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| Fire display near the skating rink at Town Center Plaza in Leawood, KS |
But this winter I committed to myself to run every run outside. And, so far so good! I haven't ran inside yet. I'm sure there will be an unbearable day here or there that forces me inside, but if at all possible, I'm running under the sky. I'm not a treadmill hater like some of y'all, but I just think you get a much better workout outdoors.
Today's conditions weren't bad at all, 29 degrees with only 4 mph wind, but about 96% humidity, so the "feels like" was about 24. I got in a good Tempo run that averaged a 6:42 pace over 7 miles, with three additional miles for warm up and cool down, for 10 overall. And the 5 middle miles were below 6:30. The pace wasn't as easy as it was this past summer, but golly, I sure hope I'm not "months away" from being able to repeat this pace during another workout.
So far, my 2015 marathon training has been "warming up" quite nicely. I'm pretty happy with how soon I got back up to speed. Now I just have to keep building my base and then whittle the speed down a little more as I near the end of February - but that's a long ways away. The plan is to add mile per week to my Tempo runs, to get the mileage to about 16-18 miles at Tempo pace as we near the race, although that's probably a little ambitious. Right now I'd just be happy to hold the pace for 10 miles.
In winters past, I would acquiesce to running inside until it warmed up a little. It just seemed like a necessary requirement for living in the Midwest. But as long as it doesn't get excruciatingly cold, I plan on pushing through outdoors until Spring. And hopefully by then, I'll be ready for my fastest marathon ever ... that is if my legs aren't frostbitten. Have a great week!
Be the one.
I don't mind running in the cold (as long as it's not wet with rain), but I won't go out if the sidewalks are deeply covered in snow and the street are unsafe to run in (because of the high snow banks that don't allow a quick leap out of the way of a stupid car). It's never as cold as I fear once I get going, and you're right about an outside run being a better workout than a treadmill. But . . . safety first for me.
ReplyDeleteI think I'd survive running in the cold (but I don't know for sure). The snow, though - that would terrify me!
ReplyDeleteI run outside all year round. Even on our coldest days in winter. But then, our coldest days are only single digits Celsius not Fahrenheit.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely prefer running outside if I can help it. I know what you are going through though as a former resident of the midwest. It is hard to get any speed going with all the clothes on and your shoes don't absorb the shock as well. I definitely took advantage of any semi-decent weather day to really get some quality work in. Also, in the winter, I tended to push the pace harder but kept the distance shorter. It gave me a quality workout while still sort of saving my legs. I tended to back off in the winter -- a bit -- but still keep my fitness up.
ReplyDeleteRight now, I am gymless, so if the weather "did" turn, I would be forced to suck it up. So far this winter in northern Utah we've had spring-like weather every day. So I am still in shorts and a windbreaker on the worst of days.
Keep running. You are an inspiration to me.
Eddie