Thoughts on a three-hour run

With five weeks to go until the Gold Coast Airport Marathon, I'm knee deep in training.

That means last weekend, this weekend and next weekend, I need to do a three-hour run.   That's running for three whole hours!  It sounds insane and to be honest, it's not a great feeling contemplating having to do that on your weekend.  But these things have to be done.

I was asked this week what I thought about during the three hours.  I run without an iPod as I get pretty sick of the noise after an hour.   This very much leaves me to my own thoughts - the good and the bad.

Yesterday, I took note of the thoughts I had and here's what it looks like:

Before the run
4.25am
"That's the alarm.   Have I slept at all?"

4.34am
Force feed myself cereal.  "I really don't feel like cereal."

4.54am
"It's pretty dark out there.  That's ok.  I won't notice the kilometres fly by."

During the run
5.05am
"Ok let's do this!"  Head off running.

5.08am
"Why am I doing this?"

5.09am
"I could be sleeping!"

5.15am
"Hurting!"

5.23am
"Did I just pass someone?   Is there another runner out there?  Too dark to tell."

5.31am
"This is how people get murdered - running around in the dark."

5.37am
Run past big silhouette of a man running.  "Please don't kill me, please don't kill me."

5.38am
"Still alive!"

5.50am
"OK.  I'm going well.  Time for a Gu gel.  That will give me the energy I need.  Mmmm Jet Blackberry."

5.52am
"God that was gross.  I feel like throwing up.  I've got to try and swallow the remainder of this gel."

6.05am
"Is that a fellow runner up ahead?  I'm not alone."

6.06am
"Oh it's a tree that looks like a person in the early morning light.  I am alone."

6.20am
"Oh that's a pretty sunrise.  Everyone else is really missing out by missing this sunrise.  God I feel so superior."

6.28am
"Gee those cyclists nearly knocked me over.  How can they not see me?  I've got that much fluro on I look like I'm from an '80s' exercise video!"

6.33am
"Time for another Gu.  Maybe this one will taste better."

6.34am
"Nope!"

6.38am
"I can really smell the Nudgee dump from here.  It's gross."

6.46am
"Hey!  Fellow runner!  If I say hello to you, you have to say it back.  That's the rules.  No matter how stuffed you are."

6.50am
"Upside, past the halfway point.  Downside, another hour or so to go."

6.54am
"That's a lot of lyrca-clad, overweight middle-aged men on bikes.  Feel free NOT to run me over!" 

7.01am
"Another runner!  I'm totally going to pass this them and pretend it's effortless and I'm always this fast."

7.02am
"I am completely buggered after that."

7.10am
Another pack of cyclists whizzes by.  "There's goes some of the hardest working lycra bike pants in Brisbane."

7.15am
"There's that guy running with his dog again. I saw him last week.  I wish I had a dog."

7.24am
"I want this to be over now."

7.26am
"I feel like I'm not even moving."

7.38am
"God I hate this stretch of the run.   It's so long and boring."

7.29am
"I want to stop and walk"

7.42am
"Must keep going"

7.45am
"I hate this section too."

7.49am
"Ouch!  Kinda hurting now"

7.54am
"This gaggle of women up ahead are exerting more energy talking than walking block the path.  GET OUT OF MY WAY!  I'm dying here."

7.58am
"I can do this.  I didn't run ALL that way to start walking now."

8.05am
Hitting the three hour mark.  "FFFFFFAAAARRR out.  That was brutal.  How the hell am I going to keep going another four kilometres on marathon day!?!?"

After the run
8.35am
Lying on lounge room floor.  "I should stretch."

8.40am
Still lying on lounge room floor.  "I really should stretch but I don't think I can ever use my legs ever again."

8.45am
Still lying on lounge room floor. "I'm just going to roll my way around from here on in."

8.48am
Still lying on lounge room floor. "At least it doesn't hurt to move my eyes."