I was encouraged by last week's turnout to the LVRR Group run. I didn't know how this week would do. I hoped someone would come back from last week, but no one did. I thought I might end up running alone again. Then a woman named Dana showed up. As we were about to leave Ingrid made an appearance too. I paced the Runner's World Half with her. It was good to have some company.
Any time that we have anyone show up in the winter, I am thrilled. It turns out Dana and Ingrid knew each other. I thought maybe the weather scared some people off. It was supposed to rain/snow 15 minutes before the run was scheduled to start. That didn't happen though. The storm never came. The weather was supposed to be in the mid 30s, but with no wind, it was actually very nice.
I knew it was too cold to dress in shorts, so I went with tights. I wore a bright orange lightweight long sleeve shirt and a fleece vest over that. I actually wore the vest more because I'd be standing out there waiting to run for a couple minutes, rather than needing it to run in. By the end, I was a little hot. When I went into SteelStacks to use the restroom, I must've looked ridiculous in my outfit.
We started off on the normal route. I followed behind the two of them. That was good actually because I can run a little faster than them, so I let them set the pace. It allowed me to take it easy. We chatted and the run flew along. We talked about running, triathlons and a lot of other stuff.
Crossing the road after going over the Fahy Bridge has been tough, so instead we opted to run out to the Hill to Hill Bridge and then go up Main Street. That worked out as a much better route. It actually didn't add as much distance as I thought it would either. Mostly importantly, it kept us out of danger.
We hit the lights pretty well and only had to stop for short periods of time, if at all. We went up Main Street and then along Broad Street and before I knew it we were near the Wawa and headed back towards SteelStacks. Running on the Minsi Trail Bridge was a little tricky because they had put down so much salt in anticipation of the snow.
Before I knew it, we were over the bridge, into the Steel area and headed to the end of the run. It seemed like it was so quick before the run was over. Group runs are great for that. It must be fun for the people that train in groups everyday, although usually they have some intense sessions too. I'm glad that so far since I've come back, I haven't had to go too hard during group outings. I need to progress into it nice and easy.
My legs felt great during and after this run. I'm not really sure why last Saturday was such a problem. Maybe it was the mileage, maybe it was the terrain or maybe I didn't recover enough from this group run last Thursday. Regardless, I do think that giving myself at least one rest day between every run day has helped a lot. I'll probably do that for at least another week before I start slowly adding days. I need to build up cautiously.
When we were discussing races, Ingrid said she is pacing the Garden Spot Half Marathon. I might be doing that as well since I was given the opportunity. I want to pace something faster though, like 1:45. I'll see how I progress these next couple weeks and then I'll commit to it if I'm feeling good. I also want to run a competitive half marathon somewhere in the spring. I might do the Lehigh Valley one. I'm not sure. I'll commit to that later. I'd love to be able to break 1:30.
Tomorrow is an off day from running. If we don't get any snow, I might try to do a long bike ride. Some of that would depend on if I can get up early too. On Saturday, I'm going to try to make it out with the BCR again. They are going to the Saucon Rail Trail, so I like that idea. A nice and soft surface will do. I look forward to it.
4.15 miles - 37:18 (9:00 pace)
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