Today, I decided to go on a 13.1 mile long run to gauge how I am doing on reaching my 5 minute PR goal for the Philly Rock n' Roll half marathon. I started out at a conservative 8:3x pace for the first mile or so. I ran some negative splits, the fastest at 7:30. I was surprised at myself for being able to run some sub-8 miles. My energy levels were great, so I just went with it. I slowed down some the uphills, but gained that time back, and then some, on the downhills.
I ended up finishing the 13.1 in 1:46:48 averaging an 8:09 pace. This is actually faster than my goal time and I still have about 2.5 weeks left to train! If everything goes well on race day, I should definitely finish in 1:48, my original goal.
Huh, maybe I need to set a higher goal for myself.
What I love about running is seeing myself continuously improve and reaching goals that I thought were beyond my ability. A year ago, all I wanted to be able to do was to run 13.1 miles, no matter how long it took. I did that last October, and felt that I had a long way to go to get faster and finish in under 2 hours. Well, this April, I did just that, and got a whopping 21 minute PR.
This time, I am ready to give it my all and get another big PR. I have been training great all summer, and making a lot of progress. Today's run is evidence of how far I have come with my training. It's a huge confidence boost to see that I was able to meet my goal time, and on tired legs, at that. I wonder how much faster I could have ran with well-rested legs.
8/18 Sun- 16 mi
8/19 Mon- rest
8/20 Tues- 7 mi fartlek
8/21 Wed- 24 mi ride
8/22 Thurs- 6.5 mi tempo
8/23 Fri- 10 mi
8/24 Sat- 33 mi ride
Totals:
Ran- 39.5 mi
Biked- 57 mi
I ended up finishing the 13.1 in 1:46:48 averaging an 8:09 pace. This is actually faster than my goal time and I still have about 2.5 weeks left to train! If everything goes well on race day, I should definitely finish in 1:48, my original goal.
Huh, maybe I need to set a higher goal for myself.
What I love about running is seeing myself continuously improve and reaching goals that I thought were beyond my ability. A year ago, all I wanted to be able to do was to run 13.1 miles, no matter how long it took. I did that last October, and felt that I had a long way to go to get faster and finish in under 2 hours. Well, this April, I did just that, and got a whopping 21 minute PR.
This time, I am ready to give it my all and get another big PR. I have been training great all summer, and making a lot of progress. Today's run is evidence of how far I have come with my training. It's a huge confidence boost to see that I was able to meet my goal time, and on tired legs, at that. I wonder how much faster I could have ran with well-rested legs.
8/18 Sun- 16 mi
8/19 Mon- rest
8/20 Tues- 7 mi fartlek
8/21 Wed- 24 mi ride
8/22 Thurs- 6.5 mi tempo
8/23 Fri- 10 mi
8/24 Sat- 33 mi ride
Totals:
Ran- 39.5 mi
Biked- 57 mi
