Long Run

Distance: 10.16 miles
Time: 1:49:34
Pace: 10:47 min/mile

Comments: First double-digit-mile run in, yeesh... months. March 24 of last year, to be exact. The goal today was just get the distance. The secondary goal was to negative split. So I got out early and started slooooow.

The uphills on the start of the White Rock Lake course kind of make a slow start necessary but I wasn't taking any chances. Even when it started leveling out, I didn't do anything crazy.

At the halfway point I let myself up the pace but that got tempered by the hills on the east side of the lake. For the last few miles I opened it up a little bit, but not a hard run by any means. In any case, I got the ten miles and I got the negative split so, bully me.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4.06 miles
Time: 43:43
Pace: 10:47 min/mi

Comments: The last of a three day stretch of runs and I was really feeling exhausted at the end. As a result, this one was slooooooow and felt it. From the start I just tried to crank it out. Zero style points today.

Despite feeling like I was just hanging in there, my heart rate stayed right in the super long run mode (Zone 3) and none of it at the highest level. I can't decide if that's progress or not. I really just need to see how I recover on this next off day and come back for the long run.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4.03 miles
Time: 37:59
Pace: 9:25 min/mi

Comments: I've felt kind of tired/exhausted the last day or so and starting this run, my hopes weren't high. Most of the first mile my legs felt empty and I was worried the whole effort might become a slog.

I decided to just focus on cadence and grind out what I could and just hang on to the end whenever the fade hit. Weirdly, it didn't. When I got to the hills on mile three I was doing pretty good so I really focused on attacking them.

The result was my fastest effort since May of last year. Not bad for a mid-week run.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4.04 miles
Time:40:53
Pace:10:07 min/mi

Comments: It got chilly and wet and unpleasant overnight so getting out the door was a challenge. Did it though. The weather was not fun -- doubly so when the breeze showed up -- but there are worse conditions for running.

I'm still feeling a bit worn down and didn't run this one especially hard. I just wanted a strong, consistent effort to build on during this week. My cadence was pretty good most of the way and I didn't feel I was struggling on the hills. So that's positive.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4.05 miles
Time: 43:15
Pace: 10:41 min/mi

Comments: This was a gen-u-wine, 100 percent recovery run. Slow as the bejesus and nothing fancy at all.

My legs really didn't feel worse for wear yesterday after the long run, which was a little surprising. When I woke up this morning I was a bit stiff and, heading out on this run, I was a lot stiff. Still, nothing that edged into actual soreness.

Basically, I just tried to keep my feet moving steady and not do anything crazy. I can at least say I accomplished that.

Long Run

Distance: 8.05 miles
Time: 1:28:10
Pace: 10:57 min/mi

Comments: Got the eight miles I planned which, it turns out, is the longest single distance I have run since March of last year. Yeesh.

Nothing fancy here. Just focused on an easy, regular cadence without pushing it too hard. At the end, it turned out I put in almost 85% of the run in the Zone Three heart rate effort. That's pretty much perfect for long running in my conditioning level.

I'll put in a recovery run tomorrow and then start working on the 10 miles I'd like to get next weekend.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4.07 miles
Time: 40:45
Pace: 10:01 min/mi

Comments: The plan was to get in a lunch run before the rains arrived but that didn't happen. So I got home and got ready to go with the expectation of precipitation. Luckily, I caught a window in the rain and only had to endure a pretty constant drizzle.

Again, I was trying to avoid overexertion and focused on cadence and control. None of the run was in the zone five range so that worked out like I wanted. Next up, a rest day and the long run.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4.04 miles
Time: 39:31
Pace: 9:47 min/mi

Comments: Took two days off after Monday's effort completely kicked my ass. I was dragging pretty hard on Tuesday but felt better yesterday. No major issues this morning so everything looked fine. Except for the weather.

It was raining awful this morning and a dour drizzle most of the day. I took advantage of a long lunch to try and squeeze this effort in so, of course, it starts coming down just as I head out. But, as I told another runner today; rain runs are important because they get you ready for a wet race.

It was chilly and soggy and unpleasant but could have been worse. The rain varied between light and a drizzle, but never really stopped. I ended up with a decent time and my legs actually felt pretty good.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4.02 miles
Time: 44:56
Pace: 11:11 min/mi

Comments: Even though I ran the last three days, I was a bit worried about getting all of them in this week due to work. So when an opportunity to squeeze a lunch workout in today presented itself, I decided to take it.

No bueno.

My legs were completely burnt from yesterday's hard effort. Even though I tried to keep it slow, this was a full on slog from start to finish. And the hills were a total nightmare. I was really struggling the whole way. Which was weird since my heart rate stayed in the regular range the whole way.

Long Run

Distance: 6.22 miles
Time: 1:05:10
Pace: 10:28 min/mi

Comments: Watched a live stream of the WDW marathon this morning and it kind of shamed me into getting a solid run in today. Yeah, I ran the thing last year but... this is this year.

So while this says "long run" it's by comparison to my recent efforts. It's my first 10K distance of the year but, if all goes as planned, not my last by a good bit. The challenge factor I put in play was doing each mile faster than the one prior. So the first was overslow (almost 13 min/mi) but the last was a bit on the quick side (9 min/mi).

Overall, it felt good to push things a bit but I've clearly got a lot of work ahead of me this year.