Three Hilly Miles Out and Back

I usually run in the park. But I chose a hilly out and back route today. Not that I was looking for hills. I just figured there is a better chance that I'd finish the mileage I set out to do if I know I have to make it back home. I'm not trying to walk all the way back. It's been a long while since I've run this route. The hills aren't as hard as I remember. I guess the two races I did in Central Park helped. I still was surprised about the negative splits though. The second half was harder than the first half. Just check the elevation chart. You'll see what I'm talking about. It's just that my first mile always feels slow and sluggish. And I'm sure that's because I'm not warmed up yet. But while running the first mile, I always feel like I can't possibly go any faster. Then at some point, the kinks magically work themselves out. Thank God for that. So tomorrow, I have 4 miles planned. I will definitely be in the park this time. I'm sure my legs can use a little break. Activity Route: My Hood Elev. Avg: 47 ft Location: Willingboro, NJ Elev. Gain: -3 ft Date: 06/16/09 Up/Downhill: [+134/-137] Time: 06:55 PM Difficulty: 1.5 / 5.0 Weather: Mostly Cloudy 63 F temp; 75% humidity 63 F heat index; winds Vrbl 6 Performance Distance: 3.00 miles Time: 0:26:53 Speed: 6.7 mph Pace: 8' 57 /mi Calories: 331 Notes Cool Down = .15mi Elevation (ft) Pace (min/mile) Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Elevation Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 9' 17 +0' 20 6.5 -0.2 -23 ft 2 8' 59 +0' 02 6.7 -0.0 0 ft end 8' 36 -0' 21 7.0 +0.3 +20 ft Versus average of 8' 57 min/mile

Posted from bimactive.com

7 Miles of Hills

They say long runs should be easy. But I figured it would be the perfect time to fit in a somewhat hilly, incline-y route. For the most part, I only have the opportunity to do that on weekends. During the week, now that I'm getting up at the crack of dawn, it's all track running. I keep hearing about the hills and inclines in Central Park and Prospect Park. And I'm sure the familiar route in my local park isn't going to cut it. So I ran around the golf course like I said I would. I chose an out and back route that had hills coming and going. Anyway, I was surprised to see that my fastest mile was mile 3 going uphill around the golf course. I don't know, I guess my thinking is, let me just get this over with already. Anyway, my pacing was fairly consistent, which shocked the heck out of me. At the end, I was so ready for the run to be over. I think this one street grew or something. I spent the last 2 miles wondering why it was the longest 2 miles of my life. What in the world? So I'm totally not prepared for Central Park or Prospect Park. But if I torture myself every weekend until then, hopefully I will be.

And with that, goodnight all! I'm tired.