Unintentional Fartleks

While I HAVE been being really bad about doing speedwork I don't think that a 14-mile run (not to mention the longest run I've had in this training season so far) is the place to practice something like Fartleks. It was also weird that it was something that happened unintentionally because I was NOT feeling good in the first 7 miles of my run. I had eaten a Kashi granola bar before leaving and it wasn't sitting in my stomach well.

But once again, music was affecting my workout. The first time I noticed it was when a song from Muse came on. Bill is always asking me who he should run to, and I always say Muse. They have such a driving beat that it makes it good music to run to. But I feel like if you ran to their entire album (or albums...depending how long you were running) you would be incredibly tired. They make me pick up my pace. A few songs later it was "Because We Can" which is an amped up, Fat Boy Slim version of a can-can song, that was in Moulin Rouge. In addition to being a fast song, it is also a song that I jazzercised to (yes, embarassingly, I did jazzercise) many years ago. The routine was FAST and I was remembering that and running FAST. Immediately after was a fast Sondre Lerche song and immediately following THAT was Pump It, by the Black-Eyed Peas, which is my power song. I was running FAST through all of these, so I was glad when Mr. Blue Sky by Electric Light Orchestra followed so I could get my pace back right before I went up Great Hill.

The rest of the first half of my run went like this...fast, slow, fast, fast, slow, slow, slow...etc. I felt GREAT when I stopped at 7 miles for a water/GU break.

I was really hoping I could keep it up, but didn't know if I could or not. I tried to keep as much of a positive attitude as I could, even though I had to weave through tourists taking up the sidewalk who wouldn't move (making me run on snow/ice hills next to the sidewalk), and even though my legs were getting tired and even though I was getting hungry. I still did feel really fast, but I was no longer doing Fartleks. At 11 miles I was just interested in keeping pace.

Since this was an especially long run for me I actually ended up running in two parks. From my apartment I ran to Central Park, did the running loop IN the park, ran the outer loop of the park, a quarter mile past my street, over to Riverside Park and back home.

By the time I got to Riverside Park I had another surge of energy (this time not due to my music) so I went with it.

My time? 2:23.13. Uh, that is CRAZY for me. That is a 10:13 pace!!!! Hurrah!
But my legs are so tired now :)