AM: 6 miles.
PM: 7 miles at track. The session didn't go as I envisioned, but that was not a bad thing.
As I was leaving my house, I got a text from Lee informing me that Jon Mott would be joining us tonight. Jon lives about 100 miles from St. Pete, and drops in on our group about once a year. When he does, it always creates a stir because he is currently the fastest marathon runner in Florida. This past January, he ran 2:18:12 in Houston. Having the opportunity to run with someone like that is a huge draw for me, so I chucked my planned workout and decided to just get in whatever I could with him.
I knew Jon was showing up on the late side, so I sat around for awhile. Eventually I did a short warmup, then ran 3x1 mile with a slower group at 6:50, 6:40, 6:30.
Just as I was beginning to pack it in, Jon arrived. We went through his warmup and caught up. His plan was 6x1 mile in the 4:40-4:50 range, although he recalibrated a bit after warming up. The conditions today were ridiculous (91 F/79 DP). I ran the first mile with him in 4:57, grateful for the built-in excuse to bow out.
It was interesting to see his approach and idiosyncrasies when running an interval workout. I wish he lived closer.
I did decide tonight to skip the 5000 on Saturday. I felt alright today - maybe not 100%, but good enough to bring my focus back to my marathon plan. Hopefully today will give me the spark I was looking for in Saturday's race. Since I wasn't planning on marathon workouts this week, skipping the race will help get me back on track.
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