The only thing wrong with today's run was the fact that I spent all day looking forward to my scheduled 4 miles, only to find out just before jumping on the treadmill that I was actually scheduled to run 5. I gave myself a few minutes to adjust to this change of plans and decided that I was actually just as excited to run 5 as I had been to run 4 :)
I started out at a steady 10:00 mile pace with the intention of increasing my speed and hopefully finishing with an average per-mile time of somewhere in the mid-9s. My time for the first 4 miles ended up at 37:07 and, feeling as good as I did, I decided to see just how fast I could run my last mile. I can honestly say I had no idea it would be that fast, but I'm pleased to report that I ran my last mile in 8:06!!! Really didn't see that coming!
I'm feeling pretty healthy these days and my body seems to be holding up fairly well. With the recent discomfort in my foot, I've decided that I need to stop ignoring it and start doing something about it. While I'm not a huge fan of the process, I have started soaking my feet in an ice bath after my runs and really feel that it's making all the difference. The discomfort is almost completely gone now and I can finally get back to running the way I prefer... heel first. Yes, yes, I know this is not necessarily the best way to run, but I can say that it's the best way for me to run... at least for now. Making a change like that should be done over a period of time and I really don't want that period of time to be while I'm training for my first, and possibly only, marathon. I want my body to be as comfortable as possible during this process and changing my running style is just about the last item on my list of things I want to do right now. So, for now, I'll stick to my old school running style and enjoy the icy foot baths that go with it :)
The only other change I've made has been to try to firm up my workout schedule so that it's a little more consistent. Now that I'm healthy (vigorously knocking on my wood desk as I type), I really want to stick as close as possible to a regular routine. I'm sure I'll change it up again before all is said and done, but for now I've got one long run and three shorter runs each week, with at least one and sometimes two of those shorter runs being interval workouts. On my interval days I'm also doing some plyometrics, on my shorter run days I'm adding in some yoga exercises (mostly geared towards abs because, let's be honest, who doesn't want to look good in a bathing suit this summer?) and I'm going to attempt a longer yoga workout one day a week. The other two days are rest days, which I have no intention of messing with... after my other five days of working out, I believe I've earned them :)
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