Pennance Run

With every night of indulgence follows a morning of guilt.  And what better way to fix guilt than with a hard workout.  So this morning I headed out for a run.  What would normally be a 5 miler, but I decided I owed myself at least an 8 to put a dent in all the extra calories I've been eating this week.  I know I've been training hard this week but I feel like I've been eating more than I should be.  But without a scale here I have no idea really.  But I would like to behave myself better for the second week of my trip.  So after a quick chat with my friend Penelope this morning I went for one of her favorite 8 mile loops.

I headed out the door and it was fairly cool, grey, and misty this morning.  I felt a little slow and my legs felt kind of tired when I first started.  My first mile averaged 8:30 and I wanted to be doing 8's.  Fortunately though after I loosened up a bit I managed to get the average for the whole run down to 8:09s.  So I was pleased with that.  Especially as the route was quite challenging.  Although there were no giant hills per say the whole thing was full of rollers and slow inclines.  Seemed like I was always going up.  And I did manage to charge my way up a few small hills so that was good.  And I even managed to snap a quick pic.

This wasn't the most scenic part of the run, but it sure beats running through the city!  So nice to smell the grass and the trees and not be breathing in exhaust for the whole run! 

So as the run progressed I reached downtown Friday Harbor and knew I only had a few miles to go to get back.  Penelope had told me the loop was exactly 8 miles.  So when my garmin said you've reached 7 miles I decided to push as hard as I could for the last mile and see what I could do.  So I did my best to run as close to a 7 or 7:30 mile as possible.  Considering it was rather hilly on the way back that was about right.  However somewhere in the middle of that mile it occured to me there was no way I was within a half mile of the house.  I should be going up the last hill by now and I'm not.  Hmmm.....    So I slowed down back to 8's for the rest of the way.  Yep.  Sure enough... the entire route was exactly 9 miles...   not 8!  So in the end I did a 9 miler today.  Still it was a good run.  My legs feel a bit stiff now...  but thats ok.  I just need to keep an eye on them as the week progresses.  Tomorrow is a pool day so they'll be feeling better soon.  I just hope I can get in the hot tub afterwards.  Last time I tried to do that after my pool workout there were about 8 much older ladies in the small hot tub.  So I decided to pass.  Its a small town... and I didn't feel like getting quizzed by the elders.  But right now my legs could use it!

Next up today...   still to be determined.  Perpaps a kayak trip, or a picnic out at Lime Kiln park to watch for the Orcas again.  Or maybe I'll just find a nice spot to watch for the Orcas and bring some Tri books along to read and relax and enjoy the fresh air.  We'll see.  For now though I'm off to get coffee.

Oh in other news...    My Tri Club (http://www.tri-ne.com/) has just posted the Time Trial results from the one I just missed.  Way to go Nancy!  6th out of 20 and the highest ranked woman!  Nicely done!  And you beat my best time by 40 odd seconds.  Can't wait to race you on the course sometime!  And I promise to smile and take it like a champ when you beat me!  I also saw Luis set a new PR and lots of my other friends did well too.  Way to go everyone!  Wish I could have been there!