What a difference!

What a difference a week and the proper preparation make in my 6 mile run! Yesterday was Week 2, Day 3 in my 5k running plan. The goal was to run 6 miles, each mile at an 11:14 pace. I ended up running it in 58.31 minutes! This run went way differently than last week’s 6 miler. Here’s what I did differently:

• Ate a big nutritious breakfast which consisted of an egg, 2 slices of whole wheat bread, banana, some cottage cheese, and a mug of English Breakfast tea.
• Continued to hydrate moderately with water for the next 2 hours.
• Downloaded new music
• Stretched before my run
• Wore my knee strap, stopwatch, and hat
• Drove to my running site and began my run approximately 2-3 hours after breakfast (ran same trail as last week).
• Monitored my pace and ensured I ran at a comfortable, not too fast of a pace.
• Focus on relaxing my body
• Found the 10 mile marker post; they replaced it! I started at the end of the trail so the 10 mile post told me when I had run 3 miles and that I needed to turn around.

I felt so good and happy that it wasn’t a rerun of last week. I wasn’t sure how I would do because I was out celebrating a friend’s birthday the night before and I consumed some beer as well as a hot dog, hamburger, chips, crab legs, and some dip. On top of the not so good food and beer, I didn’t get home until 2am. I did drink lots of water throughout the night though. I find that does wonders for me both during the evening as well as the next morning. So when I woke up Sunday morning I decided I would allow my body to relax, eat a good meal, and ensure I was completely hydrated before going on my run. I went around 1pm and finished just before 2. The weather was great! I still need to purchase a new pair of shoes, which I’m going to do as soon as I post this!