Progress – progress, I say!
I took off on my second run (or as I described it to my father today, my “wog” – walking/jogging) tonight around 7:30, since it was 88 degrees when I stopped working at 6 p.m. Blech. I waited until the temperature dropped to 82, and took off.
I got to the first interval of running, and had to stop for a walk break about a minute and a half in. Given that I hadn’t even gotten to a hill yet, I was discouraged. But then I remembered the reading I’d done in “Run Your Butt Off” over my lunch hour today, where the authors urged beginning runners to keep their running pace the same as their walking pace. No need to be a speed demon when you’re just getting started, is their rationale.
So, for the next running interval, I did that. I deliberately kept my pace slower than I thought it should be, and tried to match or just slightly exceed my walking speed. And I made it through the three-minute running interval.
And the next one.
And the next one.
And the next one.
BOO-YAH.
I ran for 14 minutes tonight. Not consecutively, sure – but that’s 14 more minutes of running than I’ve done in the last six months. And my average pace was even a smidgen faster than yesterday’s.
BOO-YAH.
It also helped that I swapped last night’s monster hill for a much gentler slope. It’s a prettier run too, past the farm that belonged to my great-uncle (and where my friend Jessica grew up – if she’s reading this, “Hi, Jessica!”) and a neighbor’s cornfield that’s bordered by fruit trees.
14 minutes of running, kids – I just have to type that again. And I felt so great at the end that I almost threw in another minute of running. But let’s not get crazy here.
One downside – I must run on the inside of my right foot, as it rubs pretty hard against my shoe and gets painful. I swapped out my thin socks from yesterday for more cushiony ones, with extra ribbing/support on the middle of the foot, but it’s still sore. So, it’s got until Saturday morning to get over it. Because – I’m gonna run another 14 minutes.
Boo-yah. 🙂
What app is this, and what device do you use it on? It may spur me to join the 21st century and get whatever device it is you are using so I can use it, too – would love to have a visual guide to where I’m crashing on my runs!