Heat Exhaustion

It happened.

And it really really sucked.

Last week, Wednesday to be exact, I went for a run. At first, I felt great. Then at around 1 mile, my legs started shaking. My right arm got really tingly. At 1.49 miles, I stopped because my legs started wobbling. This has never happened before. I walked the rest of the way home, and my legs were in pain. Like, someone had stabbed my calves. I decided I need to slow down. To rest my legs, and take a break for a few days. Saturday morning, I decided to go for a run. It seemed like I had had 2 days to recoup, so I should have been fine. I did a mile run, and my legs started feeling funny again. Ok, maybe I needed a longer break?

Well, this Wednesday I went for a run again. Since I hadn’t run in 3 days, I figured I’d be ok to start back up. I stretched, turned on my Nike app, and I was off!! I felt amazing! I hit one mile, and I still felt like I had a spring in my stride. So, onward I went. I really shouldn’t have done that. Not only did I not take water with me (I was only supposed to do a mile), but it was about 95° out. I hit a little over 1.5 miles and my fingers went numb. Both arms were tingly, and then I felt my legs start to get that “stabbing” feeling again. By two miles, my chest felt like it was so tight and my head felt like it was going to explode. My arms were numb, and my fingers were HUGE! I stopped and walked the rest of the way home.

When I finally got home, the pain hadn’t stopped and I felt like what I imagine having a heart attack would feel like. I went into my brother’s room because our room wasn’t as cold yet. I felt like I needed something COLD to fix me up. Make me feel better. Turns out that was a bad move. My brother and Kim saw the swelling, and when I told them how I felt I was instructed to immediately lay down and elevate my feet. They gave me some warm water, and my brother said my body was entirely too hot. Then, the pain in my back started. It hurt to move and I felt like I was going to throw up. After about thirty minutes of laying there the feeling in my arms came back. My legs weren’t in as much pain, my headache had dulled down, and my chest didn’t feel so tight. But, I was freezing. It was 89° out and I needed a jacket. A side effect my brother said is normal. He said when this happened to him, his body temperature was off for a few days. The past two days have left me totally understanding what he meant. It’s been 80°-100° outside, 75° inside our office, and I feel like I should have worn jeans and a sweater. My skin is cold, and I feel a little weak every now and then.

So now, I’ve learned a lesson. If it’s over 85° outside, make sure to take water with me. And if at all possible, try to go run later in the afternoon. That feeling from Wednesday just wasn’t pleasant. I need to be smarter. Had I gone farther, there is a good chance that I could have ended up having a heat stroke. And that would have sucked even more.