Total of 45:00 for over 6 miles.
TLDR: 1 mile hard at end of run in 5:13
Full version: I decided to run 1 mile hard near the end of my run as a fitness test of sorts. The goal was to run this mile near all out. I ran the same 6.03 mile loop I have run multiple times in the last two weeks and started the hard mile with 1 mile to go. This entire run is pretty hilly and even while running some of the hills early on my legs felt slightly fatigued going up them. On the downhills I felt fine.
The last mile of the run starts off flat with a slight uphill gaining approximately 9 ft. I made it to the top of that rise in approximately 1:13, at which point I started heading downhill. Unfortunately the downhill is steep enough initially that it feels uncomfortable, but eventually it decreases to a more manageable grade. I hit the half mile mark in 2:33, and then ran the last half mile in 2:40 for a total time of 5:13. During the last half mile there is a fairly steep hill, with total elevation gain of approximately 35 ft over the last minute or so of the run. Total elevation change over the last mile is approximately -73 ft, with 44 ft of climbing and 117 ft downhill (net -56 ft during the first half, and -17 ft during the second half).
I was really hoping to be under 5:00 for this mile because of the net downhill, so I was a little disappointed to not hit that goal. Overall it was hard to estimate what this sort of effort was worth due to the steep uphill at the end, as well as the uncomfortably steep downhill during the first half that didn't speed me up as much as I would have hoped. Aerobically I actually didn't feel too bad, but my legs did not feel like they had the strength in them to run faster. I feel like my current fitness is limited to a large degree at faster speeds by lack of strength. I may implement some additional exercises at home to try and rectify this problem, or maybe some hill sprints (no shortage of those around here).
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