Weekend: Turn Left

The snow and underlying ice made running outside a dangerous operation this past weekend; especially because both of my runs commenced at 7:30am. Therefore, I was indoor and on the track. For those counting, because I certainly was, my 6M pace run and 13M long run total 95 laps in two days. This is 380 left turns.

The problem with Saturday’s run is that I wasn’t fast enough to complete it before my Garmin battery died. I know, I sat there and twice thought about charging it Friday night. So, my first two miles were 6:59 and 7:00 flat—right on pace. And I’m extremely positive I stayed on pace for the remaining 4 miles. Only I can’t prove it. But, judging on how I felt and the fact that I didn’t inexplicitly add 20+ second to my second mile, I think I did.

Sunday’s run was long, and I was again ahead of my goal pace for my long run. My almost half marathon spits went: 7:36, 7:44, 7:51, 7:46, 7:58, 7:56, 7:48, 7:39, 7:46, 7:34, 7:56, 7:43, 7:08. Average of 7:43/M, or 22 seconds per mile fast. Oh, and the 7:08 last mile was more a please let me finish more than anything else.

But most importantly, I discovered this great little fact. The coffee lids (think Starbucks) that go on the Styrofoam cups at the gym work perfect for rehydration. You can run with them, take water, and not spill or choke on the water. Every local race should have these tops on their water, making it far easier for the runner to rehydrate while running.