May 21st: Day 8

Yesterday was supposed to be my first long run. However, my boss had some personal issues come up so I had to work the late shift.

So I did my long run today instead!

The run was 8 miles long. I started with my usual route through my neighborhood. I start every run on the same path just for the sake of familiarity. I then headed out to the nature trail. I've gone on the nature trail before, but only a few times. This time I went further than I've gone before and took the trail into the city before turning around.

I kept a slow and steady pace throughout my run. I've read that when running the marathon and when training with long runs it's best to add a minute or two to your usual mile pace. So instead of my usual 8:00-8:30 min/mile on shorter runs I kept a 10:00 min/mile pace. I didn't feel winded at all. Not once did my breathing get rough. I was barely sweaty by the end, more so thanks to the sun than anything else. I think for my next long run I should keep a slightly faster pace, perhaps around 9:30 min/mile.

My body felt great after the run. Immediately after I stretched, of course, but now several hours later I'm not sore at all. The only part that 'hurt' was the bottom of my feet. That felt more like the discomfort that comes from standing too long, which makes sense considering my feet were already sore from working 48 hours in the past week!