Run to Improve

Recently I have been taking on longer distances, as I have been preparing for a difficult 7 mile race this summer. Most days of the week I run 3 or 4 miles, and have one day were I run the full 7 miles and another day in between that I'll run 5 or 6. To prepare myself for this upcoming 7 mile race, I planned to run the 10k today. And all went well!

I feel accomplished after running this race; I got a personal record! Each mile of this race I was estimated to have run at a 8:32 pace and my finishing time was around 52:56 (although I have to double check on that). I felt that the course was not too difficult, as all the hills were balanced out. Surprisingly, the hardest parts for me were the 1st and last miles. It was challenging to find a steady pace in the 1st mile because the course started up-hill. But I found as I kept moving and coasting down a few hills, I was able to choose the right crowd to stick with and keep myself at a comfortable pace. What I've been learning with longer-distance courses is that when the last 2 miles come up, it's time to pick up pace. That last mile was pretty difficult to keep up with, but I managed to pick up the pace and use the last bits of energy I had stored in me to finish. When the finish line came in sight, I don't think I could have gone any faster if it weren't for the man trying to pass me. As he started to tail me, I gave the course my all and sprinted towards the finish. Fortunately, I finished a place ahead of him! And also, I came in 2nd place for my age division; a nice surprise as my only goal was to keep all of my miles under 9-minute pace. So overall, a satisfieing race!

I haven't ran more than 4 miles in a while, so I decided to try 5 miles on the treadmill. I'm preparing for a 5 mile race coming up, so this was good practice. Although I do not particularly care for running on the treadmill (it's kind of boring), I decided to give it a go. I felt absolutely fine after the first 3 miles and kept an 8:30 pace for the last two miles. I finished 5 miles on the treadmill around 43 minutes and felt fine. Although this was not my fastest time, I was able to plan ahead and see what I need to work on in the future. 

I decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather and go for a 7 mile run outside. My legs were a little stiff from yesterday, but running on the pavement helped them adjust back to normal again. I kept a 9:30 pace the entire run so that I wouldn't hurt myself after 2 days in a row of long distance running. I felt surprisingly good the entire run, as I have not ran this course in a while, and enjoyed myself. However, my legs began to feel a little heavy on the last mile so I slowed down to an easy trot. My plan is to rest for 2 or three days and then start back easy again. 

I decided to go outside today and run 3 nice and easy miles. My knees hurt a little in the beginning, but towards the last mile of my run they felt fine. I think that it may have been from running 7 miles the other day, as I have not run this distance in a while. Someone else told me that the muscles in your legs take a while to warm up in the cold weather, so that could have also been why they felt a little tight during the first 2 miles.