Chasing my Dreams

Mostly just wanted to shake off the weekend as I didn't get enough sleep and ate way too much junk. It was actually a decent effort, and other than the uphills being hard, things were pretty good. My right quad started to tighten up in the last two miles or so. I almost stepped on a rattlesnake on the highline trail, which was a good wake up for my senses to say the least.

Earliest run I've had in a while, started at 5. Felt decent the first few miles, but I knew they were slow. Six miles in my right quad started to hurt pretty good. It never went away after that, and it made it hard to pick up the pace. 6:57 average. Also today I finally ran in some new shoes, Saucony Ride 9s. 

I decided with how my right quad felt yesterday, it was better to not try and do a fartlek today. I decided to get a good chunk of my run in on dirt as that would probably help my legs, which ended up being true. My legs felt significantly better and more relaxed when I was on dirt. The last two miles I felt good enough to pick the pace up a little bit. 6:48 average. Still getting the new shoes to feel good on my feet though.

My leg finally felt back to normal today, and with some decent rest and recovery yesterday I was able to have a better run than expected. It felt good and since I didn't have a hard effort this week, I let myself enjoy the run. 6:25 average. With the last three 6:15 and below. My feet hurt from the new shoes, and I remembered that my socks never seem to sit right in Sauconys at first. My inner lower leg muscles had some minor aches here and there, but nothing out of the ordinary. 

I had a hard time waking up, and then I couldn't get my poop flowing the way I would have liked before getting going this morning. It didn't really cool down at all, so the first few miles I was adjusting to the heat and waking up my body. My legs did really well and didn't give me any problems. My left shoe still makes my foot hurt, but it's not even really muscular, moreso hot spot type pain. I did have one quick stop where I tried to poop during the run, but not much came out so I kept trucking and it didn't bother me. The hardest part about the run today way the mental aspect over the last five miles. I needed someone or something to distract my mind, because physically I felt fine. 6:34 average

Got up early and pushed Dry Canyon in the dark, hoping to make it to Logan Peak. I wasn't sure if the trail went all the way, and it doesn't, so getting close is all I was able to do. Surprisingly, the few times when I stopped to hike on the way up, it felt better on my legs to run. I did feel the strain on my calves though. The worst part was that the trail was pretty grown in, and all the plants ripped up the legs and arms some, and I was super itchy afterward. 

In the evening after I got home from work, I did a 3.9 mile shakeout/de-stressing run. 6:28 average for that. It was hot, but everything felt good other than my feet. Partially because I ran in my work socks probably.