Mile Long Legs

I don’t know how I did it, but somehow I managed an average pace of 9:29 min/mile today on my 10 mile run, taking off an average of 35 seconds/mile from last weeks 10 mile run! I know those numbers don’t seem like a lot, but to me they are HUGE!  Am I elated about this? HELL YES I am! Am I shocked? Yup. Am I hoping this is the beginning of something good? Absolutely!

My morning got off to a sloth-like, sluggish start. My alarm screamed at me right on schedule at 7am at which time I hit the snooze button, this cycle continued on for a good hour and a half (I wish I were kidding).  I debated not going for a run at all, my bed was warm and I was sleepy. After convincing myself that not running was not an option I did my usual pre-run morning routine, a little food, a little water, a little coffee and a whole lot of tweeting. I sloooooowly got into my running gear, packed my bag and then proceeded to plunk around on my Macbook, catching up on Gizmodo, Facebook and the other usual suspects. Finally, almost another hour later I make my way out the door.

Lucky for me, my pre-run ugh feeling quickly dissipated once I got to Stanley Park. I started out on my 10 mile run and I immediately set a goal for myself, I wanted to have 5 out of 10 of my splits below the 10 minute/mile mark. I realize this probably isn’t a big deal to most, but I honestly feel that everyone should be their own individual, try not to compare yourself to other runners and reach your goals and potential speed at your own pace.  For me, this is a good goal. I chronically run in the 10 to 10:30 min/mile range, I’ve been trying so hard to get into the 9’s without much success and it’s been weighing heavy on my running ego.

In no time at all I am feeling good, I find my running groove and all is well. Miles 1, 2 and 3 zoom by, I’ve hit in the 9’s in all three, I feel fantastic and I’m well on my way to my goal.  Miles 4 and 5 fly by, I realize that I’ve not only been hitting in the 9’s but pretty decently in the 9’s! At this point I realize that I’m trucking through mile 6, hitting my goal to be in the 9’s and I’m suddenly overwhelmed by emotion, I feel “happy running” tears run down my face and that rush of emotion was enough to carry me through the rest of my 10 mile run; hitting consistently in the 9’s the entire run!

To say I’m elated is an understatement, I’ve been feeling like I’ve plateaued at 10 min/mile for SO long that I was beginning to wonder if I’d ever see 9’s on my Garmin.  Today was a big step in the right direction, I now know that I am capable of it and will definitely be pushing myself towards staying in the single digits from now on! This sleepy little sloth came full circle today and metamorphosized into a speedy little cheetah. 😉

xoxo, (a very happy) MLL