AZ Run Dad

16:02 6th Place: I'm disappointed with this result. I was expecting a PR and really thought I could push 15:30. Everything before the race was fine. I kind of got Father's Day treatment on  Mother's Day because my Mom came to our house at 4 am to watch the kids and my wife got up at 3:30 to come with me. Originally she planned on this race but she got hurt and I kept it on the schedule. I'm a lucky guy! Anyway I got in a decent warm up and strides and all of that good stuff. It was warm for racing (75) and a little windy but the course ran on a square so it equalled itself out. There was plenty of competition and I definitely competed but it just wasn't my day. I went out in 5:04 for the first mile which was slightly uphill and into the wind. I was fine with that pace because that would theoretically be the toughest mile. Unfortunately things only got worse from there. I stuck to a couple of guys ahead of me but the pace dropped to 5:09 for the second mile and I was definitely struggling to hang in there. Between 1.5 and 2.5 miles the course was slightly down and I had the wind at my back for most of it. Too bad it didn't help! Towards the end my legs felt like lead and when I normally have a kick I felt like just getting to the finish line was the best I could do. I'm not sure what went wrong. I competed well but it just wasn't there. It was a little warm and windy but not too bad. My best races have come in ideal conditions so I guess it shows that sometimes you need everything to come together to have those special days. Not what I was hoping for but when you give an honest effort there's not much else you can ask for.

AM: 10 miles easy around the neighborhood. Felt surprisingly good.

PM: 4 miles easy + some strides in the grass.

Leg Buster: 10.4 Miles

Warmed up my usual 2.85 miles with drills and strides then did a 2k in 6:32,3 min jog, 3 x 1 mile in 4:57, 4:58, 4:59 with 3 min jogs after each one. I was supposed to do a fast 800 then jog 3 min and finish with a fast 400. That turned into 3 x 1/4 mileish at around 5 min/mile pace because my legs were gone and that's all I had left. Still happy with this one.

This was done on the road.

12 miles: Legs were a bit junky to start and then loosened up nicely for this easy run.

8 miles easy + some strides. My legs and body have been tired lately. I think I'm overdue for a break. One more race and I'll be taking a break (easy running) for a bit.