Day 32: Burnt [out]

This morning, Kate & I got up around 10 to go for another long bike ride. Today's goal? To bike to Lloyd's Center for the Environment (the place I normally go for hikes / trail running).

Total mileage for the day: around 20 miles [for me]

As soon as I got on the bike, my crotchal region protested the seat. It feels really bruised and sore. And my thigh muscles also felt really really tired. I knew it was going to be a long ride.

We took a left on Old Westport, a left on Fisher, a left on Russell Mills, a left onto Rockodundee and finally, a right onto Potomska.

Once we got to Fisher, I felt really really tired. I was biking very slowly (sorry, Kate!) because my muscles just felt like jelly. Every tiny incline in the road was incredibly taxing for me. I lived for the coasting down small hills. They felt like small victories.

When we got to Potomska, it started with a hill & and I had to walk my bike up that hill because I couldn't muster up enough energy to make it up the whole way.

I was really relieved when we got to Lloyd's. We tied our bikes up and then did a short hike to the Observation deck. This was our view:

We sat on the dock for around 20 minutes and then headed back to our bikes...just in the nick of time! As we came off the trail, three groups of noisy children headed toward the observation area. Peace out, Lloyd's!

The ride back was, for lack of a better word, torturous. I was going SO slow. We decided to take a different route back because I knew there was no way I was going to be able to make it up Old Westport Road today. Instead of going down Fisher & up Old Westport, we took a left onto Chase Road. Every muscle in my body screamed at me as I slowly made me way down Chase. I knew of a shortcut to campus at 128 Chase Road, and as I watched the mailbox numbers go by, I pep-talked myself: Okay Megan, only 400 more numbers to go and you'll be done.

I had never been so happy to see the CFPA parking lot. I walked my bike up the hill and into the Pine Dale parking lot and rode the final mile to Aspen, where I collapsed in the grass and waited for Kate, who bravely took the long way around.

Later this afternoon, I decided to go to the gym and did:

- 1 mile on the elliptical

- 10 minutes on the rowing machine

- 20 reps on three different weight machines (for arms)

While at the gym, I felt a strangely familiar pain in my shoulders. Well, shit. I have a TERRIBLE sunburn. We're talking screaming red shoulders.

So while I pushed myself to the max today and had a pretty damn good workout, I would say that today is an epic fail in many different ways.

*Sigh*