Eight Miles Out

I ran eight miles outdoors on Sunday, December 27 at 3p with my brother. Temperature was a balmy 51 degrees Fahrenheit in late December! At the time, I knew it was unseasonably warm, but I dressed like it was winter anyway. I would later pay for it during the run, because I started to overheat. I wore a long sleeve wicking shirt with my orange puma pullover and running gloves and cap. I wore running shorts, and nylon socks. I ate a big lunch about an hour or so before the run, and brought two gels of GU with me.

I really only needed the long sleeve wicking shirt and the shorts. The cap, gloves, and pullover all came off during the run. My brother took my gloves, and I held the cap in my hand and tied the pullover around my waist. Clothes will need to be better coordinated with weather conditions, because it was annoying to have so much clothes during the run.

I really felt the big lunch during the run, and will not be doing that again. I also had run five miles the previous day on a treadmill, and my muscles were still sore. I needed to stretch longer and didn't do that.

All this (the weather, the full stomach, the clothing, the soreness) did not contribute to an overall good start. I really felt it from the get go, and did not start strong. I was running with my twenty-one year old brother EU who has bundles of energy (I'm an infirm seventy-five, lol), and we started out at a leisurely 10 minute and a half pace. At least, it should have been leisurely, but I was hurting from mile one.

My other brother AU gave me a runner's watch for Christmas, and this was my first chance to use it. It was really neat, and helped me to regulate my pace. It has GPS so I could track my distance as well as my average mile pace. The watch is a bit bulky but it really came in handy, and I will enjoy using it and figuring out some of its advanced features. Thanks, AU!

Thanks to mapmyrun.com, here is a map of the up-and-back course that we took:



So at the four mile mark in Lexington center, my brother and I turned around, and I gobbled a chocolate gel. I think it helped? I don't know, but it was kinda tasty. My brother had a vanilla one, and he said it gave him gas. Kekeke.

So at that point, I think I had done a 10:30min/mile pace, and I was aiming for a 10 minute pace, overall. I was hurting for all the aforementioned reasons, but around the six or seven mile mark, I started to feel stronger. I was telling my brother at the time that I would be happy to average a ten minute pace for the rest of the run, because that would still mean a negative split. But for whatever reason, my brother and I decided to kick it up a notch, and though I was about two minutes or so behind the ten minute pace, I made it up in the last three miles, by doing about a 9:10 min/mile pace, because I finished the eight miles in exactly 1hr19min30sec.

Sweet! A negative split! And I accomplished my goal of finishing the eight miles in a ten minute pace/mile or better. I even beat it by thirty seconds. My brother EU had a big kick in the end and finished strong. Me, I gave it my all for eight miles, and didn't have anything left. So, although I met my goal of a ten minute pace, I still have a lot of work and training to do, if I want to do that for a half-marathon (13.1 miles!). But, I'm on track. I'm on plan. So far.

A few things: pay closer attention to weather and clothing. Diet is important. The gels were okay, so I'll need to experiment more with it. My stomach didn't reject it. I probably shouldn't have pushed my body so early in my training to run two days in a row. My muscles and body needed to recover, and I felt it during my long run. However, I'm pleased with how things are going. I still have a long way to go, and I know I couldn't have done the ten minute pace if my brother wasn't there. It is soooooooo much easier to run with a partner. I cannot even describe how motivating it is to run with someone rather than do it myself.

Anyway, even though I did runs two days in a row, I probably could fit in another treadmill run during this week. I probably need it from eating so much at home. ;)

Happy trails, running giraffes.