After my crazy meltdown on Monday, I relaxed and realized there were several more days this week with an awesome weather forecast for me to enjoy outside runs. And did I ever take advantage of that! I was out there every day this week, basking in the glory of the nearly 80 degree temperatures in late October. I knew this was most likely my last chance to run in weather like this until spring. The 10-day forecast showed high temperatures in the upper 40's every day next week - yes, this is the type of weather we deal with in Northeast Ohio. 80 degrees one week, followed by 40 degrees less than a week later.... And everyone wonders why I get upset about the end of summer!
Anyhow....I decided to take full advantage of this miracle weather and ran out the door onto the bike trail the minute I got home from work every night. One day early in the week I was running along, completely in my element, loving every sight and smell, and enjoying the feel of the warm air on my skin. I was relaxed and smiling on the inside, thinking more about my surroundings than my actual run. Then I realized that I was coming up on my halfway point - I was almost to a mile and a half - and that I felt really really good. I'm usually longing to walk at that point, but I didn't even feel tired yet. I just kept running, losing myself in the beauty and peacefulness of the world around me, and I continued to feel just as good. As I passed the 2 mile mark, I started thinking about my plan to eventually start adding distance to my runs. What a perfect opportunity to try this out, I thought. It's a beautiful day, I was feeling fantastic, and there was still enough daylight left to add 5-6 minutes onto my run. And I really wanted to try it out outside first rather than on the treadmill. There's just something more satisfying to me about achieving my goals outside. I didn't want to over-do it though, even though I knew I wouldn't have many more opportunities for outdoor running for quite awhile. I decided on 3 and a half miles - just 0.4 of a mile more than usual. I thought that was do-able - although sometimes those last couple tenths of a mile seem to be longer than the entire rest of my run!
So I passed 3 miles, and 3.1 miles and just kept going. Don't get me wrong, I was starting to get tired, and the thought crossed my mind to just stop at my usual 3.1. But I was too curious. I had to know if I could keep going. Plus, I'd already made up my mind to stick it out for 3.5 miles. Quitting before that would have been too much like giving up, and I'd be disappointed in myself. Long story short, I ended up making it. It was harder than I had anticipated for just a short distance further, but it honestly felt really good. I really didn't feel too bad! And I wasn't all that much slower than my normal pace either. I actually think I was slow because I was too caught up in enjoying the weather and nature - and because I was afraid to pick up the pace if I was going to try running further than usual. (Sometimes I wonder how much better I could be if I wasn't so darn conservative all the time!)
So as I cooled down I thought about the run and realized that was the farthest I had ever attempted to run. And that meant it was also the furthest I had ever actually run too! Awesome! I was actually feeling kinda "bad-ass" at that point. Hahaha! Not only could I run 3.5 miles, I could also keep up a pretty average pace while doing it. Take a bow.... :o)
After I was done with all the internal gloating, I came home and vowed to start incorporating the longer distance into my routine over the next few weeks when I could. Unfortunately, I haven't yet had the chance again. I was going to attempt it again the next night, but I ran out of daylight before I even hit 3 miles (and I'll admit that my legs were really really tired from the extra distance the day before). The daylight was again an issue with my next run, but I'm hoping to get in another run tomorrow - although inside - and I'll shoot for 3.5 miles there. Gotta keep working towards that long-term goal of running a 10k next summer!!!!
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