Sunday Funday Rebound Runday

I (sort of) meant what I said when I didn’t care about yesterday’s time. I was more about the photos and the experience and in the humidity/with the stairs, walking was smart move. But it bothered me that the first mile was so slow when I was running.

Today I was having a typical slug day. I am so much more productive when I get up and run early, but I woke up and took my coffee to the couch and before I knew it, the Yankees were on. “I’ll just watch a few innings” gave way to 4 PM. Oops. I really wasn’t feeling a run so made a deal with myself, go out side. If I truly didn’t want to go to the gym and it was too hot to run outdoors, I’d at least walk to Target (about 2 miles). Whatever I did, ending the day with fewer than 1,000 steps wasn’t an option. Ahh, the external accountability of Fitbit challenges and my #GoTheDist spreadsheets.

When I got downstairs I realized it wasn’t nearly as hot & humid as weather app indicated and decided to head toward the East River. Carl Schurz Park, my original outdoor running nemesis and home to such illustrious times as a 15:23 minute mile in April when I was into the 13s and 14s. My comment on that run? ugh. Truly hate East River. Better than nothing though. (Have I mentioned lately how much I love my spreadsheet for progress?) It has since become somewhere I enjoy running due to the breezes off the East River and that it is, approximately, 400,000 times less crowded than Central Park.

I have two loops, ish that I’ve done: a two mile round trip to E. 96th and a 2.5 mile one that goes as far as the Wards Island Bridge. I still wasn’t sure how motivated I was so I decided to just go and see how I felt. To deal with my question about the 17 minute mile yesterday I decided to try and ignore the watch and just run at what felt right. A few times during the first mile I glanced at it and was pleased to see 12:30. That has become “my” pace** and it felt as if I were back on track. Even later I realized I’d dipped below 12. WOW. Guess it’s time to set my treadmill base to 5.0 instead of 4.8?

Wards Island Pedestrian Bridge

Wards Island Pedestrian Bridge

Somewhere around the approach to the Wards Island Bridge I remembered that yesterday’s run didn’t count for the Runkeeper Global 5K because it was untimed. I had a feeling that I could make this into a 5K with some wiggles. Did I want to go all the way to Target? Not particularly. What about Wards Island? Also not particularly. As I was mentally writing this blog post in the shower a line popped into my brain: too much up. I vaguely recall it as being something from Japan, but it also fit. Stairs yesterday, ramp today. I compromised with myself and decided I’d run to the bridge’s half way point so that it would be down all the way back. It’s a bike ramp so it folds back on itself three times. I ran the first two and then walked the third and drank some water. Oh, and took a photo 🙂

I headed back down, pleased to still be under 12 even with the walk bit and after a wiggle north for some mileage, headed back south. I wiggled where I could, onto the future ferry pier. I forgot about the uphill behind Gracie Mansion as I avoided it last time due to flooding. That was one moment where I was thinking 3.1 might not happen but I picked up some steam when it flattened out and zigged out to East End along 82nd for some mileage before going back to the fence where the walkway ends. I was still short so I doubled back and then all the way out to 83rd and East End where I hit 3.13 and stopped the watch.

Yes, 3.13, because sometimes Tom Tom/Strava/Runkeeper don’t pick up accurate data and I wanted to be sure it would count as a 5K. As I cooled down and tried to hit my daily fitbit goal with a walk to get water, I began to think that it might have been a PR. I couldn’t recall exactly what my July 1 time was (38:29), but I thought that with hanging out under 12 on average that I might have it. When I got home I synced TomTom with the app and..

Tom Tom 5K PR

BAM! Runkeeper actually doesn’t pick up Tom Tom’s new Pause Detection and since that’s what I’ve used for everything, I waited to see what showed up there.

Runkeeper 5K PR

BAM!

Over a minute faster in two weeks and a two week window where I didn’t run as much as I’d like due to travel. Much like run/walk, maybe there’s something to the less is more that Runner’s World frequently discusses. (Yes, aware that Runkeeper wildly overestimates calorie burn. I don’t generally eat them back). I’m probably not going to hit my monthly mileage goal, but I’m OK with that. It’s quality runs and I think every other day working better for me than daily did, though that works for some people.

This brought on a true runner’s high at the level I hadn’t seen since I first graduated from C25K. I’m still and forever a turtle, but I’m a faster turtle and I’m not alone.

Global 5K Day place

87,415 out of 122,765. That’s nearly top two thirds. Baby steps. From 14:11 to 11:57 in four months and four days. Heroes in a half shell, turtle power!

** Speaking of pace, a return to my normal brought about this change. Yesterday’s 16:35 took my July average from 12:44 to 13:10. Today’s rebound (and where it got its name), brought it down to 13:02. I don’t like being above 13, but like I said, honest tracking. And I have two weeks to get it down. And looking back at when I first started my spreadsheet? WOW!