Trying to Become a Runner, Again

Today I ran for the second day in a row. That may not sound like much, but after having taken the better part of 6 months off from running, it's a significant step. I have had several false starts this spring. I hope this marks a legitimate new beginning to my running life. In 2004 I became a runner and ran my first 5K. In 2005 I ran more. In 2006 I ran my first half-marathon. In 2007 I ran my first marathon. And in 2008 I ran a sub-20:00 5K. This year? I just want to become a runner again, then I'll see what happens from there.

Finally

Back on the road, with 4 miles untimed. I feel better already.

Getting Back to Running

Now that I have finished running, I need to get back to running. Tomorrow!

URI Homecoming 5K

Yesterday I ran the URI Homecoming 5K in 20:44.  Not too bad considering what a slacker I have been about running the last couple of weeks.

Near 6 Mile PR Today

43:41. (43:22, September 20, 2007).

5 Mile PR Today

33:51.

Faster!

In addition to my personal best 19:52 in the CVS 5K, here's a little more evidence that my speed work leading up to that race has made me faster. The fastest I have run 5 miles (likely the distance I have run most often over the last few years) is 35:19, just about a year ago on September 28, 2007. This week I have backed off my running schedule a bit to give myself a break after the race last Sunday, so today when I set out to run 5 miles I had no time or pace goal in mind. But after a couple of miles of simply running at a comfortable pace I noticed that my time was pretty quick, so I picked up the pace a little, then finished with a hard final mile. The result? 35:48. Only a few times have I run a faster 5 miles, and I am certain that I set out on those runs intent on going fast. Today it just happened, and I now have little doubt that I will be able to go under 35:00 for 5 miles when I try.