Friday night I was trolling the RunnersWorld forums and saw that New York City had posted Wave and Corral starts for the Marathon. I was like a giddy school girl when I looked at noticed my placement. Last year I was at the end of the 3rd Green Wave...I really wanted to start on the top of the bridge...just because that is what I always think when I think of NYC. That amazing skyline...and it will be something a little different. Even better....is the fact that I am in the first corral of the 3rd Blue Wave. So there should be some open space for me to find a little space and try to lock in to my pacing. So it really put me in a good mood.
I woke up feeling still like whatever this ailment I have was still living in my head. Just something I am getting used to dealing with. The plan called for 12 and I wanted to do 6 at under 8:55 pace. (Yes my goal pace has crept down a little). I was down to one gel and thought I would just take it with me and consume midway through the run. I headed out, and it was cool and crisp, perfect Sean weather.
About a mile and a half in I was crossing a parking lot and saw someone in a car. I looked and saw it was an old friend that happens to be a runner. He was just leaving after going on a group run. He said they meet every Saturday at 7 like a block from my house to run. I have really been missing the running kinship so it was nice to get that news. I probably won't join them every weekend...I do like my long run time and pace...but shorter long runs I think it might be nice.
I continued to Lions Park (It is starting to become a new loop for me) and made my way around the perimeter. My first couple of miles were nice paces if a little fast. About mile 3 I needed to find a restroom and knew from the previous runs that my route goes right by one in the park at about 5 miles in. So it seemed to be a good time to pick up the pace a little. When I got to the restroom it was LOCKED! A tiny bit of panic crept in and so remembering the next public restroom was about 4 miles away on the greenway I decided to hit it as long as I could....and this turned up being good luck.
I pushed hard all the way around Hynds then up to Vandehi. I was pretty beat by the top and finished the hill slowly thinking I might go slow and take a gel but I figured what the heck and made back up the time to also get that mile under 8:55 as I cruised down the hill and onto the greenway at Central H.S. I kept chugging along, feeling pretty good but really wanting that bathroom. When I made it to Mylar Park I was very relieved to find that it was unlocked.
Once I got back on track after my stop I was able to push for the next couple of miles. The net downhill really did play into it. Mile 11 was my fastest mile and I was happy with that. When I got to mile 12 I slowed down quite a bit. The legs were feeling it mixed in with the stop I just kind of went with it. I am still getting back the confidence and wanted to have a solid finish so it was a 9:22 mile. I decided to walk after that to keep my legs stretched out and to keep strong.
I was very happy with this run. Felt pretty good at the end, even if the head cold was still bugging me a little I can tell that the run really helped with some of that brain fog and even today (Sunday) I feel better overall.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/50440381
When I woke up today it took a little bit to get out of bed. Had a late night (for me) and so I was a little slow. I wasn't sure what type of run I wanted. The legs didn't feel like they needed recovery, but knowing how many miles I am gonna rack up this next week I wanted something fairly short. I decided on a progression run.
First mile I headed towards Converse which is quite a downhill, my legs weren't quite ready for it....I started thinking about my goal to run the first mile around 9:40 at NYC...and I remembered that my legs will already be pretty warm in NYC because of all the walking to get to the start. So I just focused on that and it made calm and let me just enjoy the warm-up. When I got to the park I was going at a pretty decent clip and just started to push. By the start of the 4th mile I was pretty tired, but I still kept pushing so I am happy with my effort.
After the 4th mile I decided to walk most the way home. When I got to the big hill two blocks from the house I decided to sprint up it to boost myself mentally. Nice way to end a run. I am excited to get back exactly on schedule this week and give it a great effort. http://connect.garmin.com/activity/50589515
Feel like I am back on track! Thanks for reading.
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