Yesterday was the first day in weeks that the temperature was above freezing. It was amazing how much of a difference it was in my running. The sun was strong, the wind was low, and I felt my toes and fingers the entire time. I planned on running 8 miles with an 11-11:30 average page. I've been doing a run/walk method and walking for just one minute at the very beginning of each mile. It's making a huge difference. Last week I was supposed to run 7, but I could only do 6 because of time, and I was concerned about jumping to 8. But doing the run/walk meant no problems. Breaking the run down mile by mile and knowing that I have that walk coming up makes me feel more energized and capable of running faster the rest of the time. I have a friend who swears by this method and she has cut her half marathon time down significantly!
I misjudged how far I had to run so I would up with 8 miles before I got back to my car. Instead of stopping I continued running another .73 (I wasn't really paying attention or I would have done an even .75). I felt so good I could have continued running. I wound up doing a 10:37 average pace. I did do a couple of sprints but for the most part I was running easy. It was such a good run and I even forgot my water at home but had no bad side effects. I ran farther than I did last weekend and much faster and I really think it was the sun & warmer temps. Sadly, we're right back to frigid. But having this run in my mind should help me out later. If I can run strong in 34 degrees I know I can run stronger in May!
I misjudged how far I had to run so I would up with 8 miles before I got back to my car. Instead of stopping I continued running another .73 (I wasn't really paying attention or I would have done an even .75). I felt so good I could have continued running. I wound up doing a 10:37 average pace. I did do a couple of sprints but for the most part I was running easy. It was such a good run and I even forgot my water at home but had no bad side effects. I ran farther than I did last weekend and much faster and I really think it was the sun & warmer temps. Sadly, we're right back to frigid. But having this run in my mind should help me out later. If I can run strong in 34 degrees I know I can run stronger in May!
5 comments:
this is so inspiring! I'm still doing 2.5/3 miles at most, but I like the idea of a one-minute walk to lead off every mile. I bet I could go longer that way.
You could! Look into the Galloway method. It's time-based. Run 5 minutes, walk 3, that type of thing.
I am so excited for my Bia to get here! I am working through the Couch-to-5K program which sounds similar. I am finishing up week 5 tonight with my first non-stop run (20 minutes straight). I'm a little nervous that I won't be able to do it, but I'm also pretty excited to give it a try.
I've only been able to run outside a few times since I started running in December and I have to say I love it. I might have to invest in more cold weather running gear so I can run outside more often.
Yay! Glad you went for the Bia! You can totally do 20 minutes. I started with a similar Couch to 5K program made by an awesome friend of mine. I know I can run without walking, but I get slower and slower towards the end when I'm doing longer distances.
Maybe I'll do a cold weather gear post next. :-)
Yes please!
I was happily surprised at how easy the run was tonight. Second run on a treadmill (first was to calibrate my foot pod a month or so ago), so I was doubly excited that running 20 minutes on the treadmill didn't suck like I thought it might.
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