L9 Day 5 - Insane Time & Distance

I couldn't exercise yesterday, because after work I needed to go pick up the family from the airport.  But, on this beautiful Saturday morning, there were no obstacles.  First, we took the kids to our neighborhood association's Easter Egg Hunt.

Then we went to Burke Lake Park.  And it's kind of sad - we've lived twenty minutes from this wonderful park and had never gone there before.  But, since I'm not a couch potato anymore, I am seeking out wonderful places to run - and the treadmill is no longer on my list.  Here is the link to the park - I highly recommend it.

Here I am at the trailhead with my game face on.

While the wife and kids enjoyed the playground and rode on the carousel, I got my jog on.  I've got my Garmin setup to track every quarter mile, and at the first beep I looked down and was thrilled - I hadn't started out too fast!  The trail surface is perfect - and by that, I mean freakin' perfect: packed dirt, a few leaves, never much of a slope, and the hills are gentle and there are few of them.

I got in a decent breathing/stride rhythm and spent most of the jog with a goofy smile on my face.  At one point, I passed an entire track team (yeah, they were going the other way).  They were so young, tan, all shirtless, and telling each other stories while clocking their nine-minute miles.  I felt like singing the Chariots of Fire theme at them!

So, on and on I went.  I passed my time and distance records, and then I was at the dam.  After running through trees forever, it felt so triumphant to break into the open sky with a spectacular view of the lake.  I knew there was nothing to stop me.  My legs were happy, my breathing was so relaxed.  Sure, I was slower than dirt, but it's not like I was trying for my sorry race pace of 5.2 mph.

                                

I jogged around the whole, entire lake: 4.51 miles in 59:13.72!!!!!!!!

Afterwards, the wife and kids got ice cream and we all rode their little train. I just drank a bottled water.

And check out my heart rate - it averaged 156, and only got as high as 165!  Even at this slow pace, I could easily get up to the upper 160s around a month ago, so I must be improving.

And here are the stats, just for completeness:

 

 

I really cannot wait to weigh less, knowing how much it will help me obtain a decent jogging pace!  My distance was off-the-hook insanity today, but I surely did enjoy it.  And, I'm pretty much a one hour runner!  (At least in this smooth and forgiving environment.)