guards.