After a crappy 5 miles yesterday, I needed a productive day today. The plan was to run twice. I was hoping for two runs of 8 miles each. I wanted some decent mileage, but not too much at one time.
I started off around 2:30 in the afternoon for the first run. Prior to the run a bunch of friends were complaining about the humidity. It was in the upper 80s and very humid. At first, I didn't think it was too bad, but I realized pretty quickly that it was indeed very difficult. I started at Riverview Park.
Of course I ran shirtless. There was no question about that. As always, I was soaked by the end of the run. The first mile wasn't too bad from that aspect, but it got much worse.
I headed out toward Easton. I figured that I'd like to get out 2.5 miles and then come back if I could. If I was feeling good, I would loop around Hugh Moore Park. I didn't want to do all 8 miles at once.
The legs and body were slow in the beginning. Mile 1 was a solid 8:26 though. I got faster after that. This path was a mix of shade and sun. It made a huge difference which I was in.
There were some geese within the first two miles. I was happy to run by them with no problems. Most of them were in the water. I did go past two smaller ones though.
Once I was through the first mile, I was running the rest of the time under 8 minute pace. The legs got faster and faster for a bit. I continued out and was at 2.5 miles near Easton.
I decided I would go out a little farther. I'd at least go out to where the path ends. I kept going and realized that they were no longer doing construction south of the Easton. You can now run miles and miles more on the D&L. I was happy for this.
I went out another half mile. Going out 3 miles was excellent. I was in a lot of sun now though. It was very hot there. With the humidity, I was drinking a lot of water.
I headed back, focusing on getting to mile 4. It was nice to be back in shade. The effort was easy, but with the humidity, I struggled some with my breathing. I got to the halfway point.
I focused next on mile 5 and then getting back Hugh Moore Park. Mile 5 happened to be my fastest mile at 7:19. I kept trying to tell myself to slow down too.
As I was approaching the park, a guy on a bike went the other direction. He said, "loose dog up ahead." That got me worried. Did he mean with someone or a runaway? I looked all over the path all around me and then even in the bushes. I didn't want to be attacked. Then, I came down a hill and saw the dog with a couple walking it. Rather than risk it, I turned around for a bit to add mileage.
I only added about a quarter mile, but it was enough to get away from the dog. I was still running solid as I got to Hugh Moore Park. I decided to run that loop. By now, I was feeling the heat a bit. It made me feel a little funny. Still, it wasn't too bad. I'm kind of used to it by now. This was one of the worst days though.
In the middle of the loop, I kept going. I ran a little additional out and back. When I came back, I was at mile 7. I ran that one at a solid 7:27. It was great to be in the last mile.
I finished up the park loop. I ran back over the bridge. Climbing toward Riverview was a slight challenge. It was short though. Things worked out perfectly, as I ended right before crossing the road over to Riverview.
I tried to cool off as quickly as I could. Even with the AC on full blast, I was feeling kind of lightheaded. I didn't feel too bad during the run, but I did push close to my limits. I did alright though and it was a good run in tough conditions.
I knew storms were coming in the evening. I was hoping for a window for my second 8 miler. It didn't look like I'd get a window, then at around 9 PM, the system fell apart. I headed out as it was nearly dark.
I needed to run close to home, in case a storm came again. It was significantly cooler, so I wore a sleeveless shirt. That still didn't last that long. Once I took it off though, things were fairly nice. It was around 70 degrees and still humid, but much less so. I also wore my headlamp for safety.
I headed right over to the other neighborhood. I started running the Blue Eagle 10K course that I designed. I did the first main loop. I was feeling good. Since it was wet, I wore my older shoes. I think my body appreciated slightly different shoes than the earlier run.
The first mile was an 8:19. That was pretty close to the first mile of the earlier run. Again, every mile after that was under 8 minutes. I had passed a mom and son walking in the first mile.
I went a little longer on the first part of the loop, just to add some distance. I headed out toward the main loop. Instead of doing that whole thing, I decided to cut it a little short. After 2+ miles, it seemed like there was some slight rain. That was nice though.
A bunch of cars were driving around. I think it was a lot of teenagers without anything to do. Whoever they were, they were annoying me a little. At least they could see my headlamp.
Since this run wasn't nearly as hot and humid as most of my runs lately, it was kind of relaxing. Still, it took awhile just to get to mile 4 and the halfway point. I was happy to get there and very much looking forward to getting to mile 5 as well.
I added on this shorter loop to the run. I figured it would get me at least half a mile. When I got to the last turn in the neighborhood, I decided to headed back out on the first loop again. That would add another mile and put me past the 10K mark.
This loop was nice and I was thrilled to get within 2 miles. Mile 6 was 7:17 and Mile 7 was 7:15. My pace was picking it up. My legs were getting kind of tired by now.
I went back to the elementary school. I had about a mile and a half to go when I got there. I looped around the parking lot. Since I needed a mile, I headed to my neighborhood for the final loop.
I had no goals for this pace, but I couldn't help but notice how close the pace was to the earlier 8 miler. I was running very consistent. I finished the run up with a 7:16 last mile.
Both of these runs were different. One was hot and humid. The other was cool, but my legs were tired. The second one was actually 12 seconds faster. They were amazingly close.
I still have a lot of work to get to 90 miles for the week. At least now, I'll get to 80 miles. Tomorrow, I might run the Firecracker 4 Miler in Easton. If not, I might even do a long run with Megan. Regardless, I'm going to run some extra miles later on.
Afternoon Run 8 miles - 1:01:19 (8:40 pace)
Night Run 8 miles - 1:01:07 (8:38 pace)
No comments:
Post a Comment