Do good runners get stitch?

So trying to PB over 5km, on one of the hottest days of the year, while being dehydrated, was probably never a good idea.  Last week I bettered my PB by a minute, so I was going for a similar performance this week.  Except, that my body refused to play ball.  The result, horrendous stitch about 2km into what had started out as such a promising run.  I completed the 5km (I love that I can still run through the pain), right hand jabbed into my right side, grimacing wildly.

And as I struggled through the course, I wondered, do the elite and the swift suffer from the same physical ailments as us mortals?  I don't ever recall seeing professional athletes doubling over in agony.

Runners World offers the following advice for combating stitch:

• Don't eat high fiber or fatty foods before you run
• Warm up properly
• Regulate your breathing
• Slow down and regulate your breathing
• Hydrate properly
• Strengthen and exercise core muscles to support breathing

In an attempt to improve my race performance I have been focusing on speed work, technical training, core strengthening and have revisited my nutrition plan.  The speed work seems to be paying off, so I will be interested to see how these training additions affect my race performance this weekend.

In other news.  My new Mizuno Wave Ascend 8's are fab! (Oh Mizuno, why did I ever doubt you).  Lesson learned.

I am really looking forward to the Shotover Moonlight Mountain Marathon this weekend.  I hope that the weather is reasonable (forecast is dodgy), and that my performance is up to my expectation.  Very excited and a little nervous.  Do runners ever feel as though they have done enough training?

Uber Excited About This Wonderland