is it possible to get frost bite in 40 degrees?

Y'all know I wasnt sure I was going to do the Papa John's 10-Miler or not..

Literally, as I was laying out my things & charging up the electronics on Friday night, I STILL wasnt sure. 

I wasnt feeling the best, I was tired & just not "feeling it"...But I set my alarm anyways for 6:00 am

It went off & I started the routine of getting ready.  Before I knew it, my knees were wrapped & I was dressed & I was still thinking, "Am I doing this?"... well heck, I'm already strapped up at 6:30 am - why not?

The thing about this race, where you have to park, its a good 2 -3 miles to even get to the starting line so it was warming me up before the race even began.

There is nothing like standing in a crowd of 9,000 other runners... NOTHING like it...

(Papa John's race from 2010)

Then the horn sounds... the beat of feet pounding the pavement.  Love it.

The route takes you down 3 miles into a park that is another 3 miles... 3 miles of SHEER HELL! - or knowns as "hills"... same thing, right?

In the park, I got really warm (yes, in the 40 degree weather) - so I took off my jacket.  Underneath, I had on a trainer shirt (the kind that wicks sweat away & has air holes for heat to escape.  Not a smart idea.  Before I knew it, I was FREEZINGGGGGG... I should have wore a tank top underneath & I would have been fine.  But I didnt.  It took me so long to take my jacket off, I didnt want to have to put it back on - so I kept treking on.  Well, when you run, you get extra "wind" blowing on you... I started shivering - no joke!  So I had to put on my jacket. 

Miles 6-8, I was feeling AWESOME - probably my fastest part of the race... then the weirdest thing EVER happened.

My stomach... it felt like razor blades were cutting me...

I put my hand on my stomach & felt nothing... it was totally numb.  I started to have a mini panic-attack.  Kept thinking, am I having a heart attack or something?  Even though I knew my heart is not in my stomach... but I've never had a sensation like that. 

I ended up lifting up my shirt & my stomach was literally turning blue... it was like a purple color.

I have never had anything like that happen in my life. 

I calmed myself down because I honestly started freaking out... knew I only had a mile & a half left to go.  Kicked it in gear & crossed the finish line.  But the bad thing, I still had a good 2 miles to get back to my car (GEEZ!!!) ...

By the time I got to my car, I was shivering so much I couldnt stand it.  I cranked up the heat all the way home (which is a 30 minute ride)...I was STILL shivering.  Walked in the house, immediately stripped off the wet clothes & got in a STEAMING shower... do you know when I got out, my stomach still had a purple tint to it & I was STILL freezing.  It took me about 3 hours to warm  up...

And I just felt funny the rest of the day... not sure what that was about...

I took about a hour nap & felt better after I woke up from that...

I'm glad I did the race though.  Have that feeling of accomplishment...

learned to never forget my tank top...

By the way - my knees didnt hurt ONE TIME!!! Had them both KT Taped up & even during the hills, I didnt have one ache!!!  Praise the Lord! 

maybe I need to KT Tape my cold belly up next time?

Onto the next race - the Kentucky Derby Mini Marathon!!! ... Hopefully it'll be over 40 degrees :)