Another week closer...

I now have 13 weeks left until the big run. In the past five weeks I’ve definitely seen some improvement in how runs feel, although they’ve yet to get easy. I know the more distance I add to my long run each week the easier the other runs will feel. I try to focus on the smaller week to week increases instead of thinking about running 13.1 miles in just a few months. That can sound awfully daunting at times.

I finally made it to the five mile mark this week. It felt really good, and was actually one of my easier runs. Some days running is just so much easier than others, although it’s hard to always put your finger on why.

For the next couple of weeks I’m going to test out using gel packs with my long runs. These are packs of flavored goo that pack about 100 calories of quick energy, lots of caffeine, and usually some sodium and other nutrients to help with fatigue. I find them to be absolutely nasty, but they help tremendously on longer runs. You can take them before or during a run, or both if you’re really going some distance. They should help me for the 10k at the end of the month. I miscalculated on my last entry and said I had four weeks to prepare, when really it was three. That now leaves me with this week and next. I’m planning on a 5.25 mile long run this week, and 5.5 for next. Hopefully that’s enough to gear my body up for the 6.4 miles in 13 days. It should be a good challenge for me, and I’m looking forward to seeing how I do.

Week 5 Summary: Goal 16 miles, 5 mile long run. I met my goals again this week. My average pace for the week was 9:04. I completed my five-mile run in 45:30, which was my first run over 45 minutes.

Week 6 Goal: My goal this week is 16.5 miles, with a long run of 5.25 miles.