I went out for my 10-mile medium run along the Jordan River Parkway and came home with a 12-mile long run. There is one place where the Parkway path comes to an end because the State couldn't get the right-of-way through a large pasture. Persons using the Parkway take a detour through an adjacent neighborhood (up the big hill that I've spoken of). I haven't run the Parkway enough to remember all of the turns, and on the way back I missed a turn and went a mile the wrong way. I was still on an asphalt path with a yellow stripe down the middle, but that path was a side-path to the main path and went in a different direction than I wanted to go. I had to back-track to the turn I had missed. I had to make a choice between running 10 and walking the last two miles or running the full 12 miles and doing a reduced distance on Saturday. I felt fine as I ran, and I chose the latter. So, today was a 12-mile run and Saturday will be an 11-mile run.
I felt pretty good during the 12 miles and 90 (F) temperature, and I've felt fine since I got home a couple of hours ago. My time for the 12 miles was 2 hours 41 minutes, which interpolated to 13 miles would be 2 hours 54 minutes, very close to my time last Saturday. I purposely ran a bit slower today to reduce the stress on my body, compared to last week when I ran faster. So, everything considered, it was a good running day! My wakeup HR was 52 this morning.
I have a new theory about eating before a run. As I've mentioned in previous posts, I've been experimenting with eating just before a run. A banana and a piece of bread seemed to be ok, and a granola bar during the run seemed to be ok, too. Last week, I didn't eat anything before the race, and I had lots of energy. This morning I ate a banana just before I left, and didn't have much energy for the first 3 or so miles. I had more energy during the rest of the run. I've noticed that pattern in the past when I've eaten a banana just before leaving: less energy during the first part of the run and more energy during the middle and end of the run. I'm wondering if eating a banana just before I run is impacting my body for the first part of the run. I'll experiment with this.
I saw a mother duck and a bunch of ducklings on the path. The ducklings were small and were born late in the season; maybe two weeks ago.
Howdy Allen! The nice feature of my Garmin 201 GPS watch is the "breadcrumb mode" where you can retrace your steps with its breadcrumb map so you can never get lost...handy for mult-forked trails! I always eat my cereal with a small banana topping, does keep me going during the long runs. The banana also encourages a bowel movement before the run. Happy trails, Bruce
ReplyDeleteHi Bruce,
ReplyDeleteMy Garmin 101 has the breadcrumb mode, too, but I haven't been using it. The path is pretty well marked, but when I run I run without paying much attention to my surroundings, and I wake up and wonder where I'm at :)