OBJECTIVE Long Run 16 mi. @ 8:25 min./mi. ACHIEVED 15.64 mi. @ 10:23 min./mi. (2:42:35) 8:24 AM 67° 87% 2 mph To say this run didn't go well would be a gross understatement! I wasn't feeling particularly motivated this morning but finally made it out. I drove to Memorial Park to use a 16-mile route that the group ran back in July. I was vaguely familiar with the route but had it programmed into my Garmin so I knew where to go. I didn't feel too good right out of the gate. But after the first mile started feeling better, got into a good rhythm, and picked up the pace. Things were fine through 6 miles. It was a beautiful morning and even my negative thoughts had dissipated. Then my left knee started bothering me. I find it interesting that this is about the exact same distance that it started giving me a problem last Saturday. I just figured I'd "tough it out". After all I only had about 10 miles left (stupid idea!). Somewhere during the seventh mile, I stopped for a quick drink and a good stretch. When I started back up, everything felt fine. I figured I was good to go. But a short time later the knee was giving me trouble again. After arguing with my ego during the eighth mile, I decided I had better shift to the Galloway method of alternately walking and running ... maybe that would help. Soon thereafter I degenerated into mostly walking and when I did run I was reduced to a slow jog due to my throbbing knee. To add insult to injury, I was running alone and wasn't familiar with the area. So although I knew a direct line back to the park and my car would be much shorter, I couldn't risk getting lost in an unfamiliar area so the second half of my planned 16-miler now turned into a hike rather than a run. Fortunately, the knee wasn't much trouble when walking. This led me to ponder the following question: Is A Bad Run > No Run a true statement? I decided that a bad run is better than no run if only because it allows me to savor the good days! Here's the breakdown of my run in by halves: 8.00 mi. @ 8:38 7.36 mi. @ 11:58 This is disappointing and I think it's attributable to the gap in my training when I was working too much during late-January and February. I'll keep working at it. Hopefully the knee is able to recover during my active training. PRE RUN Water & oatmeal w/skim milk ClifBar POST RUN SlimFast Later, water & slice of cold, cheese pizza | 