Thursday, July 28, 2011

Photos from July 24th run

Over halfway in, posing with Mr. Lincoln:

About half a mile from the end, 15 miles of 90+ degree weather down. This is when I learned that the Capitol is, in fact, at the top of a giant hill:

Recap - July 3rd - July 28th

Wow, didn't realise how far behind I was! I'll make one giant post with a few points, since what I can remember about the last few weeks is probably pretty minimal anyway.

July 27th - MCC Track - 6.8 miles
Forgot to pause the Garmin while we sat and chatted for a while so I'm not sure of total moving time but I know it was fast! Workout was 5 2x800, but the weather wasn't too miserable (high was only in the low 90s) so it wasn't too bad. After Sunday's run my legs were a little tired but I kept up with the coaches and completed the workout successfully, and killed the cool-down lap around campus.

July 24th - Bethesda to Union Station - 15.5 miles
This was a run that probably shouldn't have been done, and one that makes you feel like a badass when you've finished. The weekend was miserably hot and humid, we were close to having to cancel the run due to heat and humidity and the turn-out was a little light due to it. But we had a good, sturdy group of 12:30s. We may have cut half a mile off of the planned 16, but whatever. We plowed through the first 8 miles, stopping by a water and popsicle stand set up by a good friend and coworker of mine (who also graced me with a washcloth full of ice cubes and a frozen water bottle). Took it real easy the last 7.5, plenty of walk breaks, since a lot of it was in the sun. We ran most of Hains Point, which I like, and liked even more since the sprinklers were on and we got SOAKED. Without those I'm not sure I would have made it all the way to the end.

July 20th - Mormon Hill - 3.84 miles - 00:44
I had been dreading this run, so much that I skipped it last year. Instead of hitting the track we go to neighborhood around the Mormon Temple and charge up a half-mile-long hill. What wasn't mentioned was that the route leading to the hill is also A LOT OF HILLS. It was exhausting, and we only ran the hill once because it was also 95 degrees. Luckily there are a lot of good downhills too so even though we planned to run 13s I averaged a 12:12 mile. All in all it was amazing and I want to tackle that miserable hill again in better conditions. And afterward the program went to Royal Mile Pub for beer and snacks. We were hot, sweaty, and stinky but we had a great time.

July 17th - Ken-Gar to Needwood - 14 miles - 02:57
I now know why they call this the "make or break" run. It's HARD. The weather cooperated as well as it could for July but I was BEAT by the end. Lots of hills, big and little. The hill into Needwood comes at the turn-around 7 miles in, and I hate that hill (though I will admit that this year I have completely owned it and made it my bitch). Then you turn around and run a bunch of nasty hills again. The last two miles were brutal, my legs were sore and I was exhausted. But I made it!

July 13th - MCC Track - 5.93 miles - 01:08
Walked 3/4 of a mile before, and walked a 1.25 mile cooldown neither of which I counted. Owned this speedwork, even though I thought I was going to die. It was just me and my coaches, and since my coaches are awesome they kept me going. My back was killing me (damn herniated discs) so I took two breaks to stretch it out and made it through all of the sets (5 2x800). I think this was the week I learned that the speedwork is done at an 11:30 pace (2:52/lap), and I learned I can do it with some help from my friends.

July 10th - Candy Cane City/Rock Creek Park - 10 miles - 02:07
This run was awesome, I didn't even notice the miserable hills on Beach Drive. Great weather, great company. Took some walk breaks to keep the group together but otherwise ran hard and strong.

July 6th - MCC Track - 5.65 miles - 01:04
I cut this one a little short because of my back, long runs don't seem to bother it but speedwork is tough on this big 'ol bod. Still averaged just under 11:30 so can't complain!