Our warm up started off up-hill and into the wind. For mile 2, we decided to head into one of the nearby parks, only to find there were still LARGE patches of ice in the spots that don't get much sun, and mud and standing water in other spots due to the rain we got yesterday. We walked across the ice and carefully ran through the mud until we finally got to the paved road in the park. We parted ways at the end of mile 2 and he began to head back home, and I began the 'pace' portion of my run (goal pace-- 10:23-10:45).
Running through the sticky mud apparently made running on dry land seem easy. I blew away my goal paces (see laps 3-6). Here were my splits:
Going into the run and after our slower warm up miles, I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to hit the right paces for four whole miles. After the first pace mile in 10:17, I was shocked and amazed! I kept it up for the next mile and actually had to slow myself down because I ran the first .4 miles of that lap at a 9:45 pace...woah. I was able to slow it down to a 10:04. I was happy to keep up the pace for the following two miles at 10:12 and 10:15 despite running up some hills.
I definitely didn't intend to run these miles faster than my goal pace, but I'm glad I was able to! It was very easy for the first two, and only slightly more difficult for the second two. I was able to maintain my heart rate in a good range for the duration. My average heart rate for the run was 171.
I was wondering if running faster than my half marathon goal pace was defeating the point of the pace run, but since my half is not on a flat course (see below) maybe it's good that I am pushing myself a little harder and running on not-perfectly flat ground (though not nearly as hilly as the race course...gulp).
If you haven't already, be sure to check out my Sweaty Band giveaway!
There is no better feeling than a great run.
ReplyDeleteAwesome! Good for you! I also wonder about running faster than my pace goals, but I figure it can't hurt!
ReplyDelete