Countdown to the Camp Pendleton Mud Run

I'm pretty sure I've recovered from most of the bumps and scratches from the SC Mud Run last month.  Again, I am grateful for the great team who stuck together from the start:

SC Mud Run Team BEFORE

til the end:

SC Mud Run Team AFTER

Now I'm trying to gear up for the Mud Run next month in San Diego at Camp Pendleton.  That one is less obstacle-driven (7 obstacles to the 36 here in SC) so I won't have to worry about the cargo net:

And I believe it's slightly less muddy, or at least it doesn't have a chest-high mud pit to slog through:

Unfortunately, for me, the Camp Pendleton Mud Run is a lot of running.  If I'm reading the course correctly, it looks like the first half (about 3 miles) is all running and pretty much UPHILL to a peak of 450 feet. My co-workers in SoCal have been running not only regularly (2-3 times a week), but also have been increasing their mileage (they're up to 7 miles per run).

I haven't been running nearly as regularly.  Or killing the mileage they are:

Obviously RunKeeper was NOT working correctly on 3/29

To boot, running hasn't gotten any easier or enjoyable. In fact, as I mentioned to my co-workers, I'm pretty sure I'm looking forward to the day after the Mud Run so I can STOP RUNNING.  When I run, I'm out of breath immediately and by the end my lower back aches--apparently because my hip flexors in the front of my body tighten up.  But most annoying of all, I have lost NO weight for all this running.  In fact, to my imagined chagrin of my team, I've actually gained a few pounds and back up to 155 (after hovering around 153 for a while).

But what I've really been getting anxious about is the uphill portion of the first half.  On the positive side, at least it's pretty much downhill and flat in the second half.  And I don't really dread the obstacles since the Camp Pendleton run allows individual competitors (unlike the SC run which is teams only), the obstacles are reasonable for an individual and should be quite conquerable as a team.

Tomorrow I plan to do another run.  Tomorrow is also 4 weeks away from the Camp Pendleton Mud Run.  The countdown begins...