Rocky Inspired Run

Today's run was supposed to be 4 miles, but I traded it for the 9 mile LSD (12:09 pace) that should have been tomorrow's run. I had the opportunity and the will, so why not go for it?

I think every time you face a distance you've never attempted before, there is a certain bit of anticipation and nervousness that goes with it. "Can I do it??" I just had to push it out of my mind and remember, "I have trained for this. I CAN do it." I spent all week watching all of the Rocky movies. They are so inspiring and all about the underdog. I keep the quote he says to his son in the last movie on my phone:

"It ain't how hard you hit, it is about how hard you CAN GET HIT and keep MOVING FORWARD. How much you CAN TAKE and KEEP MOVING FORWARD. That's how WINNING is done! - Rocky

That's what this 9 miles was about... keep taking the hits from my ITB, my PF, the cold, my tiredness, whatever it might be and KEEP MOVING FORWARD. Don't stop, just keep putting one foot in front of the other. Amazingly, this run was easier than expected. Notable things.. I went down a straight-away I haven't in a long time during mile 2. I was cruising and didn't realize I had a strong wind at my back. Oops! I really miscalculated I was going to have to run back AGAINST it. The wind from the S/SW is common out by my house. So, for that 1/2 mile back it slowed me down considerably and started my IT band screaming and it never stopped, but it was manageable when not fighting the wind. The next loop I made around I was ready for it, so I was able to keep pace better. Otherwise interesting, my PF has been much better with these Brooks Ravenna. It barely hurt at all today! Yay!! Lastly, I had enough gas in the tank to pick up the pace on the last 2 miles and go even faster to get home after I hit 9 miles. That is my plan for the marathon too... pick up the pace at the end to bring it home as much under 5 hours as I can possibly get.

Unfortunately, even when you do something you think is great, the doubt of never being good enough comes in. As soon as I got back & posted my Garmin picture on Twitter I started thinking, "Well, sure, it was a good run for me, but to everyone who runs 8 minute miles this looks like phoning it in." Thankfully I am doing well learning that this is about me, I'm not racing anyone! Who cares how fast other people are? I had an average pace of 11:54, which is a marathon pace of about 5:15. I have to keep working to get it below 11:30, but my plan is built for that, so I will trust the process. Just need to get under 11:25 avg pace!

Splits: 12:02, 12:09 (fighting the wind), 12:01, 12:00, 11:49, 11:52 (the mile that would never end), 12:06 (fighting the wind again), 11:42, 11:31. Fuel: Clif Mocha Gel at 50 minutes (about 1/2 way point) and drank 6oz of Nuun I had on my water belt.