When COVID shut down racing, I continued training and ran my first 25K on my own.
Two years later, I needed motivation to up my mileage, so I thought I'd train for another 25K.
I'm still not comfortable with in-person races, so I set my sights again on the Wildwood Trail.
I used my Peloton app for weekly outdoor runs and weekly hill runs - and then increased mileage on the weekends. Without a specific "race" date in mind, I listened to my body as I ramped up. And I decided Saturday would be the day.
Brad agreed to drop me at the Northwest 53rd trailhead and then wait for me at Germantown - 15+ miles away.
We left the house at 6 am, and because of the cloud cover, had to wait just a few minutes for it to be light enough for me to run. I did a 5-minute warmup, snapped this pic, and hit the trail:
Just starting to get light:Meantime, Brad drove to Germantown and ran 8 miles of his own.
In 2020, I ran the distance in 3 hours flat. I had in mind that I could probably do it faster this time, but I didn't know by how much. This time I ran by feel, walking some hills to keep my heart rate under control, but also pushing enough to make it more of a race.
Last time, I ran very early on the Monday after the Fourth of July holiday and saw just three people the entire 15+ miles. This time, on a Saturday, I didn't have the trail to myself. Still, I was early enough to avoid big crowds.
Near the end was a large group of hikers. I spotted someone with orange hair and instantly recognized her as Jenny Bruso of the Unlikely Hikers. I follow her on IG, and I was so excited that in my late-race delirium, I yelled out, "I know you!!!" as I ran past the group. They all laughed (with me, I hope!). 😂
I was starting to drag when I rounded the corner and saw cars parked below - sweet relief 💓
I finished in 2:52 - 8 minutes faster than 2020! That's 30 seconds per mile!🏆
I am thrilled with my improvement!
I am thrilled with my improvement!
Brad was waiting at the car and helped me as my calves cramped - ouchy! Thanks for supporting me through it all, Brad 💘
I changed into dry clothes and headed to Primo Espresso for a hot chocolate:
It's so satisfying to see your training pay off like this. I'm feeling accomplished and proud 😊
I changed into dry clothes and headed to Primo Espresso for a hot chocolate:
It's so satisfying to see your training pay off like this. I'm feeling accomplished and proud 😊
Now we'll have to see what's next...
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