Crystal Light and Ice Baths

Today my roommate and I woke up just after 5:00 for our run at 6:30 this morning. I drank a glass of Crystal Light "Energy Wild Strawberry" that has just the right amount of caffeine to get me moving for these early runs as well as give me energy through-out the run. I also ate a Kashi blueberry Waffle (mmmm!) and got dressed.

By 6:00 we were walking laps around the apartment complex to warm up, which also doubled as a nice little walk for the dog. Just after 6:30 we started the run, and to be honest I wasn't feeling as great as last week, but I was confident I would finish. The first mile was a little rough. My legs were tired. By mile two I was finally at a nice comfortable pace. By the time we hit 4.5 miles, my roommate needed to slow down (she had pulled something earlier in the week and wasn't able to finish Thursday's run, so I think she was tired). We jogged at a slow pace until mile six when she told me she'd be fine to make it to seven on her own, and I could go ahead.

I finished the last two miles on my own, going a bit faster than usual I think. All together, I finished 8 miles in 1:28:30, give or take a slight distance error in my RunStoppable route. By the time I made it home I was extremely thirsty and instantly prepared two glasses of Crystal Light Lemonade, which I gulped down.

Have I mentioned my love for "Crystal Light On The Go" packets? They are spectacular! The strawberry one is perfect when I need a pick-me-up since it has caffeine. The lemonade one tastes pretty terrible unless I've just come from a run, then I swear nothing has ever tasted so good! (Same with the yellow Gatorade... I despise it for the most part, but that is what I had immediately after finishing the 10K race, and I swear Gatorade has never tasted so delicious! Way to go University of Florida for inventing Gatorade (and for their National Championships in basketball and football last year)!! Out of all of the Crystal Light packets that I've tried, I have to say that the Cherry Pomegranate is my absolute favorite, with the Fruit Punch coming in a very close second. Keep in mind that I have to use one packet in 1.5L of water; otherwise, it's too concentrated.


So after my run, I decided I'd try this "ice bath" that I've heard so much about. I figured that since I have every intention of spinning tomorrow (YIPPEE!!! The classes start back tomorrow!!!!), I would test out an ice bath. Keep in mind that the very first thing I picture when I hear "ice bath" instantly is something chemistry related (hence the picture with this blog). Sure I've put beakers, Erlenmeyer flasks, and test tubes through ice baths, but I never would have imagined MYSELF in an ice bath. While gulping down my lemonade and making some oatmeal as my post-run breakfast, I filled the tub with cold water. This was when I realized that I have never taken a bath since I moved into this apartment (so sad!)... how did I realize this just now? Because the drain stopper obviously was not made for this tub! It didn't work!!! I added some ice (only 3 ice cube trays... I figured I'd ease my way into this ice bath idea), climbed into the tub and tried not to squeal, then managed to sit down. I took a nice big bite of my hot oatmeal to keep my mind off of the cold (if you're picturing me in an ice bath with a bowl of hot oatmeal you are either extremely amused or just lost your appetite). Before I had even finished my oatmeal the water level had already dropped below my thighs.

My conclusion was that this ice bath didn't really count, and probably isn't going to do me any good. So I pretty much just looked like an idiot sitting in a draining tub eating oatmeal. Oh well. I'm going to buy a new plug for the drain today and test the ice bath after spinning tomorrow night.

Now I think it's time for me to take a nap. Yes, a nap sounds amazing!