Cookie Toss Hill

Yesterday taxed me greatly.  I was toast, physically.

Yesterday charged me greatly.  I was amped, emotionally.

The garmin said I burned about 3,000 calories on that ride.  It felt like I drank the fountain of youth.

My legs are mostly healthy, a bit cranky on the right hamstring and piriformis and on the left patellar tendon.  Nothing major, just something to be mindful of.

This morning was to be my first tempo run in ... well definitely the first of 2012!  I had a 6.5 mile loop ready, and decided that for the direction I"d do the down hill portion first, the uphill last.  In fact, nearly 100% of the uphill is in mile #6.

First two miles are decidedly downhill and the goal was to keep it under wraps, loosen up and be mindful of form.  They were 7:40 and 7:23.  A little quick on mile two, but everything tight in mile one loosened up.

Miles 3 and 4 are about as flat as I can find, 7:40 and 7:43.  Mile 5 the road is terrible, feels like running on marbles set into concrete...makes running in toe shoes suck, 7:52. 

Then THE HILL.  Mile 6 is uphill, 390 feet.  I almost tossed my cookies coming in at 9:46.  I did the last half mile at a 7:46 pace, but was DEAD.  Normally I can really fly down the last half mile as it's a drop of just about 100 feet, but not after yesterday's ride and not after that hill!

 The next few weeks are EXCITING.  I have a 5K this weekend, one here locally.  It's a very hilly route, so I'll just cruise along and have fun.  Next weekend is my dad's birthday and all of my siblings have joined a 5K with him in Tucson.  The weekend after that is a duathalon.  Then a week off and then the race I've been training for, 73 mile bike ride!  The next weekend I climb a 10,000 ft. mountain with my B.I.L.  The weekend following is another 60 mile bike race, one here that covers my normal training routes. 

With that said, enjoy your Monday!