12 miles in the cold

We ran to West Van today! From the Y downtown we hit the seawall through Coal Harbour then into the trails in Stanley Park and up to Prospect point. The gradual hill getting up there was tiresome and I felt slow but that soon went away. Ran over the Lions Gate Bridge and that's where the half marathon group turned around. Nicole, Sandy (our run leader), and I were the only ones left. We continued on down to the West Van seawall to Ambleside where we turned around and looped back the way we came.

Total running time was 1hr 50min and our mileage was between 11 and 12 miles. We were a bit faster today than our normal 10 minute/mile pace. It was really cold with a few slippery spots and some teeny snowflakes falling every now and then. I warmed up pretty quickly and wasn't cold while running except for my face and rear end - as if there wasn't enough padding there?? Took a gel at Ambleside and felt pretty strong coming back over the bridge - that's one hell of a hill!! I think I expected it to be worse and so was pleasantly surprised to get to the top without too much of a struggle. Started feeling tired and ready to stop about a mile away from the Y, but I think the last mile will always be the hardest. No knee pain today! Sometimes my IT band is sore but today I only felt it a couple times and it was hardly painful.

I had a light dinner last night and drank a lot of water throughout the day and I think that really makes for an enjoyable run. Much better than feeling weighed down, sluggish and dehydrated, which is easy to let happen. I think the key is early, light meals, but that can sometimes be difficult on Saturday nights. Have to remember to drink a lot of water today too. My initial tiredness while running could just be due to lack of sleep, but sometimes that's just the way it goes.

Nicole and I had expected to run 13 miles today (half-marathon distance), but Sandy kept it a bit shorter because of the fact that your body is working hard to keep you warm and that makes the run more intense. I much prefer running in the cold than the heat!!

For the month of December our mileage stays pretty constant around 11-14 miles. We're working on building a strong base and getting comfortable there. In January we'll start to ramp up and get into serious distances. 21 weeks to go until the marathon!