On Call Mom

I have a couple things to report, some good, some bad. I hit another big benchmark today. If you are one of my lovely friends that has been following this blog, you may have already noticed this from the little mileage counter up in the corner. *Drum roll* I hit 100 miles in 30 days today! One stinkin’ hundred! It wasn’t that long ago that I was trying to reach 40 miles in 30 days and 100 snuck up on me. It was an exhilarating moment for me as I saw the last mile get completed on my Garmin Forerunner. I felt like fireworks should be going off or something. Maybe they were somewhere in the world at that very moment.

I’ve been really busting out the miles lately because of an exciting event coming up. I’m going to the UK for two weeks with LingGeek my bff. We have been talking about seeing England and Scotland for years and now we’re finally doing it! We leave on the 6^th and won’t get back till the 20^th. I’m really looking forward to the trip, but I’ve also been dreading what it will do to my training. I’ve read in more than one place that you loose roughly 20% of your fitness if you take two weeks off. Twenty percent! That’s a killer. It’s going to be a busy trip, but I’m going to sneak my Garmin Forerunner along for the ride and see if I can squeeze in some miles. Hopefully I won’t end up getting myself lost!

So I’ve finally gotten to the point in the post where I’m going to explain the title I have chosen for this post. No, I’m not the mom on call in this instance. I’m very single and, at this stage in my life, childless. The mom on call is my wonderful awesome mother. So a little about me that will help you understand the situation. I am currently working as a code monkey and renting a room from my parents in beautiful Santa Barbara, California. Yes you heard right, I’m a 27 year old renting from her parents. Have you seen the rent prices in Santa Barbara?!? Anyway, to the story. My Dad and I often run together, he inspires me and also is my coach. Just about everything I’ve learned about running, I learned from him. So it’s not unusual, that almost every Saturday we go out for a run together. Today we planned on going about 14 miles. We got a late start because I put in a few hours at the office this morning, trying to get all my projects in order before I take off for my pre-mentioned trip and Daddio takes FOREVER to get going on Saturday mornings. He’s slower than a girl getting ready for her first date.  ;)

From my first step, my legs felt tired (did I mention I ran 100 miles in 30 days). I had a dreadful feeling I wasn’t going to make it 14 miles. Around mile seven my legs felt like I was dragging a ton of bricks and I was starting to really take notice of the heat. Daddio was sounding good and strong, but he usually doesn’t let on till days later if he was struggling. Around mile 8, I asked him if he had his phone with him (he did). I hate quitting, but when you are miles away from home, it’s somewhat of a comfort knowing a ride is just a call away. I tried to push on and stay focused, but I knew I was hitting the dreaded wall. When we hit 10 miles, we were finally in the shade (I have to admit I was hogging the shade the whole run) and Daddio pointed out that if we were going to call for a ride this would be the place to do it. I tried to put it off, but my tank was empty, I had nothing left and we were still a good three miles out. So, finally admitting defeat, the call was made. Mom came swooping in for the rescue, picking both of us up and getting us home.

Overall, it was a good solid run, but my body was tired and God had turned up the heat. The last few Saturdays, I’ve been blessed with tempts around the low 60’s so the heat today took more out of me than I had expected. It’s also a good idea to carry a phone on longer runs. You never know when you’ll twist an ankle or hit the wall. This is the first time I’ve had to call for a ride, but I was sure glad to see that car pull up with my smiling mother.