Pre-training week 1

Miles for the week: 11 (2/2/1/6)
Resting heart rate: 57
Weight: 116
Long run: 6 miles LSD; average HR 134; time 1:16:35 (12:37 avg); splits:

Decent long run, overcast and not too hot. Way better than the same run last week when I got overheated and almost bonked (I was feeling bad and indeed my HR was spiking as high as 180). I’ve been curious to compare to my previous marathon experiences; pre-training week 1 from 2004, when I was a few pounds higher, my pace was almost a minute faster. But from my description, I was running a 2/2 cadence (two breaths in, two out), whereas now my long slow distance cadence is 3/3. (And I can do 3/2 also, so I have three gears now aside from sprinting!) So I was running harder back then and maybe it’s apples to oranges. I’ve been using the great free app RunKeeper for training since the 2015 marathon, so I can compare to that too, and I’m significantly slower than then. Hmm! Is it age? I’ll see how it goes, but I’m really glad I’m doing a light training schedule.

I’ll be doing this route as my long run for the next 3 weeks—it’s my usual 5+ miles with a little extra tacked on—and I love it. When we lived in Pennsylvania I thought I had the best 5 mile route ever, with pastures and woods and hills; although there are no actual cows on this course, and no deep woods, there’s Paradise Pond and the Mill River, the dog park, fields with views, and seven gardens I get to visit: the herb garden at Hungry Ghost, Capen Garden, walk break in the Lyman Greenhouse when I’m not too early (it opens at 8:30am), main Smith Botanic Garden (which actually includes several, like the rock garden, systematics, perennial border, etc.), Happy Chase Garden, the Northampton Community Garden, and the gorgeous small garden in front of the Roundhouse. Plus beautiful yards and architecture!

Now that I have so many many cultivated flowers to look at, the wildflowers don’t register as much, but I’ll try to still pay attention because I like reading that in the previous blog posts. Garden-wise there were still some irises, but astilbes, roses, and clematis were in full bloom. I saw goldfinches swooping over the little pond next to the greenhouse, and an agitated mockingbird squawking like a grackle or a titmouse.