Week #14 - Day 2

Today was a great run. Got a late start after eating and resting for a bit at home after work. Started my run around 7pm at the Metroparks in Strongsville. Started off at a good pace, 17 minutes for the first 2 miles, and kept at it most of the way. In fact, I think I did my last 2 miles in around 8 minutes each! I just felt really good and was not laboring to keep that pace. The weather was great, low 70s, cloudy and starting to get dark near the end of the run. I did about 8 miles (I know, normally I am Mr.Precise, but I took a wrong turn and ended up going down the wrong path near the end of mile 4), so I turned around and did a little extra that I think put me at or slightly over 8 miles total. My finishing time was 1:05:53 (an 8:14 mile pace), which is excellent for me.

Not sure what caused that great run tonight. Might have been getting some extra rest between runs, the cooler weather, or doing it later in the evening after dinner. But whatever it was, I hope I can repeat it on Sunday at the half-marathon. I don't expect to achieve the same pace, but I am shooting for a little under 9:00 miles unless I find it too difficult to maintain. I have a bad tendency of starting fast out of the gate and tiring myself out too quickly. Fortunately I don't think it's too popular of an event, so I won't get overly caught up in the crowd excitement at the start. I'm taking the next couple days off to rest up for Sunday's race. Don't want to wear these legs out quite yet.