7/19-20/14. fast 7 on sat, long slow 15 on sunday.

7/19/20. saturday.  plan called for 7 miles at "race pace".  the weather was perfect - low 60s, very overcast, nice cool breeze.  i didn't really pay too much attention to my pace while i was running, i just maintained a perceived exertion level where it felt like i was running pretty hard.  i ran hard, and i ran fast.  ended up completing 7 miles in 53:50 moving time (53:57 elapsed) for an average moving pace of 7:41 min/mile.  i felt like that was pushing it pretty hard, and I am more than happy with that pace over that distance.  because the weather was so favorable, i ran without water (no fule belt, no hydration backpack).  it was nice to run free and unencumbered. it made me feel faster to run free.  after the race pace 7 i was feeling pretty creaky, but i made it to T's yoga class which really helped aid my recovery.  my problem areas after running seem to be my right heel and calf, and my left hip/upper quad/IT band.  tried to isolate and work these in yoga.

7/20/14. sunday.  plan called for 15 miles, long slow distance. same weather - low 60s, very overcast, nice cool breeze.  when my runs get more than 9-10 miles, I need to start adding loops to my normal routes.  mukilteo is just too small for me.  so i drove out to the centennial trail in snohomish again.  but i wanted to see some new trail, not just run the same piece again.  so i parked at Machias station. the run from Machias to Getchell and back is approx 15 miles.  my legs were very stiff/sore from the fast run saturday.  for the first quarter mile or so, it was like my body was in shock, just asking "how can this be happening again?".  then things smoothed out a bit, but it never got great.  it was a difficult run.  the last few miles were the worst.  when you think about how you are doing this to yourself.  you realize that at any moment, you can make the anguish cease by just stopping.  but you don't stop.  its a conscious decision, every step of the way, to keep on going.  the last mile was brutal.  i got down to counting steps, building up to counting hundredths of a mile, to tenths of a mile, just wishing for the last step so i could just quit putting one leg in front of the other.  then it was over, and life goes on.  ran it in about 2:09:02, avg pace of 8:36 min/mile.  I'll take that.

and with that, the highest mileage week i have ever run is done.  the longest run I have had since my last marathon, over 2 years ago.  a bit of a rest this week, and then things go up from here...