You need to know that I hate being cold more than anyone on earth. I was born a Texan, and brought to the northeast against my will as a teenager. While I've grown to accept New England as my home, I hate the cold from deep inside my heart. But I've been hearing about ice baths.

My training partner @spadachris tried one last week, and raved about it. Other athlete friends and general tough guys like @irj have proclaimed the merits of an ice bath. So after completing an "easy" 14 mile run this morning, I figured I'd give one a try. My left knee was feeling a bit funky after my run, so in theory it could only help the situation, and perhaps even better prepare me for my 21 mile training run next week.

So I filled the tub with COLD water, dumped in all of the ice from our refridgerator, and dived in. It's COLD. Really, really, really, really cold. The upper part of my body immediately started shivering, in an attempt to bring a Texas defeat to the numbing cold now attacking my lower body. After a couple of minutes, your lower body numbs...and I suppose it is like having a giant massive ice pack on your legs. I sat for about ten minutes, and then jumped into a warm shower.

End result? My legs do feel refreshed. My knee is still a little sore, but less than before, and nothing that some pain meds can't kill. :)

(Oh, and if you were wondering...yes - an ice bath causes shrinkage like nothing your body has ever seen before.)

As always, feel free to make a donation to the American Heart Association to help cover my donation/entry fee into the marathon! I can't do this without you.

This is Lake Waramaug, in New Preston, CT. This has been the training ground for coworker and training partner @spadachris and I for the last several weeks. I learned about Lake Waramaug from my friend Bill Baker, a serious marathoner and my virtual coach. It's just over 7.5 miles around, and mostly flat, which makes for a great training route. You can loop the lake and stop at your car after each loop and refuel with water, towel off, etc.

Lake Waramaug is also one of the more scenic running spots in CT, as it's a beautiful body of water, surrounded by multi-million dollar "cottages", where old money and new Wall Street money come to summer. (At least three weekends out of the year, anyway.)

We usually start our long runs at 6:15 in the morning, just as the sun is coming up on the lake. It's a beautiful time to run, and as the morning progresses, the road slowly fills with other runners and cyclists training around the lake. It's a popular destination for people who are training for longer races. It's fun to pass other people who are also on multiple loops, and know that you have something in common with them.

Today I was scheduled for a 19 mile run, my longest yet. I loaded up on carbs last night (really, just an excuse to eat all of the stuff that I love), and was up before the alarm at 5:30am. I arrived at the lake as the sun was rising, and snapped the pic above. @spadachris joined me for the first half of my run, which makes a huge difference. Great conversation goes a long way in forgetting about the miles you're logging.

All went well the entire length of the run, with only a dull pain in my left knee at mile 12 and then again at mile 18. I ran it out, and felt ok. In fact I felt so strong at the end, that I added another mile to the run, for a new personal distance record of 20.17 miles! I even picked up the pace for the last mile, and sprinted at the end. It felt great. Until I stopped. That dull pain in my knee kicked in big time once I stopped, and something inside my leg parts is swollen. Doesn't feel serious - just my knee saying "I wasn't designed for this!" Planning some ice and pain relievers for today, and will take it easy. Hoping it's all better in a day or two.

Anyway, completing 20 miles has built my confidence beyond anything that you can imagine, and I'm feeling completely ready for the marathon (now less than eight weeks away!)

As always, feel free to make a donation to the American Heart Association to help cover my donation/entry fee into the marathon! I can't do this without you.