Week #9 - Day 4

Today was the long run of the week, and yes it was quite long. 16 miles. I never would have guessed a few months ago that I would be capable of doing 16 miles of non-stop running, but here I am. I'm happy it's another personal best, but my body is busy trying to recover. I headed south on the towpath for the first time for a long run, and went much further than I ever had on my bike, well past Pennisula and a golf course. It was a great day for running as it was in the mid to upper 70s, completely overcast, and just about the halfway point there was a very fine mist (which I wish it would do every time I run). There were quite a few people out, runners and bikers, with it getting busier the further south I went.

The 16 miles ended up taking me 2:38:24 to complete, so about a 9:54 minute per mile pace. I kept my heart rate around the 80% mark for the majority of the run. Initially I was having some breathing issues, but those cleared up after a mile or two. I also encountered what felt like some numbness in my left leg around the 4th mile which I was afraid was going to make me stop, but it wasn't too bad and went away as most things do.

So there wasn't nearly as much pain during the run as there was after. I walked about 1/2 mile after the run, and with each passing second my legs started aching more and more. Also, I had some very sore chaffing spots under my arms and my chest. The outer knee pain also made an appearance, along with some sore feet. Basically it' s my body telling me it doesn't like running that far. But it's only a few more weeks of this, and then the marathon. So hopefully it can hold up.