Run: 70 minutes of long slow distance

Distance: 7.3 miles

Time: 71:32

Performance Stats (out of 5 ★)

Legs: ★ ★ ★

Gut: ★ ★ ★

Energy ★ ★

Mind: ★ ★ ★ .5

Overall: ★ ★★

Soundtrack: Metallica, ... And Justice for All

Another scorcher today! Fortunately I had a few things in my favor. Most importantly we had just gotten back from vacation and I was totally refreshed. Maybe not my legs so much, as they were still feeling my back-to-back beach runs, but certainly my soul. Also, I had left a little orange juice out with my water bottle, and that TOTALLY helped with avoiding a hypoglycemic metabolism problem. And while I ran in the heat from 2:00 - 3:15 PM or so, it did give me all morning to get hydrated for the humidity.

Today's big lesson was in humility. After training up for my half marathon last season, I got pretty familiar with my splits. 11:30 to the crest of the first hill, about 18:00 to the park, and about 28:30 for my 3.1 mile loop. Not today - nope, the whole loop was taking me just under 31 minutes, which at first was bringing me down a little. Then I remembered, I'm just two weeks back into my regular running, and no way should I be running at my end of season pace from last year.

All the better if my treadmill time throughout the winter had kept me on track, but that's just fine. The key for me at least is to not try to get out there and push it too hard too soon. Slow and steady wins the race is a great notion for exactly this purpose. If I keep up this type of running, I'm sure that I will be back on track come October.

So I'll keep my head down and do what I tell everyone else. Just get out there and do it. Every step counts, and even mile takes you one step closer to whatever finish line you are trying to get to. Even a slow 7 miles in the humidity and heat is much better than no miles, and definitely provides some variety to a nice 3 mile run on a cool day. There is credit for endurance and flexibility.