Notes
This was an odd run. Had a coffee after dinner just before going to the gym. Throughout the run, the running felt very easy, but it was difficult to keep my HR under control. I think the coffee just messed with my HR a bit.
Ran 16 @ 4.6
Ran 7, 7 @ 4.3
Ran 30, 5 @ 3.9
3.9 seems to be my steady state pace. I can run at that pace for a long time without my HR going up over my upper limit. Normally I prefer doing interval type, ie 10 @ 4.6, 1 @ 3 (walking), 10 @ 4.5, 1 @ 3, etc, but by the later part of the run, my running segments get too short. Switching to 3.9 halfway through is a little easier to manage at this point, I think, and I may keep trying this for the time being.
While my mileage and pacing aren't really any better than last year, I am much more refreshed this year. The workouts leave me more refreshed than tired, and I am able to run for a long duration of time much more easily. Hopefully when I get out of LHR training, the benefits will stick with me.
I figure I have another 3-4 weeks @ 20 miles per week before I can start expecting to see much in the way of improvement.