These days, I’ve been trying to run three days per week. My work schedule enables me to get to the office at 10:00 a.m. a few days per week—usually Tuesdays and Thursdays—so I try to take advantage of the extra time in the morning to go running.
Yesterday, as usual, I got down to Forbidden Drive around 8:20. I’d hoped to run five miles, but time constraints restricted me to four. The air, though warm, had cooled noticeably since Sunday, yet it remained somewhat humid, even if not annoyingly so. The cloud cover, while not heavy, was sufficient to prevent direct sunlight from falling into the open spaces.
I had a good run, even if I ran the entire four miles about two minutes slower than I usually do. Of course, after a 10-mile race, the body needs time to recover—according to one rule of thumb, one day per mile raced. Above all, the run offered me an opportunity to keep in mind a lesson I learned during the Broad Street Run: sometimes pacing yourself so that you remain comfortable—that is, not pushing yourself—can enable you to finish what might otherwise be a psychologically challenging run.
Four miles, of course, is hardly challenging for me. Yet, the recovery period provided a good time for me to shift my focus back toward the things that make running enjoyable from moment to moment—the sense of self-propelled forward motion, the ability to cover a long distance on foot in a relatively short time, and the opportunity simply to enjoy the time outdoors. The time to think about speed will come later.
No comments:
Post a Comment