(Photo courtesy of Blake)
When I ran the We Are Houston 5K with Nicole in 2020, it was a hot and humid day. I remember it starting to pour within 10 minutes of us finishing the race.
In 2023, the conditions were a bit more favorable. The guide that I had did a great job with the pacing, and Blake helped with clearing.
Things were going so well at ~2.25 that I almost didn’t stop for hydration. I almost talked myself into ‘it’s only 10 minutes; you can go without for that long’ I wish I had…
I grabbed whatever electrolyte drink was on course. And unfortunately things went downhill from there. What had been a strong, solid run to that point became a choppy walk/run as I tried to clear my throat so I could swallow. I managed to get things ‘settled’ by 3 so that I could sprint in the chute as normal, but it was disappointing.
As frustrating as that was, I did learn a lesson (from the convesation with my coach). Going forward, I will be sticking to just water on the shorter run races. Looking back, anything else during a 5K has just led to similar issues.
