Yup, I'm bragging. I have been running faithfully since spring (and not writing about it much), and it's paid off! I would oftentimes run and then wonder whether I would ever break the 10-minute mile barrier, especially since a 10-minute mile for me was particularly speedy. Suffice it to say, I am finally beginning to see results in my running! I've been averaging about 20 to 30 miles a week and have been running in the heat of summer, in many cases, during the hottest part of the day, since I generally run during my lunch break.
Here is the abbreviated re-cap of my summer races. You're lucky I'm feeling lazy and therefore decided not to regale you with a detailed description of my painstaking training. Back in early June, I ran the Lawyers Have Heart 10K. Since I was running regularly at the time, I was hoping to come in under an hour. It didn't happen, and I ran it at a little over a 10-minute mile. I didn't achieve my goal; but hey! There were free snowcones after the race so it wasn't a total loss.
I stepped up the training in preparation for the upcoming Marine Corp Marathon, and at the end of August, ran that Annapolis 10-Miler. It was fun to run the hometown. Despite the heat and the hills, I, with the help of my running buddy, came in at 1:39 and some change. Our pace was one second under a 10-minute mile. As an aside, I got a kick out of the St. Anne's "holy" water station.
Which brings me to today. I finished the Army 10-miler in 1:35, a 9:30 pace, which is the fastest I've ever run over a longer distance. It was hard, and I'm not sure that I could have done it without my running buddy. I challenged myself to push and keep up with him, and was able to for the most part. I have concluded that all of my training hasn't necessarily made me speedier, but stronger. I can now muscle through runs better than I could before.
Who knows what the future holds?
Sunday, October 4, 2009
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