Notes
Tempo day. I debated just doing it on the track, instead, I opted for the bike path so I could see more people (though a bit fewer than during my long run last Friday).
A long 6mile warm-up. 6miles because I didn't really want to do a 180 in the middle of tempo, and that's where the "oasis" is (bathroom break and water stop). I felt good for those 6miles even with some tired quads. Though that good feeling didn't translate to speed as I barely edged under 7:30 before the warm-up was over.
The downside to this plan was I started my tempo on a gradual but steady incline for the 1st 1.5miles. I started off strong as a biker was behind me and complimented my speed, but I got a bit complacent and the first mile was 6:20. I figured that was good for the uphill and not wanting to go out too hard. However, after cresting the hill, I still couldn't find much speed in the 2nd mile: 6:06. The 3rd mile went by quickly and I was relaxed, but still a 6:03.
I made sure to get under 6 for the 4th mile, 5:54, before dropping a little more time on the 5th, 5:47, so I could at least say I ran 1 mile faster than the final mile of my 20miler last week. This wasn't a failed workout and I didn't even feel bad during it, the legs just weren't turning over fast enough and my tired quads seemed to constrain my pace. It has been a tiring week (or 2 weeks), so now I'm debating giving up my Sunday run plans to hit 75 for the week. The rest day has been critical to my summer so far and I'd like to be fresher if I'm shooting for 80 next week.