Notes
Long-anticipated long run today. My running philosophy right now is to once or twice a week take a risk of some kind to see how my body responds. It doesn't need to be a huge risk or anything, just something more than the body is used to. My decision today was to try running the hilly trails at Beaverdam Park and see how my knee handled it. I ran to the park (3.2 miles), ran about 35 minutes out-and-back on the trail, and then ran home (3.2 miles). I never felt like I was pushing the pace until the last mile, and I felt within myself the whole time. My legs responded quite well after a good week of mileage, and I did not experience knee pain at any point. Really overjoyed with this run, because I know I'm getting stronger every day. I'm starting to feel like my old self again, just without the leg speed.
Splits:
1- 7:53 (net uphill- warmup)
2- 7:25 (net downhill- up and down)
3- 7:11 (net neutral- pretty steep up and down)
4- 7:59 (a little bit of road and then trail after)
5- 8:12 (trail)
6- 8:23 (trail)
7- 8:19 (trail)
8- 7:25 (back on the road- net neutral with steep up and down)
9- 6:52 (net downhill)
10- 6:52 (net uphill)
10.75- 4.46, which is 6:21 pace (net downhill)