The Long Run

Woke up not feeling much like going on a run, but that's ok because there are days like that.  I got moving and was able to start my run just after 6:30.  Ran alone this morning with a 12 oz bottle of gatorade for company.  Started out with a couple of slow miles, built up a little bit faster and ended with the last 2.2 miles at about marathon pace.  Felt like going a lot faster for the last mile but held back a little bit as this wasn't supposed to be a fast day.

Average pace: 7:59 

Weather getting back to normal, 80° and 68% humidity.

I thought today would be an easy run, but it was just David and I and he was up for something a little bit faster so I went along.  It rained very early this morning but didn't cool down much so the run was warm (80°) and sticky (86 % humidity).  First mile at 8:19, then kept on increasing the pace.  Garmin said that 6th mile was at 5:52, but that is highly suspect as the mile before was 7:15 and the last .4 was at 6:53 so I'm guessing around 7:00 give or take 5 seconds - also I have never run a mile that fast, although maybe I could?  I need to try out it out sometime.  This course usually measures between 6.2 and 6.3 depending on which direction we go on the loop.  The Garmin also said 7:21/mile average pace, so that means it was probably more like 7:30 ish.  These are great tools to train with but aren't always perfect.

It seems that starting a little bit later, when it is just starting to get light, rather than when it is still dark is more comfortable since that's when the breeze starts up. So, that's what I did this morning. It was raining before I woke up but it was cooler this morning with a few light sprinkles at the start of the run.

Started out with two easy miles, than ran 4 miles just under 7:07 (ranging between 7:00 and 7:06) and the final mile at an easy 8:20. I hadn't done a run like this for a while, it wasn't easy but it felt comfortably hard with no aches or pains, just a desire to quit most of the way, until the last 1/2 mile of the hard 4 miles where I suddenly felt stronger and wanted to go farther at that speed, but that was enough for today.

"Easy" is a relative term I suppose.  This morning's run wasn't physically demanding but it was challenging due to the rain.  It was more than just a light sprinkle, but varied between moderate and heavy, except for one very short time when it let up and came close to stopping.   Dixie, Keith, David and I left from his house this morning at about 5:50 and ran out his neighborhood and up Starkey Blvd.   I didn't give my Garmin a chance to lock in its signal so the distance ended up being off.   This route is pretty well measured and always comes out to 6.5, but today it said 6.33.   The rain made it darker and there were some pretty significant puddles which you couldn't see until you stepped in them and totally soaked your foot.

At the turn around point things felt better, last mile and a half picked up to about a 7:30 pace.  Garmin distance was 6.33 with an 8:32 pace.  If 6.5 is really correct then it would be about an 8:20 pace.  

Enjoyed some coffee and bagels on David's porch along with Karen, Regina, and Barbara.  Despite any perceived complaining I might be guilty of here, overall it was a good run and one to remember. 

Today was one of my longest runs since December. It went pretty well overall. I was running a little bit later than planned, arriving at the trail parking lot at about 6:15 instead of the planned 6:00. It was already about 76° but it felt somewhat cool. I saw Eudair in the parking lot as she was getting ready to go for a bike ride. She had thought about running but is still going through some PT and decided to not do the long run with me today. The first four miles were at an easy pace but felt difficult, just took me a little while to get going. Those miles were between 8:35 and 8:53. I was wearing the water belt with two 20 oz bottles which is part of the problem, doesn't feel bad after a while but does feel heavy at first.

After that I started to get my legs. I was heading up the Suncoast pkwy trail, went a little past the entrance the Starkey park bike trail then turned back and got on that trail. At about mile 9 I was feeling good. Mile 10 was my second fastest mile for the day. Started to feel hot out just after passing mile 11 but I kept on moving. Eudair past by me a couple of times throwing out some words of encouragement. There were mainly cyclists on the trails with a few individual runners like myself and a few groups. Mile 14 felt encouraging as there was only 4 miles left. As I was finishing mile 17 I thought I would back it down a little bit for the last mile. Just then Eudair showed up to run the last mile. We ran in at a 7:32 pace which was the fastest mile for the run. I then drank lots of water, walked around a bit and stretched. The temp was 86°, humidity not too terrible at 64%

Overall pace: 8:05/mile