I woke up this morning in a less than pleasant mood, anxious over a long run I was pretty sure would be torturous. After taking a short afternoon snooze to attempt to clear my head I finally dragged myself out into the brisk 42 degree windy day and began my run. At first I thought maybe I would cut corners and run a shorter route if I wasn't feeling up to my lofty goal of 9 miles. There were many points that I thought about the short cuts and slowing to walk but I forced myself to keep putting one foot in front of the other and get the run over with. I ran what I thought was slightly slower than my normal pace and at about 5.5 miles I think a bit of runner's high hit me as I imagined myself coasting through the finish line at the Philly Half. Then miles 7-9 I got a reality check as my knees feet and right Achilles began protesting while my right arm slowly started going numb. Luckily I had Honey Stingers to distract myself and managed to find two working water fountains along the way. By the time I hit the last half mile I knew that this race is going to hurt and probably be the hardest physical challenge yet (and that's saying something since the flyer). As I gave myself a preemptive pat on the back for finishing my first ever 9 mile run I hobbled into the house to see that it had taken me an hour and 45 minutes... much slower than I had hoped. At least I know I can do 9... this half will take me 2:35:00 at my current pace. My goal had been 2:15... I'll have to reassess I suppose... finishing might just be enough for me!
Listening to: Now is the Start/ A Fine Frenzy
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