Killed It!!!

Well, today was absolutely FANTASTIC!!!  First off, it was a run day so that right there puts me in a fabulous mood.  Second, I totally trashed all my times from the other day when I ran the same 5-mile route I ran today.  Tuesday’s times were:

Average overall pace: 10:21 min/mi

Overall time (5-mile): 51:46 min

Today, however, my very first mile started me off with a bang because when I hit the one mile mark, my running app told me that I had just ran an 8:59 min/mi!!!  OMG!  I was fist-pumping and saying (yes, out loud) “OMG!” as I ran along.  Then, when I hit the 2-mile mark, I was still keeping the faster pace when I clocked in at an average pace of 9:17.  Woohoo!  When I hit mile 4, my average pace was 9:36 min/mi and then, when I ended at 5 miles, my average pace actually dropped a second to 9:35!!!  Holy smokes, I was on fire!!!  My overall time for the whole 5 miles was 48:05 minutes.  BOOM!  <happy dance> 

I think that part of why I ran so much faster this morning was due to the temperature.  It was 40º when I set out with a wind-chill factor of probably 3 or 4 degrees.  Brrrrr!!  I walked out the front door in my usual workout shirt and spandex shorts and then walked right back in the front door to find a long sleeved shirt to wear under my workout shirt.  It was a thin one, but that’s fine, I knew I would eventually warm up and I didn’t want to overheat when that happened. 

My verdict on today’s run is that it was 100 times better than Tuesday’s run.  I wasn’t feeling sluggish in the slightest.  I felt great the entire time.  I also didn’t have to pep talk myself at all and that is always a good sign.  I’m not saying Tuesday was a “bad” run because, frankly, I don’t believe such a thing exists.  The only “bad” run is the run you didn’t do…in my opinion…and probably in the opinion of any runner you ask. 

In closing, I want to point out that I am fully looking forward to Sunday when I can run the trail at Ladybird Lake again.  I’m very curious to see just how far I ran this past Sunday.  Plus, I’m just looking forward to the change in scenery again.