August 22, 2006
Still Here
I'm still here. Still hanging in there. Still running.
My coach has come up with a new way to torture me: 13-14 mile long runs, with the last 3-4 miles at 10K to half-marathon pace. I did the first one two weeks ago, and it sucked. The last three miles were hard and seemed to last forever. Somehow, though, I stuck it out, dropped my pace down like I needed to, and lived to tell the tale.
This past week, I did it again, and you know what? It was a little easier. The last mile was a little rough, but that might also have been because I ran it in just over 9 minutes. There's a part of me that can't quite believe that I can run a 9-minute mile at all, never mind after 13 miles of running. Clearly, progress is being made.
I've had some races recently, too. The other weekend, I returned to Michigan for my 2nd Run Thru Hell. It's a 10-mile race over some decently hilly terrain. Last year, I was walking the hills by the halfway point and finished in 1:52:32. This year? I flew through the course. I never had to walk any of the hills, and I finished with a new PR of 1:39:29. That's 13 minutes off last year's time. I know that most of that came from not having to walk any of the hills this time around, but, still, it's mind-boggling to look at.
What does all of this mean? It means that I'm right on track for a 4:30 marathon in October, and exactly where I need to be right now. This is a good thing.
Posted by Dawn at August 22, 2006 01:30 PM
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Comments
Way to go!! I have also noticed things that get easier with each run.
Posted by: Denise "Firefly" at August 22, 2006 04:46 PM
Keep it up. Good to see that you are still here, still training.
Posted by: Juls at August 24, 2006 11:11 AM