I was scheduled for a long run Saturday. L had a 5K that morning so I didn't get started until a little later in the day. By the time I got to run it was starting to get pretty hot. I knew this would hurt my performance, but I headed out anyway.
I chose a different venue for this run. I headed out the front door and ran around our neighborhood - mostly farmland. I had previously mapped out a pretty good 3 mile loop route from my house and I had hoped to do a couple laps plus some to get to around 7 total miles. The first two miles went great. I averaged right around 10:00/mile with an average heart rate in the upper 150's, though by the end of the second mile it was starting to climb fairly steadily. Part of that I blame on the hills to which I'm not accustomed and part I blame on the heat. It was really hot and the midday sun was taking it's toll on my body's ability to cool itself. I slowed some for mile 3 to try to give my body a break but my heart rate continued to climb. Same routine with mile 4. I slowed even more and by this time I was starting to feel a little burn in my calves. I knew I was pushing myself harder than I had intended. I was still determined to run a minimum of one hour so I slowed down even more and averaged a little slower than 11:00/mile for the last two miles. My heart rate was in the lower 170s for most of the final two miles. At an 11:00/mile pace, if I were properly hydrated and the weather was cool, I think I could easily run an hour with a 150 or lower heart rate.
It was an exhausting run and gives me an idea of what I have to look forward to this summer. Thankfully, I'll be getting in most of my runs before the heat of the day sets in. I'm going to have to make it a point to be up and running early on the weekend for my long runs.
The Stats: I did 6.03 miles in 01:04:14 for an average pace of 10:39. Quite a bit slower than my previous long run, but conditions were less favorable.
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