Running While Sick

Normally, I'm pretty good about not getting sick (knock on wood). I'm a frequent hand-washer and when I am working or in public places I try not to touch my face or the like to keep the spreading of germs limited to my fingers ... fingers that I wash several times a day. I wouldn't say that I have a phobia of germs but I really dislike being sick. When I wasn't running, being sick was awesome because I had an excuse to lay in bed all day and do nothing. But now that I'm pretty active being sick gets me down because I dislike the feeling of being a blob.

Two nights ago I woke up with a sore throat. Nothing too terrible, just some scratchiness that seemed to be about the same level of scratchiness when I woke up that morning---which I am incredibly thankful for. As the day wore on I began sneezing but without any coughing, headaches, a runny nose, or any serious throat pain I just attributed my symptoms to allergies (we had some freak weather the day I developed my sore throat). I went for a run, but I definitely wasn't feeling it. Well, at first I was. I can usually tell if a run is going to be good or not after the first 5 minutes. If I'm still alive and full of energy after 5 minutes I know I've got it in me to run. If I'm tired or already out of breath after 5 minutes I know it's an off day for me. Yesterday started out fine but I found that my halfway point (that "time" where I just know I have exactly half the energy in me that I started out with to finish whatever I am doing) was much sooner than I expected. I went about 2 miles before I had to walk. Determined NOT to turn around, I walked the rest of the route (1.4 miles) and attempted to run the last 2 miles back in after I had rested up. I couldn't do it. My body felt so terrible.

When I woke up this morning my sore throat was still there and I felt a little sore from yesterday's run, which isn't normal because I'm not typically sore unless I do a really long run. I almost decided to rest up today and finish packing but I decided to not be a bed blob. Many sites (google: running while sick) suggest that running while you are sick is okay if your symptoms are limited to your head only (some sites also suggest that running while you are sick boosts your immune system but that claim wasn't conclusive all around so that advice I might take with a grain of salt). Coughing, a runny nose, and a sore throat---those kinds of symptoms won't be exasperated by running unless you're so sick you can barely breathe your nose is so runny or you can't stop coughing. Thankful that I didn't have a fever and happy my nose was runny but not too much so (a runny nose indicates your body is fighting off whatever you have and is eliminating white blood cells that attacked the sickness in your body) I suited up and took to the lake.

It was terrible.  I have it in me to run the entire 5.4 mile route no problem but I couldn't tap into any energy to do so. At first I was slightly disappointed in myself but then I realized I was out here anyway, feeling sickly and gross, and still giving it a go. And it is completely silly of me to expect me to run my best when I am feeling quite the opposite. I was able to run 2 miles out and 2 miles in (with walking 1.4 miles in between). I felt pretty good with my last 2 miles until I began my cool down walk after the run. I felt like I had the flu! By the time I got home my body was very sore and I was so tired. After I had lunch I felt better, but still obviously sick.

The good thing about running while sick is that, unless you're very sick, you're still able to do so. The bad thing about running while sick is that your run might not be the best your skill has to offer, or meet your expectations---but  the sense of accomplishment is still there in the wake of sneezing and croaking. Unless I am incapacitated I'll continue to hit the pavement while sick and just not expect a fast or long run out of me.

That all said, being sick still sucks big time.

Mt. Woodson & Potato Chip Ledge

Trail around the banks of Lake Poway

 My feet don't just adventure out at 6mph + speeds. My feet also work together with my calves and knees to get me up and down gradual or steep slopes lined with shrubbery and boulders. While I run more often than I hike, I do typically go for a hike about once a week. I hike at two locations: Iron Mountain and Mission Trails (from Mast Blvd), both of which are a lot of fun. Today, however, my friend Rachel and I planned out a day hike to a place I had never been before: Mt. Woodson.

According to yelp, Mt. Woodson is approximately 8 miles round trip, and located near Lake Poway. We arrived around 11:00am, probably the best time if you want to sweat a decent amount on your way up and work on getting the best tan or worst sunburn you can. I did the latter, although I only managed to get my legs sunburned, which is an interesting feeling.

Lake Poway

The trail itself is not what I expected. I'm a dedicated hiker. By dedicated I mean I keep going and going and going and unless I'm parched I don't pull over to take breaks---I just slow my pace if I start getting tired. I should pull over more, because I'd probably get more decent pictures if I did. But I get sucked into the challenge of hiking, especially when the going gets rough, and I just keep going. Rachel had remembered the trail as a gradual incline all the way to the top, which is very similar to Iron Mountain. Pretty much the trail was anything but gradual. Going up the trail was fairly steep the entire way up. Not so steep that I was crawling on my hands and knees, but I definitely felt my calves working to get me up to the top. There wasn't much shade on the way up, but we did stop at a rock formation with several trees (that were climbable!) shading the area. We had some water and enjoyed the view before going on.

The rest of the way up was great, but also a big tease. You are not able to see the peak of the trail on your way up and the trail is steep enough that when you feel like you've gone a mile a signpost will indicate that you've really only gone .5 miles. Almost at the peak is one of the main reasons (at least according to Yelp) why people hike this trail. Potato Chip ledge.

Potato Chip Ledge

Ta-da! I don't actually eat chips, but thank you to the person who dropped one on the ground to allow me to take this lovely picture. This ledge is a rock formation where the bottom half has fallen away. It looks incredibly unstable but once I jumped to it, I felt much better about it.

The view was amazing, and I'm sure if it were clear you could pretty much see everything. There was fog (or smog?) in the distance but you could just make out downtown San Diego and follow the coastline until was too hazy.

Living life on the ledge

The hike down was good. I much prefer going up than down, even though up is more difficult. Going up I put in more effort and I definitely get a cardiovascular workout hiking inclines. Going down is another story. Usually it is a combination of catching myself in a slip and controlling my momentum. Downhill is definitely a very efficient leg workout and harder on my knees.

We wrapped up the hike with a walk around the banks of Lake Poway instead of taking a straight-shot trail to the parking lot. Total time for the trip was just over 4 hours. It took us about 1.5-ish hours to get to the top and an hour to get back down. Toss in time for a picnic lunch at the top and some exploring around the lake and it was a great day. I will definitely be hiking this trail again, although I might plan it on a cooler day or much, much earlier in the morning.