Wednesday, May 21, 2008

First run after the marathon

Today was my first day back running since the Marathon on Sunday. It was nice to finally get outside for some work week miles. All last week I ran on the treadmill to save the legs from the cement pounding, so getting outside and enjoying the sunshine was a nice work diversion. Because my legs were still a little tight I figured I would go out for a nice 6 mile “jog”; out 3 and back. Well, that nice little “jog” turned into a pretty fast run. I covered the 6 miles with an average pace of 6:14:

Mile 1 – 6:16
Mile 2 – 6:31
Mile 3 – 6:26
Mile 4 – 6:21
Mile 5 – 6:05
Mile 6 – 5:48

Going out there was a nasty head wind, but in turning around that same wind helped with overall pace. My leg turn over was horrible and I felt like I was running with cinder blocks tied to my ankles, but the speed was obviously there. The hamstrings were a little tight and I could feel the calves tightening up, but it felt good to get out from behind the desk (even with no leg lift and slight ultra shuffle). The pace was also a good gauge on how I will do during the Madison to Chicago relay and running on tired legs.

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