I just got back from my most beautiful and hardest long run to date. It is so gorgeous out this morning, the light is warm and sunny, with just a slight nip in the air. I covered 17.5 km (the warm up and cool down was 1.5 km of that). I did 8 intervals of ten minutes each, with walking breaks in between, and then finished the whole thing of with shorter fun run intervals. Although the "fun" part was in name only at that point! I sweated out about 4 lbs. Most of the workout I ran along a large pond in a huge urban park we have here, then along Lake Ontario. The light across the pond was so pretty- silvery and postcardish. Lots of Canada geese, swans, ducks, but no coyotes, park warning signs notwithstanding. Lots of other runners out, and I always find that so inspiring and encouraging - makes me feel like I'm amongst friends. I don't get that feeling at 4:00am when the only ones out are the drunks!

I'm always hurting a bit after my long runs, so right after the cool down I grab some L-Glutamine, some NUUN electrolytes, a Tylenol and an Advil, and jump into a hot hot hot bath. (I know I'm supposed to be icing, not heating, but this works for me.) Then I have something to eat. I'll do some stretching a bit later, but not right away. My throat feels a bit scratchy, but it always does after running outdoors in cool weather. It'll calm down after a while.

I hope to add about .5 km to each week's long runs until I'm up to 21 km or more on a regular basis - I plan to run a half marathon next fall and want it to not be a brutally difficult challenge. Actually, so far I've signed up for 6 races coming up over the next year. The registration for the half marathon isn't open yet, but I've signed up for a 5k Resolution Run just after Christmas, then three more 5ks, an 8k and a 10k.

Tomorrow I will do a quick CardioCoach run at 3:15am - I have a huge quarterly meeting all day that will suck every bit of energy I have out of me, and I have to get to work an hour early, so I'll just have to suck it up, buttercup. I decided long ago that I wasn't going to let these meetings take away my workouts and that I was going to do what I have to do to make them happen. This will start the day off right, no matter what happens. I'll have to head for bed pretty early, though.

Wow, I'm just rambling on and on and on.... Wonder if any of you stayed with me to the end...