Test Run

I like to do a few key workouts before races to see where my fitness is. Last year, I did a 13.5 mile run before Timberman, finishing just around 8:00 miles. I felt good and knew I'd have a decent time for the run. I ended up running 1:39 because of some great weather.

Today I wanted to do a 16 mile run to see how my legs felt. My longest runs have only been up to 13.1 miles, but a ton in the 11-12 range. After each of those runs, I felt like I had a bunch in the tank.

I decided to do a 4 mile loop near my house x 4. It's a modified 5k course, that has a killer hill finish. I started off feeling sluggish, but turned in a 7:17 first mile. Just kept my head down and finished the first loop in 28:55.

Second loop I needed to hit the porta potty around mile 2. Between that and traffic stops, I lost about a minute+. I finished the lap at 31:20 on the clock, but took it easy worried I'd blow up after the first lap.

Third lap was pretty good. Kept my head down and finished in 29:30.

Fourth lap I wanted to turn in the fastest split...I started off hard, but got past my house (.1 miles) and had to take another pit stop. I didn't get out of the house until 2:27 on the clock (dog, water bottle swap, etc). Add in some more traffic stops and I lost 2 minutes. I pushed the pace from the start and kept it up. I made sure I didn't back off too much, but wanted it to feel comfortable. The last mile is all up hill, so I kept the pressure up. Finished that lap at 30:37 (28:37 without the stops) for a total clock time of 2:00:22 (or 1:57 modified).

I know "rests" do help, but I don't' think I gained any time/speed from them. The only thing I got was less chafing from my fuel belt by getting rid of bottles for the last lap.

Happy to see where my run is going. Tomorrow I'm gonna do some hard intervals and get an idea of speed/power on a flat course.