July 24, 2009 10 MILE DAY!!!

I did it!!! I ran 10 miles today without stopping. Oh was it boring!!! I ran the ten miles in approximately 118 min, which is about 11.8 min miles. This is about the same time as I ran the 8 miles in, so I am assuming this is my long distance pace. I am ok with this, I am not a speed racer, but then again, if you asked me 5 weeks ago if I was going to be able to run 10 miles I would have laughed in your face.

The challenges of the run were three hills. I decided I had better run hills at least once or twice before the 1/2 marathon. The first hill was ok, not extremely fast but I did not feel like I was going to die. The second hill came at around 6.5 miles. This hill was the smallest of the three, but I could tell I was starting to get tired. The third hill was a different story. It was the steepest and I think I could have walked it as fast as I ran it. This was one of those situations where you have to have control the body with the mind. I did not want to walk, but it was so hard to breath and jog up a straight slope. There were times when I was running horizontal (bent over) but still running. When I made it to the top it felt great to accomplish another hurdle. So Kim if you want a challenge next Saturday, I have the perfect hill for us!!