Highs and Lows

Statistics:
Distance: 8 miles
Time: 1:28:55

*No track map this time. There was a problem with my track mapper app. Thankfully it still recorded time accurately, but the distance was way off. If you're really curious, lemme know and I'll send you the map link.


Observations:

Preamble to the run - I ambled my way down to Piper's Alley in Old Town at 8:00 this morning for the CES (Chicago Endurance Sports) packet pickup/orientation. This is the running/training group I joined (see last entry). It's a pretty cool organization and I was pretty pumped to get my training schedule and other info. I'm looking forward to next Saturday for our first group run! I already picked up some good tips from the meeting today that I employed on my long run this afternoon. So let's get to that.

The weather today has been kind of ADHD. It started out overcast in the 40's this morning, but by the afternoon it was 50's and sunny. Then overcast and drizzly, then sunny, then raining. I'll get to that.

I ended up waiting until the afternoon to go because the weather was supposed to improve. It did, somewhat. It was in the 50's instead of the 40's, but still really windy. I stepped outside, then came back in to grab my running windbreaker.

For the 8-miler, I decided to do 4 laps of my 2-mile course. I thought about doing two 3-mile laps plus one 2-mile, but somehow that feels longer in my head. It feels easier when I can tic off the laps in my head.

So I did the first two miles, and that's when I realized that the mapper was acting weird. Also, after I got my body warmed up, I was a bit too hot with the windbreaker, so I ducked in to drop off the jacket at my apartment then came right back out to continue.

The first 4 miles went fine. One thing I learned this morning is that you're supposed to specifically run slower on your long runs so that your body can recover easier by your next run. So I didn't push pace at all. I gave myself an easy pace for the first 4.

Starting at mile 5, it began to sprinkle...weirdly. The wind was clearly blowing from the north, which is where the rain was coming from, but looking above me, it was blue skies above me and to the north. The only clouds were slightly south of me. I guess that's just evidence of the complexity of physics in a complex entropic system.

After I finished mile 5, I noticed that my body definitely felt more tired than it had been during the first 4 miles. Not so much that I needed to stop, but enough that it sucked a little more. Also, during mile 6, it rained. Not sprinkles, but moderate rain. It was cold, windy, and raining. When it was happening, though, I was determined that I would finish my distance. So in a bizarre way, it gave me strength to finish since I was now running for spite of mother nature.

I guess she gave up because the rain was gone by the time I finished mile 6. But that's when I had my first real gut check moment in a while. I'd gotten about a quarter mile into the last lap and my lower calf in my left leg started to cramp up a bit. I'd noticed earlier that I'd been scuffing the soles of my shoes earlier, which isn't a good thing, so I had been consciously avoiding that, and that put extra pressure on my calves, I guess. So I had to stop and stretch them out for a minute. But then I kept going.

After 7 miles I was pretty ready to be done, but I knew I could do another mile, so I did, and I'm glad I finished it. I'll still have two more miles to go on May 29th for the Soldier Field run, but I'll be ready for that. It turns out that the race is actually part of the training program, so that's cool!

I'm pretty sore and stiff right now. I'm stretching my muscles every now and then, and I'll be walking some tonight, which should help. Mostly, though, I'm just really glad I finished my distance, a new record distance for me!


Next

I now have an actual schedule from my training group. Next workout is Monday - 40 minutes of easy running. Sounds nice... :)