Week #11 -- up again

Summary for week ending Sunday, March 13, 2016:

Number of workouts: 8
Total miles run: 56.62
Average miles per run: 7.08

Miles in March: 99.27
Miles in 2016: 471.13

After last week's step-down, this week felt like all I did was run. Logged 10+ Tuesday and Wednesday when the weather was quite warm, had a T workout on Thursday (including warm up and down, approximately 10 miles there too) that left my legs feeling a little heavy by the end, some easy relatively short running Friday and Saturday on the trails (which were in fine shape after a week of dry high 70s), and a 15-miler on Sunday, at the end of which I was feeling every single one of those miles run during the week.

The weather went from cool to hot to cool again over the week, and it was not exactly nice this weekend. Sunday's long run was mostly done during cool showers or sprinkles and was not comfortable or pleasant in general. Over the last year, whenever I have to run in the rain, I make myself feel better about it by viewing it side-by-side with 2015's Boston race: either it's the same cold rain and I can remind myself that I don't have to run anywhere near as far in it, or it's not as cold so I can tell myself I don't have to run nearly as far in it AND it's not going to turn me into a popsicle. Either way, it's an improvement and I can get through the unpleasantness OK. I noticed that along one side of the reservoir, a single long line of purple crocus were blooming, which was a nice sight every time I came around to them. I wouldn't say this was a good long run, just OK. During the last five miles, my legs were feeling wooden and in an odd way like I was on a treadmill -- they were just turning at the rate they had to turn as though the treadmill belt was moving under me at 8:15 pace and I just had to keep up, though I did not feel like I was forcing that pace or working hard at it, nor did I feel like I needed to or should slow down. They mechanically kept going and I didn't even have to think about it much.

But I was looking forward to being done, as it was getting a little boring looping the flat reservoir trail and taking my one detour down to run along Creek Road a ways. Need to start mapping out some variety in long run routes. Trouble is, it's just so hilly in my neck of the woods -- long, long, and not-so-shallow hills that really start to take their toll well before you are ready for them to. Hill running has its positives, and Vermont City has a brutal hill in the middle so I can't avoid working them entirely, but the rest of the course isn't all that horribly hilly so I don't need to be doing excessive hillage every single weekend!

Next week will be another in the upper 50s for mileage, with two quality T workouts in the mix, so I will make sure to enjoy my rest day today and hope for good conditions when I head out tomorrow afternoon for the scheduled 10 miles. I'm not going to split it up with a treadmill morning the way I have been this winter (I have an early meeting, plus with daylight saving time upon us, I shouldn't have to be running in the dark by the end of it) so we'll see how that feels.