Spring is springing. Flowers are blooming, weeds are popping up in yards, and it was 70 degrees at 6AM today. We are expecting some rough weather here today and I didn't know what to expect when I got out of bed at 5:30 this morning. Thankfully it was just a little windy. I went out for a slow four miles today to work on endurance. My goal was to average between 10:30 and 11:00/mile.
I started out with a quick warm up walk out of the park and up the hill into the adjacent city ballpark. After climbing to the top of the hill I turned around, pressed start, and began my run. I worked on keeping my pace close to 11:00 for most of the first mile. I think I'm getting a pretty good feel for pacing myself. I finished the first mile in 10:53. Starting out mile number 2 I was feeling a little tired already, but I figured it would pass if I ignored it and just kept a steady pace. Sure enough, I pushed on through and completed mile 2 in 10:57. I picked up the pace just slightly for the third mile. It felt good to not hold back so much. My breathing was fine, my heart rate stayed in the low 160s and I finished up the third mile in 10:45. I allowed myself to speed up just a little more for the final mile, and I watched as my heart rate inched closer to 170. I extended my run back out of the park and up the hill into the park next door. That was a good challenge at the end of the run and I felt pretty exhausted at the top of the hill, but I kept moving. Breathing was never a problem, and my legs felt pretty good through the whole run, only getting tired when climbing that last hill. I finished mile 4 in 10:25. I was in sight of the car, so I sprinted back as fast as I could make my legs go, accelerating to somewhere around 6:00/mile and averaging 8:38/mile over the last .09.
Today's Stats: I did 4.09 miles in 43:11 for an average pace of 10:42/mile. Well within my goal range for the day.
Next up: I'll be swimming in the morning and then some interval training for Wednesday morning's run. It's supposed to be significantly cooler Wednesday AM than it was today. As much as I despise winter, 40 degrees is the perfect running temperature for me.
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