This morning was rockin! Just after 7:00 Jennifer and I began our last run together before I head for Denver, CO on Monday. Since just after returning from the Iron Butt 5000 rally we'll be running a relay 1/2 marathon, I wanted to run at least 6 miles to have firmly planted in my brain that I *CAN* do it.
So, we were off to our favorite local national park, Prince William Forest Park. Along the forested road with the left half reserved for pedestrians and bicyclists, we headed out. Less than eight months ago we began running amidst some of the worst winter weather the east coast had seen in decades. Following a training schedule that started us with 30 second jogs followed by 60 seconds walking, we progressed. The first time we jogged for a solid 90 seconds, that minute and a half seemed to last forever. But today would be different.
After completing a warm-up walk of 0.3 miles, we began our jog and before we knew it, we were a mile down the road. After two miles, Jennifer suggested we run three and a half miles before turning around. Copy that! And so we jogged a solid 3.2 miles (+ the 0.3 warm-up) before we turned around. Jennifer had to adjust a shoe and so we lost a little bit of our average speed, but we'd done the 3.5 miles at a respectable 5.5 mph (11 minute mile). Just before we reached five miles total Jennifer could feel the effects of the longer run and walked a brief 1/10 of a mile before jogging on. With the temperature rising and humidity of the day building, we still put in a decent jog. In the end, we both finished strong. We eventually traveled a full 7 miles with less than 3/4 of a mile walking (including the warm-up walk at the beginning). Jennifer pumped out the last 1/4 mile at nearly a full run and crossed the "finish line" at 78 minutes! At just under 5.5 mph, we couldn't be happier and I feel strong as I get ready to travel across country.
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