Just a feeling

I'm sick.

Or, I'm getting sick.

Or, maybe, I think I might be getting sick.

Any way you look at, one thing is clear: I don't feel the way I'd like to just two days out from a half marathon.

I felt fine yesterday morning but began to notice symptoms when I was sitting in an off-site epic work meeting. I felt, almost, well, stuffy. I could breathe but I had the urge to constantly blow my nose. When the 4.5-hour meeting was over, I was exhausted. Wiped. I just wanted to nap. And blow my nose. I decided, though, to keep my spin plans and headed to the gym.

Spin was great. I didn't feel bad or overly tired. I kept up with the instructor and felt strong throughout. I left breathing A-OK.

As I settled in for the night, the symptoms returned. By the time I went to bed, I couldn't breathe through my nose. My throat was sore when Miles woke up at 11:30 (so much for a repeat performance). When he got up again at 5, I was tired, cranky and an overall mess. I briefly considered skipping my run to rest, especially ahead of Saturday's race, but I thought it would be in my best interest to go out. The illness was above my head, and running always seems to do wonders for drainage.

I set out for three miles and knew if I had to turn back, I would. I coughed a bit. I snorted a lot. I spit even more. I didn't feel fantastic by any stretch of the imagination but I could breathe. Officially in taper, I didn't feel bad about going slower and taking a bit longer breaks at street crossings.

My symptoms seemed slightly better once I finished up but I was nowhere near 100 percent. I'm hoping that a stockpile of Zicam, Emergen-C and lozenges and hydrating my butt off will help.

It has two days.