Today was my first long run of my very personalized training plan for the GW Parkway Classic 10 miler (April 10). I was planning on a 8 mile run on the bike path, but as I got closer to the park, I started thinking about doing 9 . . . .
Remembering my main goal (don’t get injured!), I decided to start off for an 8 mile route, but I found myself debating that 9th mile throughout my run.
Cons
Risk of injury–I only ran 6 miles last week, and 7 the week before. 9 is a big jump that violates the “10%”rule.”
Pros
I felt good, I had plenty of time today, and I wasn’t sure what our family schedule looks like for next weekend.
My first mile felt a bit sluggish, but it was right on target for my normal outdoor warm-up pace of 10:00 min. For the next two miles, I kept a steady 9:40 pace that felt easy. Then, a woman who looked to be about my age and size passed me.
I found myself unconsciously running faster to sort of keep up with her. My split time for that mile was 9:20 minutes. Even though we parted ways after that, I kept up the 9:20 pace without feeling like I was pushing myself. As I got closer to my 8 mile finish mark, I still felt good and comfortable, so I decided to tack on a 0.5 mi out-and-back segment to hit 9 miles.
My Garmin data: 9.02 miles, 1:25:31, avg pace 9:29 min/mile
Split times: mile 1 = 10:00, miles 2-3 = 9:40, miles 4-9 = 9:20
So, this definitely was a confidence boosting run. It showed me that I am ready now for my 10 miler in April–I just have to avoid injuries as I continue my training and set a goal for my happy finish time.
Do you find that you push yourself to keep up with other runners, even when you aren’t racing?
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Great run! I would say it is confidence boosting if you can already run 9 miles… Good oportunity to work on speed since you know you can go the distance!
cheers
Great run Coco! 9:20 miles are awesome! I can't wait for the day I can be under 10 minutes.
I am not competitive in running probably because I just started and I never in my wildest dreams thought I'd ever be able to run again.
Nice run, Coco! And my answer to the question is yes.. I do, often consciously, since I figure it's a great tool (motivator) for a little speed work!
Wow, awesome run girl! Great pace! And if you're feeling good, you defiantly know it! I do that too, someone passes me and I try to keep up with them. It's a good "game" to play during the long run. It keeps things interesting.
You're going to kill that 10 mile race!
Wow! Way to go! I definitely do that – run to keep up with other runners – but then I get injured…. Very injured. My hubby always says "no sense, no feeling" because I'll keep running through the pain until I'm so injured that only Physiotherapy helps. Thank goodness I have a great Physiotherapist!
That would definitely be a confidence boost! Enjoy that feeling!