Mile PR #2

Today’s Run

Time – 38:52
Distance – 4.09 miles
Pace – 9:30 min/mi
Elevation – 82 ft.

2 mile warmup, 1 mile run on the track, then a 1 mile cool down. New PR, again! 7:20! Apparently, the 7:45 last week was soft because of the wind. I didn’t have much else left in the legs after this, so that’s definitely closer to the top end for me as of right now. Time for a lot of miles and hills to build the speed more.

Hills are speedwork in disguise, they say

I’ve heard that line numerous times. “Hills are speedwork in disguise.” Living on a hilly street is starting to pay off. Every run has at least three hills on the way home. And, because they’re at the end of the run, I’m usually picking it up at the end to get home quicker. This puts more effort into the hills, thus getting me more out of the hills.

It’s not scientific by any means, just an ancillary benefit to my regular running routes. I’m starting to like the available runs here. There’s not as many options as there were at the last place. I had, within a half mile of the old house, 8 different routes that I could go, each of which could be 3–10 miles or more. Now, it’s a mile either direction out of my neighborhood, and still there’s only another 2 or 3 choices another mile after that. The choices are not bad, however, and are safe and scenic.

There will be a lot of driving to running starts from now on, though. It will be good to be forced to add new routes. I could use more time at the track, or on trails, as a part of my running. Those are things that help to improve.

New Longer Run

Today’s Run

Time – 1:06:19
Distance – 7.10 miles
Pace – 9:20 min/mi
Elevation – 243 ft.

Went out a little further on an out-and-back. 7 miles is a good distance. Tried to keep it easy, but the end was a little tougher as I came back into the wind and had the big hill to get home. Nothing too crazy, but it wore me down more than I would have liked. All in all, the run wasn’t bad, and I need to get the mileage back up.

Some runs need to be longer

Before the move, I had a good, standard run route that I would do regularly which was about 6.5 miles. It wasn’t too far, but it made the shorter, faster runs much easier and put a good amount of miles on my legs. Three of those a week at an easy pace, and I would have 30 miles in the bag with my other 2 days.

I’m needing to push to do that kind of mileage again. 30 miles a week felt like a solid amount that would build fitness and keep my weight in check. Frankly, running that much allowed me to eat cookies. Come on, let’s be honest, that’s what it’s all about. The cookies!

Seriously, though, I like runs of about an hour. They fit well into my schedule, I get a good workout, and I feel pretty positive at the end. I’m not too torn up from a lot of distance, but I get a healthy amount of exhaustion from the run. Plus, when I get home, I can use the excuse of being tired so that I can offer to sit and hold Baby Girl for a while.

She’s growing up too fast.

So I Saw a Unicorn

Today’s Run

Time – 45:26
Distance – 5.08 miles
Pace – 8:56 min/mi
Elevation – 135 ft.

Ran the standard 5 mile out-and-back. Little breezy, felt a little tired, but I held together the whole time. It was a good run without much to report.

You read that title right

Finishing up my run, turned for home and ran past a bank that was having some kind of party/Grand Opening/whatever. There was a tent, balloons, and pony rides. As I’m passing the pony area, I noticed that one of the ponies had a shooting star on it’s rump. “Ok…then…” I think, and figured I would just keep going. Then I saw that both of the ponies had a unicorn horn. I just about stopped in the middle of the sidewalk.

Yeah, there’s not much to say about that. I didn’t get a picture, but now I can check off the list that I’ve seen two unicorn. All I need now is a cat with a headband and a golden gun, and my mission is complete.

New PR!

Yesterday’s Run

Time – 50:35
Distance – 5.11 miles
Pace – 9:53 min/mi
Elevation – 144 ft.

2 miles of warmup, 1 mile time trial to check speed and see how I feel, and a 2 mile cool down. There was a significant headwind in the front straight, so that brought the time down. 7:45! New PR for the mile!

Getting Faster

I decided that it was time for a mile time trial to see what I could do. Boy, did I pick the wrong day. I didn’t sleep well, the wind was a nightmare, and I missed lunch. Pretty much a recipe for disaster. I was sure that I could probably run something that I wouldn’t hate, but as soon as the warmup was done, I figured it was all over. I almost considered just doing another 3 miles on the track at tempo pace (8:20–8:30), and then calling it a day.

But I chose to go ahead with it anyway. I was a good time to get it done, and I have never run a mile faster than 8:06, so I was thinking that maybe, just maybe, I’d be able to put together 4 laps on the track at 2:00 each, and go just a little bit faster at the end.

After the first lap, I was at 1:55. Well, this is good! 4 more of these and I’m at 7:40. Interesting. Sure, the front stretch was tough because of the wind, but maybe I can hold on.

Then the wind picked up. At one point in a turn, I got pushed over a lane. Laps 2 and 3 were just about hanging on at 2:00 a piece. Final lap went through with a little more of a push, and I did 1:50 to get my 7:45.

Now I know that I’m faster than I was (or ever, for that matter). I know that I can do better than this. Even a slightly calmer day, and I can get into the 7:30’s. This could be a really great summer with continued consistency and a little more speed work or hill runs. Maybe the hills to my house are not so bad, after all.

Missed a Day

Yesterday’s Run

Time – 44:27
Distance – 5.05 miles
Pace – 8:48 min/mi
Elevation – 121 ft.

Falling asleep mid-cookie?!

Wanted to go out and run harder for a little longer. This ended up happening, although I burned out pretty bad at mile 4. Not as far as I would have liked, but I still felt good in the legs, and there IS speed in there, somewhere.

Days Go By

I didn’t get to post this yesterday, and I had to skip a run, too, due to another obligation, so my schedule is a little weird this week. I allow for 2 rest days so I have the ability to make up the time. Plus, as I’m trying to get back on track from the baby, the house, and a few other changes, it’s been a little bumpy.

The worst part is missing the amazing weather yesterday. It was in the upper 70’s F and the sun was shining. Having had snow now twice in April (which is NOT normal for this area at all…), the last two weeks have been a real mess. But that’s how it works. If it was easy and always on schedule and on plan, life would be really boring.

In the meantime, sleep has been good to me, so I feel like there’s a real jump waiting in the wings. This much rest is bound to have an affect.