Did a long run today. It was one of the toughest runs I've had so far. I decided to teach my body to be more efficient with burning fat for fuel, and so I took only 2 Squeezy gels with me. Squeezy gels have only 65 calories per gel, compared to 100-110 of GU and PowerGel. I started the run 3 hours after my normal breakfast, so I wasn't topped up.
Long story short, I started feeling bad (energy-wise) already at 12 miles, only 1:40 into my run! First 12 miles were 8:36 pace average, but after that Garmin lost the signal, but I could tell I slowed down a lot. I took one gel at 9 miles, and another one at close to 15, but they didn't do much. I was also starving. On top of that, my stomach was cramping, and it started even before I took the gel, so gels were not a problem. I can't really pinpoint waht caused the cramps this time, I did everything I could beforehand to prevent them. I think I'll have to accept them as consequence of my surgery 5 years ago and missing part of the small intestine. I think my GI system just became more sensitive, and all that pounding of running (especially on long runs) is causing the cramps. I worry it can affect me on marathon day, but I'll do all I can and hope for the best.
So, the last 8 miles were pretty miserable, and I was very happy to get this run over with. In the end, my time was 2:55:58, 8:42 average, so I didn't slow down as badly as it seemed, despite the bonking. | 