Buttsweat Towel© season has begun

Another impatient get-it-over-with, speed-it-up TM run, but 7 miles this time!  I got bored with about 2 to go and started adding speed every half mile.  The last mile came out to 6:58 thanks to a quarter mile finish at 10.1mph (5:56 pace).  I have to admit that toying with the fast speeds like that is kind of fun.  At some point I'll increase it too much and be flung backwards from the TM in a comical fashion but until then I'll keep playing with it.  AP = 8:11.

EZ 7 @ 8:23 avg pace.  Mixed up speeds but kept everything at 8:00 or above.

Kept it steady at 7.0mph (8:34) the whole time but to spice things up, I ran the last quarter of each mile uphill in increasing increments starting with 2% and finishing with 8%.  The 8% was probably the hardest I've worked thus far.  I liked that workout because my lungs had plenty of time to recover and I was ready to attack the steep inclines when it was time.  Good one to do right before a day off, I think.  It's flat as a pancake here, so when I start runing outside I might have to duck into the gym every once and awhile for some mill-hills.  I'll give myself 1 fast mile for those last 4 quarters between 5% and 8%.

I actually have a chance to run in the early morning tomorrow but will opt out since it's time for my day off, and it's still going to be 93 degrees at sunrise.  A bit unlucky, since we've been seeing lows in the upper-80s lately.  Anyway...I wimped out, so what?

No run (rest day) BUT...I officially entered the lotto for the Houston marathon so hopefully we'll (my wife is trying for the half) get some good news in a few weeks and I'll be committed to train for my first full.  My alternate marathon is New Orleans in Feb.

4 mile warmup @ 8:34.

3 mile tempo @ 7:20.

For the last 3, I bumped up the speed as I went along and really got myself working pretty hard by the end.  AP: 8:02.

Easy miles with another faster finish.  10.5mph (5:43) this time for the last quarter mile.  I still didn't get slung off the TM, but planning on that happening soon.  Those treadmills go up pretty high...  Avg pace 8:24.

Double Complete Rainbow

I'm probably the last person to see the link above, but it made me laugh for hours so I thought I'd share.

86 degrees today...in the gym.  I've noticed when the days get to around 120/90 for the high and low, the gym itself is in the mid 80s in the afternoon (there are thermometers everywhere).  We had a stretch of days where it was around 110/85 and the gym was about 80.  4pm is just the best time to run with my schedule right now though.  Today I lucked out and got a TM with the fan pointing in its general direction so it was ok.

I did a marathon-pace run, sorta, for 5 miles.  I have no idea what my MP is.  Based on my HM, most calculators say it's around 8:00/mile.  So, figure I'll get a little faster by January and we'll call it 7:50 for now.  Can always adjust it later.

I did 1 @ 8:34;  5 @ 7:53;  and 1 @ 7:04.  AP 7:52.  I was pleased that mile 5 was just as easy as mile 1.  As I go, I'll just keep doing more and more at MP and throw them into long runs.