Late Posting

I have been bad, and not posting lately. It has been a bit crazy, and I haven't been doing so well on my running schedule this week due to work and travelling.

But on Valentine's Day, Bill and I DID start the morning with a nice, romantic, 15 mile run. Haha.

I was not looking forward to running nearly 3 loops of Central Park, so I decided that we should run the West Side Highway bike/jog trail. I forgot how much I hate running it until we were running. Ok. Ok. It wasn't as bad as it was in the summer, but it still is pretty boring.

Here is why I hate it:

1. It is flat the entire way (much like Eastern) with NO turns (much like Eastern) so it is BORING.
2. It is right next to the Hudson, so there is tons of exhaust from boats and helicopters.
3. It is right next to the West Side Highway so there is tons of exhaust from trucks and cars.
4. The sun beats down on you since there is no shade, so it's HOT.
5. Even though running down the west side of Manhattan sounds like it would be beautiful and scenic, it really isn't.

The cool this is that if you think about it, it is kind of cool to run all the way from the Upper West Side alllllll the way to the bottom tip of Manhattan. At least, that is how far Bill and I made it before we had to turn around.

I was so hitting the wall after we turned around. And it was agonizing, because you can tell EXACTLY where you are on the trail (because it is marked every mile and also because you see the streets going by..."We are only at 42nd!!!! We have 57 freaking blocks to go!!!").

Despite all of that, we finished our 15 miles with a 2:22 (about a 9:28 pace). I felt like I was dying at the end and doing like 11 minute miles, but apparently I wasn't.

I think I am getting fast.

I was aiming for a 9:50 pace, which is what the McMillan running calculator says is at the upper range of what I should be training at for my long runs. It FELT like a 9:50. So I guess that's good! We'll see about this week. I have a feeling I might be a little slower due to my less-than-stellar ability to stick to my workout plan this week. :)