Start time: 5/13/10, 6:30pm
Location: North Arlington
Distance: 5 miles
Average pace: 8:31min/mile
Total Miles For May: 15 miles
Total Miles For 2010: 254 miles

Plan A was to get up before work, run 5 miles, call it a day. Got up. Stretched. Tendon to the right of my right knee was feeling much better. Changed. Started walking across parking lot.. and a different spot on my right knee started really hurting. *sigh* Decided to postpone the run until the evening, wondering if it was maybe the 50 degree temperature messing things up a bit.

Well, the good news was that everything was fine after work. No idea what the mystery twinge was. Ah well.

(8:31, 8:12, 8:27, 8:40, 8:45)

Start time: 5/8/10, 7:15am
Location: Rock Creek Park
Distance: 8 miles
Average pace: 10:37min/mile
Total Miles For May: 8 miles
Total Miles For 2010: 247 miles

Took a little unexpected time off; been having some slight stiffness in one of my calves so I want to make sure I don’t make it any worse. Ran 8 with the group today and no one was feeling it and then some. Thick humidity this morning signalling a storm that never actually showed up, and we felt like we were swimming rather than running. Just a big ol “eh” from everyone this morning, and I was ok with that.

Start time: 4/29/10, 5:45pm
Location: North Arlington
Distance: 4 miles
Average pace: 8:37min/mile
Total Miles For April: 58 miles
Total Miles For 2010: 239 miles

Felt like crap while out running today, unfortunately. Toughed through it but sometimes it just doesn’t click. Ah well.

(8:21, 8:29, 8:47, 8:51)

Start time: 4/24/10, 12:00pm
Location: SW Waterfront, National Mall, Georgetown Harbor
Distance: 8.86 miles
Average pace: 9:57min/mile
Total Miles For April: 52 miles
Total Miles For 2010: 233 miles

Another jaunt with the weekend group; not too much to really report, aside from being quite happy that it did not start raining on us like the weather report had threatened! I fear my Sunday bike ride might get scratched, though, it’s supposed to be rainy for quite a few days. Distance came up a tiny bit short due to a slight detour in Georgetown but it’s all good.

(In general this was a strange week for exercise. Missed Wednesday’s spin class due to work but biked home on Tuesday from work so that sort of balanced out. And then I missed Friday’s swimming due to feeling sick and staying home all day. Ah well, time to start over on Monday I guess!)

(10:25, 10:10, 9:59, 9:50, 10:10, 10:01, 10:03, 9:52, 7:44 (.86mi))

Start time: 4/22/10, 12:00pm
Location: North Arlington
Distance: 5 miles
Average pace: 8:35min/mile
Total Miles For April: 43 miles
Total Miles For 2010: 224 miles

I had an early morning meeting downtown, which in terms of timing meant there was little chance for a morning run. Instead, I went and tackled it when I got home. About 75 degrees out, something I will be no doubt yearning for in a few months, but with the sun high in the sky was still something I’m getting used to all over again this season. Despite my brief transformation into sweatzilla, though, it was a nice enough run. No landspeed records, but pretty consistent save for that slight climb in mile 4. Now here’s to not as much rain this weekend as they’re predicting…

(8:31, 8:24, 8:36, 8:54, 8:32)

Start time: 4/18/10, 5:30pm
Location: W&OD Trail
Distance: 6 miles
Average pace: 8:38min/mile
Total Miles For April: 38 miles
Total Miles For 2010: 219 miles

After working at the store today I went back over to the W&OD Trail where it leaves Vienna, aka where I had my 5-mile run that died a hideous death on Thursday. It’s funny, this one was actually 6 seconds per mile slower, but I consider it far better. Not because there was a 6th mile, but rather because I had a much more consistant pace; there wasn’t a faster first two miles followed by a bad flameout this time. Especially since I held the pace pretty well for the entire second half, which is uphill.

Temperature was much different, though; it’s very windy and cold out (54 degrees? really???) and I actually put on a second layer because that wind was chilling me to my bones. For parts I felt a little buffeted around on the trail… oof.

(8:26, 8:31, 8:48, 8:42, 8:42, 8:37)

Start time: 4/15/10, 5:00pm
Location: W&OD Trail
Distance: 5 miles
Average pace: 8:32min/mile
Total Miles For April: 32 miles
Total Miles For 2010: 213 miles

It’s funny how sometimes it’s the little things that bug you. I was going to run before work on Thursday but I didn’t sleep well, so at the last second I decided I’d run immediately after work, before some evening engagements. This meant running out on the W&OD where it exits Vienna and heads towards Reston. And while the temperatures were only in the mid-70s, the sun was out and shining bright, and there is absolutely no shade at all on that stretch of the trail. After a slightly too-fast start, I ended up paying for it big time in the second half; I felt overheated and exhausted, and towards the end of the mile 4 (and start of mile 5) I ended up walking for about 90 seconds, so that I could rally for the rest of the last mile.

On the one bright side, it is nice to finally get confirmation that there is a gradual drop on the way out (about 150 feet) and then climb on the way back; I’d always suspected as much but was never 100% sure. The new Garmin 405CX is working wonderfully. The difference between it and my old 301 is huge.

There’s a good chance I’ll run this same stretch again on Sunday, on a day which should be a lot cooler; it’ll be interesting to see how that goes, if so.

(7:44, 8:05, 8:14, 9:32, 9:05)