Cursed Realm of the Faceless Ghost

Rest day at the end of a rest week. Back at it tomorrow.

I woke up an hour before my alarm went off, and since I couldn't get back to sleep, I decided to go for an early run. I had planned to climb on the Bonneville Shoreline trail, but since I was up too early to count on the sun for the descent I decided to run on the road. I ran up to 11th Avenue via Virginia, then down Bonneville Boulevard for two laps around the capitol before returning the way I came.

I ran the west side of City Creek again this morning, but this time I started from my house. At the ridge where the trail tops out, there are three successive peaks, each higher than the last. Today I hiked to the top of the first. (I would have run, but because the trail was so steep it was faster to walk. I'm sure plenty of runners could run it, but not me, not yet.) Average pace for the run was 8:32, but I was significantly slower on the way up (mile 4 was the slowest at 12:13). Total elevation gain was 1,503 feet.

My ankle and lower leg have been giving me a little trouble since yesterday's run. It's the same thing that happened a couple of weeks ago. What's weird is that it bothers me when I'm walking or standing around, but not when I'm running. Still, running doesn't seem to make it any better, so I'll go easy tomorrow and see what happens.

Easy run after work. From the office to Liberty Park, three laps and then back. Average 8:02 pace.

Yesterday was my first time running in Liberty Park for a while, and I remembered that I like it. So, this morning I ran over to the park, ran 4 laps and then ran home. It's much easier to keep the pace mellow and steady around the park than it is through the hills around the Avenues. Average 7:51 pace.

Because of the weather, I stayed inside this morning and ran on the treadmill for 40 minutes, using the incline to get some intensity. At a slow and steady 10:00 pace  I alternated between 5 minutes at a 1 percent grade and 5 minutes at a 10 percent grade. Instead of leveling the grade after the third 5-minute block at 10 percent, I increased the grade one percent each minute for 5 more minutes, finishing with one minute at 15 percent. I then cooled down for five minutes at 1 percent. 

A couple of days ago I think I mentioned that I like running in Liberty park. Today I decided to prove it by doing a long run there. I ran from my house to the park, ran 12 laps and then ran home.

The advantage to a long run in the park is that the drinking fountain and the 7 Eleven on the corner make it unnecessary to carry any supplies. Even so, I didn't fuel properly, which is why I ended up running 12 laps instead of my planned 15. I may do some future long runs in the park, but I doubt I'll make a habit of it.

Average pace was 7:40, which is pretty good, but I think I would have been better of doing 8:00 miles and staying out longer. Still, this is the longest run I've ever done.