run a subten-minute mile

After that fast(er) run, I started struggling again. Not sure what’s going on, maybe allergies. My breathing hasn’t been that good lately.

Managed a 9:40 first mile in the 5k I did this weekend, but after that, things started falling apart fast. Needless to say, my overall race pace was much, much slower.

Gotta keep working at it, maybe tweak my diet, see if I can get some prescription allergy meds instead of the otc stuff I’ve been using.

Averaged 10:07 on my run today. Running is starting to feel good again.

I’m down to 12:18/mile for my two-mile run, putting out enough effort to sweat and breathe hard, but not pushing so hard that I’m completely wiped out at the end. I’m trying to remind myself to run at the level I am, not where I used to be. Not that I was ever crazy fast, but still, I could run three or four miles in the summer heat without feeling like I would rather die than take another step.

I’ve been better about making sure I go running or do other cardio a few times a week, every week. I got over my cold, and the rain has let up, so both of those things make it easier to run, too. I did something to my left knee a couple of days ago, so I might have to take a few days off to let it recover, but the thought of not doing anything is kind of bothering me. That’s good, too, though. Means I’ll be looking forward to running again, instead of dreading it like I was last fall.

My endurance is still pretty low, so I’ve been alternating running and walking, but I’m gradually doing more running and less walking. My last two-miler was at a 12:48 pace, which is kind of embarrassing, but I know that it will improve quickly once I’m running the entire way. And it is almost two minutes faster than when I was walking more frequently.

I can do this on the elliptical machine, but I don’t know what my running time is. Significantly slower, but steadily improving, I’d guess.