I ran another half marathon time trial today on my 2 mile loop that goes past the apartment complex that we live in. The last time that I ran a time trial here I finished in 1:11:40, so I was shooting to better the time this go around. The main differences between last time and this time were that I started the time trial later this time (7:20 vs. 5:40), it was not as hot this time (about 75 at the start vs. 80-84), there was more wind this time (but not too bad, and only for about 4 miles from 6-10), and I had to deal with more sun (thus negating any positive effects related to lower temperatures). The end result was that the course was by my estimation a little faster during the first half than last time, and a little slower during the second half. I started the time trial at the midpoint of my 2 mile loop, after first running a 3.5 mile warm-up. I stashed a water bottle on top of a power box so that I could hydrate about half-way through the time trial. I also put a gel pouch in my shorts so that I could decide if I liked it before running my next marathon. The first mile has a net downhill but starts uphill, while the second mile has a net uphill but starts flat. Overall, the loop is very hilly and it does not help that I run this loop 6.5 times with four 90 degree turns every loop. One of the turns had some dirt spilled on it and I couldn't get good traction, so this slowed me down by a couple seconds per lap as well. The loop also measures out to 2.01 miles on the course tool, so whatever splits I give will be somewhat inaccurate and probably just a little long. After I started the time trial I felt strong going up the first hill. That was a good sign. Going downhill felt harder than normal for some reason, but not too bad. I went through the "mile" in 5:21 and then hit the uphill "mile" in 5:29 for a first lap time of 10:50 (5 seconds slower than last time). I kept the effort the same and somehow sped up for the second loop to finish it in 10:45 (5:15, 5:30). I still felt very strong at this point, but on the third lap my heart rate monitor stopped working correctly and in the confusion of trying to get it to work I ran the 6th mile of the time trial a little too fast, considering it was uphill, and I finished the third lap in 10:47 (5:22, 5:25). It was at this point that I noticed a wind that had picked up, which would affect me for the next few miles. I was also starting to feel the effects of the sun that was beating down on me (I should have gotten out earlier this morning). This, in addition to running mile 6 a little too hard, resulted in a slowdown for the 4th lap and I came through in 11:08 (didn't catch splits). I ate my gel during this lap, and I drank my water as well. I can't say that I liked the gel much as it was too thick for my taste, and I was hacking up phlegm for the next couple miles. The next lap was also finished in 11:08 (5:28, 5:40), and at this point I was 33 seconds ahead of my pace from the last time I ran my time trial here. I actually wonder if I mentally relaxed too much, as I was way ahead of pace by the time I was 6 miles in. I picked the pace up for the 6th lap to finish it in 10:58 (5:26, 5:32), and followed this up with a final "mile" of 5:20. I added a little extra time to make it to the "half marathon" distance, finishing in 1:11:13. Overall, the time was 27 seconds faster than the last time I ran this time trial. The first 2 miles were 5 seconds slower, and the last 3 miles were 6 seconds slower, meaning that I ran the middle 8 miles 38 seconds faster. I imagine that most of the difference came between miles 2-6, but I will need to check that blog entry to be sure. I am pleased that the finishing time was faster, although I wish that the difference would have been more considerable. A 27 second difference could be chalked up to nothing more than differences in weather conditions, despite my feeling that conditions were roughly equivalent. In sum, the workout was a solid workout and nothing more. I just need to keep building off of training like this so that I can run a solid marathon in November.
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