Ran (a different way) to the bike path and started my workout at the mile marker at the top of the hill. A painful 7:20 pace on the way back and chill 6:49 pace on the way there (4.68 miles each way). Did 10 miles hard. Was going to try for marathon pace (5:16) but that seemed a little daunting. Then I thought I should try to keep it under 5:30s, but that seemed uninspiring. A couple miles in, I considered the last time I did a 10 mile workout here (12/30/20). At the time I considered it an amazing workout, so I still remember each split. I decided to keep track of how I was doing and see how long I could go before getting "passed" by my 2-years-ago self (because that was a progressive run, I knew I would have the lead early on- e.g. first mile was 5:22 this time compared to 5:50 last time). This helped me stay focused and push hard. Splits: 5:22, 5:26, 5:23, 5:21, 5:24, 5:16, 5:19, 5:12, 5:14, 5:11. (Apparently there is 100 feet elevation gain on the way out though you can't really tell). According to my mental calculations, I was actually able to finish at (what I thought was) the exact same second as I did on that previous workout. Overall: 53:14 or 5:19 pace. One one hand, that was pleasantly surprising after how I felt the first couple miles. On the other hand, the olympic trials seem woefully out of reach after a performance like this. Once again I chickened out from taking my GU during the workout, but I did do it while actually running during my cool down. The ground was wet and a bit slippery due to the rain, but wind was not a major issue.
Also- last run of 2022! 3168 miles is pretty much tied for 3rd highest year ever.
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