Easy run plus 8 x 8 sec. hill sprints. Average pace: 10:19.
Weather at 7 am: 32°F, 53% humidity, wind 10 mph E.
I felt much better this morning! My hamstring did not bother me at all. I increased my cadence just slightly over what I had been doing the last few days but still kept it easy and increased my pace as a result. Splits for the first six miles were 10:58, 10:57, 10:38, 10:03, 9:50, 9:35.
I tried to take the hill sprints slower than I have been doing them lately, while still going a little harder than an easy pace. Paces on the hill sprints were 8:28, 7:51, 8:55, 8:14, 8:11, 8:21, 8:04, 8:32. That's probably more the range they ought to be in.
Near the end of my run before I did the hill sprints I passed a woman who was walking a very large dog (the dog was on leash and didn't bother me at all). I just said to her, "That's a big dog." She said, "He would like to run with you." That was the end of the conversation because they I was past her, but it got me thinking. I don't deserve to have an opinion because I have never owned a dog, but I'm wondering whether if you have a dog that needs to run, you're obligated to become a runner so you can run with the dog. I guess you can take the dog to an off-leash area and let the dog run, and I saw a guy the other day who was riding a bike and was holding a leash with a dog running along side him. But it seems like it would just be more convenient to be able to run with the dog. It's neither her nor there, I suppose; just something I was thinking about.
I've got a really busy day tomorrow and I need to get my long run done early in the morning. My oldest son has to be to work at 5:30 in the morning, which is not the shift he usually has on Saturday, but that will get me up and going early, which will be helpful. I'm supposed to do 15 miles with the last 30 minutes moderate and uphill if possible, and boy is it possible. | 