Busy, busy, busy, busy, busy. Too much to do and not enough time.
5PM - 2.1 miles. Temps had to be 95*. I was on the open road; no breeze, no shade, just hot. Pace: 9:38 - pretty quick for me!
Went to my little brother and sister's swim meet. They are so adorable! They both won their heat too. YAY!! I was told that the meet started at 5:30, but it really started at 6:30. So, I was rushing like crazy for nothing trying to get in a few miles. I could've gone longer and in a much more pleasant place. Argh.
8PM - 3.3 miles. Temps dropped to maybe 85* Trails. Saw 2 deer, 1 fox, 1 cat, 0 homo sapiens, 8,367,914.2 bugs. I started this after "sunset," when the state park technically closes 30 minutes before sunset. My headlamp was at home. I thought that it would be pitch black at 8:45, so that gave me just enough time to get in 1 loop. Well, it gets dark before 8:45. I should know this. Had I been running on the open road, I would've been fine, as we had a beautiful, full moon. On the trails, the trees tend to block most of the moonlight. My eyes adjusted because I had been outside, but the last mile was pretty slow going, as it had gotten dark. I looked at my watch at one point and it said it was doing a 12-minute pace. I didn't feel comfortable going much faster than that because of all the roots and rocks and stumps to trip on. I am normally scared of the dark, but I wasn't scared being out there. When I think about that, I am amazed due to the fast that wild animals are everywhere in those woods; I could hear them all around me. I was worried about falling and breaking a leg/arm and no one finding me. I didn't have my cell phone with me (no service, anyways), so I would've been there until I could drag myself to the car or someone found me the next day. Or, I could possibly be some wild animal's supper, and never be heard from again ;-) It's a good thing I made it home okay! This was probably one of the dumber things I've done (in regard to the lighting conditions), but it was still a ton of fun.
I also tried to practice landing more on my midfoot on one of the flatter sections of the trail. I am naturally a heel-striker. I started thinking about that while I was running, so I thought that now was as good a time as any to practice. It didn't last too long because I came upon a more technical section. That is probably something I should practice more on the road. I also thought about my breathing as rAtTLeTrAp recently mentioned his breathing. Mine typically has no rhyme or reason; just breathing in and out. I truly don't see how he keeps count. I just confused myself trying to keep up with it!
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