Painful Reminder

I forget.

Sometimes I just go about my business without thinking twice about certain things.

Sunday was one of those days. A little before six in the morning, I was mentally going over everything I'd need for my 14- to 15-miler I'd planned to run.
Fuel belt. Okay, got that. Garmin. Gu. Check and check. Watch, yeah might as well take it. Oh yeah, grab the phone holder and headphones, probably going to need those.

Nowhere in there did I say "What about your nipples?"

I'd had tape on them for a few days, which usually works best for me. If I tape them just before a run, they don't always stick that great and then they become exposed. And when they are exposed, I'm susceptible to injury.

So, somewhere in between the Gu and headphones, I should have said "Well, just in case, let me check my nips."

But I didn't.

And I paid for it.

I knew I was in trouble at about Mile 7. I didn't feel the tape on my right side. I felt it on the left but not my right. About a mile afterward I noticed some blood. I had two shirts on, a long-sleeve undershirt and a gray shirt over that. A few miles after that, I noticed a lot of blood. Throughout the run, I would try and put some pressure on the area, but that didn't really work that well.

When I was done with my run - a tough 14.39 mile run - I lifted up my gray shirt and saw the extent of the damage.


My nip was in pain so I took my shirts off in the parking lot and snapped that picture.

If you haven't read this blog for a while, this is an ongoing problem. Well, it was at one point but I fixed it. Mostly. As long as I use the tape that works best for me - medical tape - then I'm fine. I just have to include them on my checklist.

It's actually good this happened now. Every now and then I need a reminder, a hard slap in the face, to keep the nipples in mind.

With Surf City just around the corner, now's as good a time as any to be reminded of that.