Organic Runner Mom

The long run.

I am slowly building up my mileage. I am hopefully running the
Portland Marathon this fall in Portland, Oregon with my good friend Hope. That is if it does not get cancelled because of the Coronavirus. So, I am slowly but surely building up my mileage and extending my long runs.

This weekend it was a 10.5 miler. It was awesome! The weather was in the low 70’s with beautiful sun and a breeze. I ran with my boyfriend James and it was so nice to have the company. We decided on a loop that we would run 3 times that ran for part of the way along the Connecticut River. It was very pretty. Doing a loop run where you repeat the loop can be nice for several reasons. First of all, once you run the loop once you know what the terrain will be. Secondly, you can leave water and fuel at your car so that you do not have to carry anything with you which can be nice. Thirdly, It can be easier to work on pacing when you are running the same loop on repetition.

For the run we decided on running each loop a little faster . . . a negative split run. I put my watch on heart-rate for the run and James led the pacing. I sometimes get overexcited and want to push the pace so he kept us on track with our speed. Running negative splits will help you to conserve energy for the later part of a run and is a great strategy for race day.

When I run I spend a lot of time in my head even when I am running with someone. We chat a little but I also spend a lot of time with my thoughts. I find running to be very meditative. On this run I had a lot of different thoughts rolling through my head. I thought a lot about my running form especially as I got more tired. I thought about using my arms to propel me by taking some of the pressure off of my legs. We often forget how important the upper body is to running and how as we become fatigued using the strength in your arms can help you to push forward. I also thought about using my hamstrings and my glutes to push me forward. I spend a lot of time as well listening to my breathing and the sound of the foot-strikes. I also will often choose a song to think about, it then plays on repeat in my head. What do you think about when you run?

Find out what happened on @organicrunmom’s latest long run. #running #runchat #runnergirl

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At the end of each loop we stopped at the car for water and gatorade. We each took a PowerBar Gel at the end of the second loop. Each loop we ran we bumped the pace up until the last mile we hit was 8:01 min/mile. I felt strong on this run and loved having James running with me. It is so nice to have someone there with you knowing that they are working hard too. We ran the last half mile easy. Our run totaled out at 10.5 miles in 1:38. After we ran we went and put our legs in the Connecticut River upon James’s suggestion. The water is so cold right now that it was like an ice bath, perfect for recovery.

I am looking forward to continuing to bump up long run mileage. I hope to do more long runs with James. In a few weeks several of us are hoping to get together to run the Covered Bridges Half Marathon course. The Covered Bridge Half Marathon was supposed to take place this June but has been cancelled until next year like so many other races.

Tell me about your last long run. What do you think about on the long run? Do you like to repeat loops when you run sometimes?