Eleven

Saturdays are my long run days.
This week's long run was 11 miles.

I had talked with Terri earlier in the week and she said she would be up for a long run with the hubby and I, so we made a date. We met at a local trail and decided we would go out the trail (which is about 2.5 miles one way) and then go from there to get the mileage we (I) needed for the day.

The weather was nice. Cool starting out and a bit windy but by the end of the first mile I was ready to shed my outter layer. So we stopped and did that. We maintained a great pace (for me) going up and out. I was really proud considering the hilly route.

Hill training is important for me because my half marathon contains some hills. No running in East TN would be complete without hills, ya know?! Haha  About 2 miles into our run I told the hubby I knew he would likely be mad at me later for saying that I wanted to do this particular trail for our run on Saturday but to forgive me really quick! I told him it was hilly and he knew that going into it, but for whatever reason I felt bad.

Terri had a little something come up once we got to the end of the trail and needed to head back down to the parking area to make use of the facilities so we agreed to meet her right back there. Hubby and I headed on over the main road to the remainder of the trail and ran another 4-5 miles (I think) before heading back up to meet with Terri. We did take one short potty break and headed out into Knoxville the other direction and back because part of the trail I had hoped to run on was still under construction after some flooding we had a couple of weeks ago.

Once we met back up with Terri we continued on our way to make 11 miles. Terri had started telling me she had a hotspot on her foot and it was bothering her a bit. She was a champ and ignored it for a while but around mile 9 decided to call it 10 miles for the day. I understood and she understood my need to make 11.
Hubby was also struggling because he has asthma and allergies. If you have ever been to or live in East Tn you will know that there is always something in bloom messing with those pesky sinus/allergy folks! Saturday it was the bradford pear trees messing with the hubby. So, he too called it a 10 miler and done for the day. Thankfully he also understood my need to get in 11.

I said bye or something around mile 10 and went on my way beyond the trail and back to the parking lot. It was an overall good run for me. Walk breaks when I needed, short potty break and I think I only popped 3 sports beans between mile 6-7. Overall I felt pretty strong besides my knees talking a bit on the downhills!

This eleven miler is my longest run to date. I completed it in 2 hours flat! I'm still amazed that my body can move for that long of a period of time and it gives me hope for a great outcome for my half marathon. 3 weeks to go!!