Crushing fatigue and malaise pre-race

By Brady Crain

This week I had big plans for a push. Crushing fatigue and malaise put an end to that idea.

I am overtrained, and so my last big workout was ten days before my event. This week I did a two-hour bike ride and a six-mile 2,000-foot climb/descent in the mountains. Admittedly, both of these were easy, but it has taken me until today (Thursday, June 25), two days before the race, to start to feel normal muscularly, and I still suffer from pronounced adrenal fatigue.

In addition to being overtrained, I am underprepared.  My intention had been to knock out at least one flat run of more miles than my event, before the event.

I was tired enough that I had to choose between overworking myself and not finishing the event.  I have chosen not finishing the event—I head into this event in marginal shape for a flat marathon, let alone a mountain ultra . . .

I am pressed for time because I have to leave early in the morning (normally I would be writing this piece 24 hours from now on Friday afternoon).  What I can say is that by the time you read this article, I will have already run however many miles of the event I am capable of (after spending the night in my car), driven the 5-6 hours home that night, and completed a full Sunday of showing houses.

Next week I will probably have something pithy to say about what is bound to be about 12 hours of abject pain.

In other news, Pip is doing well and no longer bites nearly as much, but I believe that I will continue to call him “Pip the Impaler.” Why? Because it sounds totally badass.