In which I run, or remember running

1.
Monday, 4:00pm
Much of the XC team disbursed to other sports today, so it was a smaller group than we've had in a while. We ran the Easy Six and then tacked on a short loop at the end to make it a run of 6.75. Things felt pretty easy today overall, and Susan and Alli accused me of picking up a bit after the first three. Looking at the splits, it's true: I did. But the first three of that course are pretty hilly, so the effort actually felt easier in the second half.

2.
Tuesday, 4:15pm
Team practice was canceled today so the boarding students could have an afternoon study hall, so I ended up running solo: seven miles. Everything on the right side felt great, but everything on the left side felt less so: a nagging twinge in the calf, and manageable but steady pain in the hip--possibly the IT band. So I ran the seven, focused on getting my left foot under my body and landing mid-foot, and then came home and spent fifteen minutes with fifteen pounds of ice.

3.
Wednesday, 4:30pm
Easy four and a half today with the team--I ran in a group with Alli, Ciara, and Susan. Things felt pretty good, so the ice bath was a good idea, in spite of how unpleasant it was. Also, I got a rock in my shoe around two and a half miles in, so I had to run a pick up to get back with the group.

4.
Wednesday, 7:15pm
I dropped Hillary off at the dance studio and then ran three down by Lake Minneola. It doesn't show in my Garmin data I started out a little quick--felt like I was getting into anaerobic territory for maybe a minute, but got things under control and had a nice, smooth run.

5.
Thursday, 4:00pm
Seven and a quarter with the team. Things felt easy, especially considering it was the fourth consecutive day of running and that I've picked up both pace and distance this week. Pace was a little slower on Thursday than it was earlier this week, but hey, it's Thursday.

6.
Saturday, 1:30pm
Ten on the West Orange Trail. I was tempted to slow things down a little and go for twelve, but decided to stay focused on keeping the run to the upper end of my aerobic range--seventy-five or eighty percent--rather than going for more distance. It was tempting, though, knowing that forty for the week was in sight.

Total miles this week: 38.4