Long Run in the Misty Rain

The ground was still dry when I woke up at 6. That was good news. I thought it might rain during the night, which might have de-motivated me from heading out. But with rain only threatening, I was able to convince myself to not postpone.

I woke Quin up, put his bike in the van, and we got to Lake Miramar a little after 7. By then it was drizzling, and the wind was gusting a little; but Quin wanted to do at least one circuit, so off we went. I ran in a poncho, but otherwise I treated it like a normal run. After a couple of miles I had to take off my glasses because I couldn't see through the droplets on the lenses.

Quin had had enough after the first lap and I took a couple of minutes break to load his bike back in the van and get him bundled up to wait in the van while I completed two more times around.

The SDR group got started at 8, but by then I was already 3/4 of the way through my first 5-mile lap. I never did sync up with them, but I did wave as we crossed paths, going in opposite directions.

It was pretty chilly and at times miserable conditions, but I think I ran well. The cool temps kept the water-loss to a minimum and I didn't ever really feel dehydrated. I think I only drank around 40 oz of water during the entire 2 hour run, which is way...WAY...less than normal. But I don't think it affected me.

I went run/walk again, which works amazingly well. The more acclimated I become with that strategy, the more inclined I am to utilize it on race day. Today, I ran to the mile markers and then would walk for 30 seconds. A few times I varied the pace and stride just to mix it up and try different things. I wound up averaging 8:24 over the 15 miles, even when including the 30 second walk breaks and the 2-minute pit stops at the 5 and 10 mile "lap seams". If I could hold that pace in the marathon, I'd be ecstatic. I'm pretty confident I could make that kind of progress through 20 right now. Another 10K? I'm not there yet. If I could discipline myself to average 8:40, I think 26.2 might be in range right now. That's 3:45 territory. I'd be happy with that.

I did buck my trend and ran with the iPod. I used the playlist I'd made for the Silver Strand HM. Some of the songs are perfect metronomes for the stride rate that corresponds to my goal marathon pace. I might succumb and use the iPod as a pace-assistant tool for the marathon itself. I need to get better earphones though. The ones I have keep slipping out of the ear canal.

My splits today:
1) 8:14
2) 7:32 (music got me moving)
3) 8:36
4) 8:00
5) 8:08
6) 9:51 (about 2 minutes getting Quin situated)
7) 8:12
8) 8:23
9) 8:18
10) 8:10
11) 8:48 (stopped to refill water bottle)
12) 8:26
13) 8:20
14) 8:31
15) 8:31

Total time: 2:05:58.

I did start to feel the ankle a little around mile 10, and it didn't start to concern me until the final mile. The gels seem to help, but don't totally eliminate the ache associated with fatigue. I'm hoping that the distance before the ankle(s) becomes a concern will move further and further out with training.

HR average for entire workout was 147, which is perfect (80-85%). I did press it up to the mid-150s a couple of times, but otherwise stayed pretty steady.

Afterwards, by the time I'd gotten home, my fingertips were numb. I hope that was just delayed reaction to the chilly air, and maybe aggravated by blood shunting to the core. That's never happened before; though I've never run in cold, raining conditions like that before either.

No run planned for tomorrow.