Today was the second long run of the first significant back-to-back long run weekend of my pre-training, if that makes any sense. There’s an explanation needed, I suppose.
The race is December 8 and I start the training block for it on June 11. I’m currently doing some preliminary training just to see how my mind and body acclimate to intense physical activity. Of most concern is my left ankle, right above that big ball on the inside of the ankle. Last May, that area of my lower leg was so problematic I couldn’t walk, much less run. I’m not sure how I injured it. It was just one of those things I guess. I wish I knew what happened so I could prevent it from reoccurring. I had an X-Ray done but everything looked completely normal. The doctor said time was the best medicine. And Ibuprofen. 3 months later, I cautiously ran a mile and I’ve been building up slowly ever since. In the present, I’m feeling more ready than ever to push. This weekend was 18 on Saturday and 12 today, Sunday. Next weekend will be 20 and another 12. Weekend after that will be 22 and 12. And then I’m not sure what I’ll do. Maybe just see how I feel and wait for June 11.
Today I ran the beginning section of what will most likely become my default long run route: Hop on the Pinellas Trail, head east towards Downtown and go wherever the wind blows me until I reach half the designated distance. Then, turn around and go back the way I came. Today I reached USF as the turnaround point. It was overcast again and I got to see the waterfront, with the sailboats rocking in the tiny waves. The photo above is from about a mile after the turnaround.
I was telling Dana how I pick out something to take a photo of when I’m running and she said it was interesting, so I’ll share it. When I’m running and I see something that just captures my attention in a certain way, like I see something out of the corner of my eye that intrigues me, I think about how to time my pacing (5 min. run/1 min. walk) so when I pass it on the return portion of the run, I have a moment to snap a photo or three. I look for a spot where I see a good opportunity to compose a photo, I guess. Then, I do the pacing math for a while, working it out so it doesn’t mess up the flow. What basically ends up happening is, I have to run an extra minute or two, so it becomes 6-7 min. run/1 min. walk. The hardest part is figuring out when to do that. It’s complicated, but all that mental work is nice because it’s like someone else is doing the running for me. Like autopilot.
Gear today was: Hoka Arahi, Camelbak, phone in Camelbak pocket, Garmin and Apple watches. Nutrition was: GU, singular. I ate that GU at the halfway point.
Time was about 2 hours and 5 minutes. 12 miles at 10:22 pace. The 10:22 pace was weird. If you look at my post from yesterday… exactly the same.
I had to hurry out this morning to get my run in because we had family to visit for Mother’s Day, so instead of my two pieces of almond butter toast and a banana, I only had the banana. No coffee! And no time to let my stomach rest after eating. Not the best timing. My stomach felt a little bubbly for the entire run. I ate a lot of breakfast foods at the brunch we went to afterwards. So tasty and a great end to the week.
Overall, this was a successful week, save the one hiccup on Friday. I’m looking forward to a day off tomorrow, and another week of progress. I think I will post tomorrow, even though I’m not running. Maybe something more focused on the writing aspect of this project.
This “project” is simply a public version of a private running journal. It has not been, and will not be in the future, censored in any way, except by the natural filters that I place on my writing when it is (hopefully) being read by an unknown audience. That sounds like censorship, huh. By “natural filters” I mean: there is some semblance of complete thoughts, in the form of paragraphs for instance; there is a basic attempt at composition, purpose, and an acknowledgement of target audience. Besides all that nonsense, this “project” is my personal running journal. Maybe I should post this on the about section.
runjournal 