I Feel Good?

I just looked up the results from yesterday's 10K.  One neat thing the local running shop (which times the events) does now is provide a link to video footage of your finish.  It links directly to the time you come in, so you don't even have to search for yourself.  Here I am:

Jeanne's 10K finish

Notice the song playing?  James Brown's "I Feel Good."

I said in my blog yesterday how hard I had to work to keep that 8:02-minute mile pace for 6+ miles.  As I approached the finish line, I remember laughing silently to myself, thinking, "This is the wrong song for me!  I don't feel good!"  I was very glad to cross that finish line.

What you can't see from the race finish footage is what we look like after leaving the chip mat finish area.  I stopped, bent over, and just BREATHED.  I took deep breaths and blew them out slowly and my heart rate came down.  Within 20-30 seconds, I felt much better and started looking around for other people I know.

The fact that I was able to recover so quickly from my exertion means that, even at the very finish, I didn't feel bad.  I often ask myself when I'm working hard, "Do I feel bad or do I just feel tired?"  It's okay to feel tired!  But there's a "good" tired and a "bad" tired.

Some things I assess when I'm running:
Do I have a side stitch?  (If yes - slow down or walk a while)
Do I have goosebumps when I'm hot?  (If yes - slow down a LOT, walk, drink fluids, dump water on yourself - you could have heat exhaustion and be on your way to something worse)
Am I lightheaded or dizzy?  (If yes - stop and rest!!)

There are probably more things to consider that I hope you will share in the comments.

Here's a "before" and "after" picture.  I'm sure you can tell which is which, but what strikes me is that in both of them, I look like I FEEL GOOD!!!!  (da na na na na na na!)