OBJECTIVE
10 mi.@ 7:53

ACHIEVED
10.03 mi.@ 7:56

6:00 AM 76° 81% 0 mph

Pretty happy with this morning's run. Wasn't feeling great physically or mentally before the run or during the first mile but was able to shake it off and turn it into a good run. Using the "Ryan Hall training method" (a/k/a letting God tell me what my workout should be), I somehow decided I'd break today's run into 5 2-mile blocks. Block 1 would be real easy as I would just be waking up and loosening up. Block 2 would be the average of whatever the Block 1 overall pace was and the goal pace of 7:53. Block 3 would be at 7:53 goal pace. At that point, I'd see how I was feeling. I'd either try to hold 7:53 the remaining 4 miles or, if I was feeling good, I'd try knocking off some time by going faster over Block 4 and even faster over Block 5 while targeting the overall 7:53 pace as the ultimate outcome for the total 10 miles.

Block 1 - 8:45/mi.
This was the start where I was feeling rather demotivated. I was just easing into it. I also realized during this stretch that if I held to the plan, I might end up having to run 7 minute miles over the last 2 miles. That didn't seem likely at this point.

Block 2 - 8:13/mi.
The math was pretty easy ((8:45 - 7:53) ÷ 2) + 7:53 = 8:19. So my target pace over this 2-mile stretch was 8:19. I started feeling pretty good and the pace was coming easier as I picked up so I ended up a bit faster than plan. I started feeling a little like I did on last Saturday's run - everything ahead of me was "close" and easily attainable.

Block 3 - 7:53/mi.
The plan was 7:53 and I hit 7:53. Of course, I hit the 5-mile midpoint during this block and took a 3-minute stop for fuel - orange-flavored FRS chews.

Block 4 - 7:20/mi.
I wasn't exactly sure what I was going to do at this point. I was feeling pretty good and 7:53 was coming easy. The ChampionsFit runners were running shorter today and had all made the turn and were headed back. This put a bunch of runners ahead of me to pick off. Spontaneously, I decided I'd throw in a surge and see how I felt. I realized that if I took it in at 7:15 the rest of the way that I'd average something close to my 7:53 goal. The surge felt good but was having an impact. Around midway through this block, I stopped at the neighborhood clubhouse for water. The break obviously helped me sustain the pace when I started again.

Block 5 - 7:31/mi.
This last leg was work. The surge had tapped out my reserves so I was holding on. Told myself that any pace faster than the overall goal of 7:53 was fine. Still had runners ahead of me serving as targets to be picked off. This helped a lot.

Glad to be finished. The idea that my long runs will be completed on tired legs seemed to be the case today. (I'm sure I've seen nothing yet.)

At some point, I really need to race. I need a gauge of where I'm at in this process.

PRE RUN
weight=163.0
body fat=22.2%
water & oatmeal w/brown sugar & skim milk

POST RUN
SlimFast