Lunch Run: Hill Edition

It's been a while since I've written about a run... probably because I haven't gone on many lately.  Work has kept me extremely busy and the lack of sleep has made it hard to find the motivation to go on training runs.

Today I decided "enough is enough" and dragged my poor, stressed, tired body on a lunchtime run.

Huge mistake.

DC humidity is no joke.  Just because it was "only" 88 degrees out does not mean it felt like 88 degrees.  I started sweating the second I walked out of the gym.  I should have known better than to attempt a hill run, but I hope you know by now that once I get an idea in my head I can't seem to give it up.  I wanted an outdoor run and there was no way I would settle for a treadmill session.

As I've mentioned before, I work on the top of a hill.  The beginning of any run is a delightful downhill stretch, and today was no exception.

Unfortunately, once I hit the 1.5 mile mark I encountered this:

I call this my favorite hill in DC.  It's terrible to run - steep and long - but I used to sled down it when I was little and once you get to the top you're rewarded with some pretty nice views.

Not the most picturesque view on cloudy day, but on a clear day you can see across the Potomac to Virginia.

I was incredibly tired after cresting this hill, but I still had 2.5 miles to go.

This hill was the kickoff of a cruise down memory lane.  I ran past soccer and softball fields I played on when I was little, homes of childhood friends, and my elementary school.

At one point, I realized I was only a few blocks from my childhood home and decided to run by it.  I was rewarded by the observation that the current (and, perhaps, prior) owners have maintained my mother's rose garden on the side of the house, which made me incredibly happy.

As I passed the house and ran though the park I played in when I was little, an ice cream truck drove by.  I wish I'd had some cash to buy a popsicle.  No, I'm not joking.

The last few miles were pretty tough - the heat and humidity got to me and I had to walk a bit.  I really hope it was due to the conditions and not because I'm out of shape, but only time will tell.  I haven't done many hill workouts lately because of my shin splints, so maybe that's to blame.  I can only hope that I'm good to go for Sneaks Come Out at Night on Saturday.