Six Miles

Saturdays are set aside for my long runs, and Coach (that's what I'm going to call the training plan app) had the audacity to double my miles. I've been maxing out at three miles since I started this last week and today we pushed it to six. SIX. I had been nervous about this run all week, knowing that because of Cody's ridiculously cold weather and potential for wind that'll knock you over, I would likely have to run it either on a dreadmill or on the track at the gym. As in, sixty laps around the track at the gym. No one in town sells tally counters, and I feared having to keep track of that many laps in my mind. And who wants to spend that much time on a treadmill? 

Last night was windy, so this morning I decided I'd get to the gym first, then decide how I'd run the dreaded six miles. Because it's a rec center, the whole town has a membership (which is awesome, honestly. I love to see people being active!), and I wanted to get there first thing before everyone started showing up en masse. Everyone enjoys their Saturday sleep-ins. I'd rather get there early and avoid the crowd.

Anyway, I rushed out the door and drove a few hundred feet before I realized I had forgotten my phone, so I turned around and went back to the house. As I got out of the car I realized just how still the morning air was and made a last minute decision to run outside. But I had to get moving, because the wind could pick up at any moment. I hurried inside, threw on my cold weather gear, and headed out the door. I didn't look at the temperature until I saw the results of my run later. Technology is amazing - throw on a watch and it tells you everything from when you last bathed to what the neighbors are having for breakfast. It also tells you the weather. Turns out it was a balmy 28 degrees.

I vowed to complete the full six miles, come hell, high water, or tiny baby steps. I didn't want to do any walking, but I would if I needed to. The goal was to finish, not finish quickly. I've learned that the long runs should be done slowly anyway, so I was good to go and out I went. My route is an easy rectangle around the neighborhood that, when the loop is completed, is just shy of two miles. It was definitely slow going, as the sidewalks and shoulders were icy and snowy (and I am just slow), but it was a fantastic run overall. Had I not needed to stay so vigilant with where I stepped, it would've been perfect. I had just the right layers so I was good and warm, but not too warm, and my hands only started to get cold towards the end. And most importantly, there was no wind other than a slight breeze here and there.

Not only did I complete the full six miles, but I never needed to walk and ended up only three minutes past Coach's projected time. I was very careful to listen to my body and adjusted my speed as was needed, so I was very pleased to learn I stayed right on track. I'm super slow generally, and this took me 1h 22 min, at an average pace of 13:41/mile. I look forward to watching that number decrease over the next few months!

I did it!