Run Luau Run

I feel like I’m off to a good start.

Of course, that’s easy to say just two, three days into training while I’m still bathing in the excitement of having signed up for another marathon.  The truth is, the “training” doesn’t really start for another six to eight weeks. For now, it’s just about trying to build a small base to work off of.  That being said, 0.2 weeks in, I’ve managed to get in a couple of runs when I would not, in my current life, normally have.

Friday, after school, I slipped into the gym to hop on the treadmill for what felt like a snappy 4 mile run. Thirty two minutes later my legs were spent and I had my first moment of “uh oh, what have I gotten myself into? How the heck am I going to pace my friend to a 3:40?” Still, it felt good to sweat from running.

This morning I hit the roads for 4.61 miles.  The first mile, in 36° weather, was a struggle at 8:40, but I finally managed to settle into a nice pace in the 8:10-8:15 range – breathing was normal, heart rate was higher than I’d prefer. I picked up the pace over the last half mile or so, finishing my run in 37:47.  I was happy with the pace, but I’d like to bring my average heart rate (150bpm) down a little.

To get my friend to the end of Sugarloaf at three hours and forty minutes on the nose, we’re gonna have to run about an 8:23 per mile pace…for 26.2 miles. After 0.2 weeks, I know I have a long way to go to a) get back into marathon shape and b) be in the kind of shape that I can cover the distance in less than 3:40, but I’m feeling good.  I’m confident that we can do this.

I have no deep, profound thoughts from my two runs this week.  I’m just trying to rediscover the magic.

Week 0.2 Totals:
2 run
8.61 miles