Sunday 2/21 - Three lakes, 10 miles

My first official long run leading up to Grandma's 2010!
I'm not starting completely from scratch, I attend and/or coach 2-3 circuit training classes per week. These classes include core strengthening, push-ups, wall sits, hand weights, running, and stairs.

Lately I have been sprinkling in one weekday run of about 3-4 miles. The streets here in the Twin Cities are covered with snow and ice, making it difficult to run outside. So I typically use the treadmill or track at the gym. I much prefer running outdoors, so I can't wait until spring!

On Sunday a friend and I met at 3pm at the Calhoun Executive Center parking lot to run around the lakes. It was about 30 degrees with a slight breeze out of the north. We quickly found that there were many people walking on the trails since it was such a nice day. It was very crowded, and we found ourselves zig-zagging through people and dogs throughout the run.

I was shooting for 10 miles, and my friend wanted to stop at about 7. We ran south along the east side of Lake Calhoun, up to Lake Harriet where we ran a counter-clockwise circle. We walked for about 100 yards as we completed the Lake Harriet loop. We ran back to Lake Calhoun and ran along the west side. I said goodbye to my friend near the dock and restaurant and kept going north to Lake of the Isles. I did a clock-wise loop of Lake of the Isles and felt very good. After the loop I went back to Calhoun and completed the loop.

It turned out to be just under 10 miles, so I ran an extra 50 yards or so to make it an even 10 - according to my Garmin.
Splits and notes:
Mile Time
1 9:25
2 9:35
3 9:13
4 9:26
5 9:25
6 9:27
7 8:56
8 8:55
9 9:02
10 9:10
Notes:
Sleep - didn't sleep well the night before. Approximately 6 hours sleep.
Diet - french toast and coffee for breakfast. fruit smoothie, bread w/PB for lunch.
Run - felt good the whole way. Legs were a little fatigued around 8 miles. Otherwise no issues.
Music - started listening to music for last 4 miles when friend left.