dedication, perseverance, self-discipline

5.1 miles in 39:31.

I felt super slow and stiff this morning and I was content to run slow, so I did, running my first mile (downhill) in about 8:30.  My body finally started to wake up about three miles into the run, and I ran the final mile (uphill) in about 7:26.

5.1 miles in 35:42.

I ran 3 x 1/2 mile hard during the run with 1/2 mile recovery between each one.  I used my watch to measure the distance for each repeat, which meant that each repeat was actually longer than 1/2 mile (the watch did an exceptionally poor job of measuring distance today measuring 4.90 miles for the run which then showed up as 4.8 miles in the online service).  Based on the actual distance I ran during my loop around the lake, I estimate that the repeats were actually about 0.52 miles.

I started out a little easier on the first repeat to try and work into the repeats slowly, total time 2:54 (recovery 3:58).  The second repeat felt like I was running into more of a headwind than the first (less tree cover), while I increased the effort a little, total time 2:51 (recovery 4:03).  I pushed myself a lot harder on the final repeat, which had similar wind to the second.  My legs felt dead near the end of this repeat, total time 2:43.

I think this workout highlighted my current lack of true fitness (the fatigue during the third repeat was excessive considering the moderate effort on the first two repeats), but I was happy with how things went, and my legs recovered quickly after the final repeat was finished.  Based on my estimations for distance I would subtract about 7 seconds from each repeat to actually get a half mile time, so 2:47, 2:44, and 2:36.

5.1 miles in 39:09.

I am finding that my achilles is taking longer to warm up at the beginning of my runs than it used to, especially when I run hard the day before.  I don't feel any soreness, and I don't feel particularly fatigued, but the achilles feels tight, and tends to take about a mile or two to get stretched out.  As a result my run started out pretty slow again today and I went through the first quarter mile in close to 9:00 pace, and only ran the first mile in 8:10, even though I was running downhill for most of the second half mile.  During the last quarter mile of the run I did a short pick-up just to get my legs moving a little faster.

5.1 miles in 37:40.

Near the beginning of my run I saw another runner pass in front of me running fairly quickly, so I sped up (it felt awkward as I was not completely warmed up yet) and shadowed him for about a quarter mile just to see how fast he was going.  I timed an approximate quarter mile in 1:29 (probably slightly shorter than a quarter).  My best guess is that he was running between 6:00-6:20 mile pace.  I remember when I used to do all of my easy runs at 6:40 pace or faster.  Oh, to be young and not know the meaning of a recovery run.  I ran the rest of my run at a fairly moderate pace until the last quarter mile when I sped up briefly just to remind my legs what it feels like to run faster.

5.1 miles in 37:34.

I ran 4 x .25 hard during the run, at approximately 2.0, 2.75, 3.75, and 4.85 miles.  I didn't want to run too many repeats since I am still getting in shape, and I also wanted more of a sprinting non-aerobic stimulus from the repeats, thus the long rest.  Since my watch does such a poor job of measuring distance I just ran 1:20 hard and called it a quarter for the first three repeats even though I knew it was a little farther.  For the last repeat I actually ran a quarter as I had previously measured on the course tool where 0.25 miles from my house is.  I ran the final quarter in 1:14 (slowed some by a 90 degree turn near the end as I turn onto the street I live on).  My best guess is that the other quarters were at a similar speed/effort as the last one.  My achilles on my short leg was sore the rest of the evening, making me think that despite my efforts to not overdo things, this workout may have been a little too intense.

5.1 miles in 40:26.

I may have been a little too worried about how my achilles felt yesterday, as it felt fine when I woke up this morning and didn't hurt at all during the day.  As a precaution I ran my run really easy, only going under an 8:00 pace average during the end stages of the run.  Despite feeling fine running today I may take next week easy as well.  I don't want to overdo things before my body is ready, and I think that I have been ignoring some signs lately that I have been getting too fatigued, probably due in part to stress.