LM warmup, 8.96 miles in 1:04:56, 7:15/mi, HR 161, with 2 mile warmup, 2 x 15 min tempo intervals at 6:31/mi (HR 171) and 6:20/mi (HR 175) average paces (3 min rest), and 2 mile cooldown. 1.25 mi cooldown walk w/ dogs & stretching. Overcast and pleasant (56F). Legs felt better today. Normal pre-tempo trepidation. Tempo interval one felt good until the uphill section hit, then got pretty tough, especially towards the end. A tad uphill overall with one 180 turn. Was aiming to hit 6:39/mi (current predicted HM pace), so it was a bit too fast. Oops. Second tempo interval got hard pretty quickly, but kept positive attitude and focused on relaxed, strong form. Really got hard on the later uphill stages where I slowed. Missed the target pace (6:17/mi - predicted 10K pace), probably in the last 3-4 minutes on the uphill where I slowed more than I liked. But, this workout shows a GREAT improvement over 2 weeks ago where I ran a 6:48/mi and 6:33/mi over the same stretch of road, so this was a great workout. I even felt pretty decent afterwards during the cooldown and stretching. So, lessons learned from today. Need to get my mind out of the way sometimes and to let myself believe. Must hold back a bit more on the first one. Good workout.
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