Long Run
I just finished a 10-mile run. That is the 1st time I’ve done a double-digit distance (nice alliteration, eh?) since the Hippie Chick Half last May.
It was hard.
I could’ve chosen a flatter course, certainly, but still! Last time I did this exact same 10 miler, I did it 10 minutes faster! TEN! I can’t believe how much speed I’ve lost in just under a year. My PT kept telling me that speed will be the last to come back, and once I’ve got the distance covered without pain, then I can start working on that again, but I’m ready now! Seriously!
Anyways – the splits:
Mile 1: 11:09 (149 avg heartrate)
Mile 2: 11:54 (154 avg hr)
Mile 3: 12:38 (157 avg hr)
Mile 4: 11:09 (159 avg hr)
Mile 5: 12:47 (162 avg hr) – I took a quick break here for some GU & water
Mile 6: 13:07 (158 avg hr) – not sure why this one is so slow….but my Garmin was having problems in the trees
Mile 7: 13:46 (164 avg hr) 2nd break for gatorade
Mile 8: 13:47 (165 avg hr) – this is where it started to suck
Mile 9: 11:54 (164 avg hr) – my iPod died at mile 8.4 🙁
Mile 10: 11:53 (164 avg hr) – I honestly wasn’t sure I was going to finish this mile
Avg Pace/HR: 12:24/160 HR
When I got to mile 9, I realized that I was only a quarter mile away from home, and although 9.25 miles would’ve been my longest run post knee-hab, I really, really was set on that 10! So I ran around in circles to get the extra distance. And miscalculated, so was still 1/4 mile away from home when I got to 10 miles! (Although the 1/4 mile walk home was probably really good for me.)
I can’t believe how slow this was – I hit mile 6 at about 1:13, and that’s the time of my first 10K (in which I came in LAST in my age group). My other concern is that I really don’t know what to make of my heart rate. I feel like I should be paying more attention to that, but whenever I try to figure out what my target heart rate is, I don’t really get very far before all the ‘heart rate zones’ start to confuse me & then I give up. Any guidance?
The course I ran was beautiful – I did a 2.5 mile warmup, down from my house, under the bridge, and then up a wicked-steep hill (that comes just after mile 1, which is why mile 2 is ALWAYS slower than mile 1). Then I was in Pier Park, and ran 4.75 laps there (each lap is approximately 1.13 miles or so), and was at mile 7.8 when I left the park for my run home.
The park trails are beautiful – and at the beginning of each lap, I was greeting by the spectacular site of snow-covered Mt. St. Helens – so beautiful! It was a really nice run – but I wish I’d run 1 more lap there, and less on the roads on the way home. The course in there is pretty rolling, with a couple steepish hills.
On my way back home, I rounded a curve and there was Mt. Hood!
Perfect running weather, too – it was about 38 when I left this morning, and is about 45 or so now. It was also pretty windy, so I never really got overheated.
All in all, I feel pretty good, although there was a point when I thought this might be the death of me & despaired at ever being able to run 26.2 miles in just over 4 months. I’ve stretched now, though, and will ice the knee (it was a little sore, but not bad) and but bandaids on my arch blisters (forgot the body glide this morning) – and then, I think I may need to eat.
The good news – this was my first time running with Gatorade, and it didn’t cause any ill effects – so that’s good to know!
The rest of the week will all be pre-written content. I’m going to try to get through this week sanity intact – but it’s going to be hard. This week is going to be very intense. Wish me luck!
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