Feels like 3!?! I seriously considered not leaving my warm cozy bed and doing my longish run on the running machine... Then I got dressed for the outdoor run and took the Churro Dog out. Sh*t, it was really cold only after 5 minutes (he's efficient at potty).
Have fun mom, I'm staying here in the sunny spot
After last weeks run where I felt really hot, I decided to wear a thinner (paper thin) windbreaker because I really thought I'd warm up. I was wrong. (Plus it was easily 15 degrees cooler this week) The headwinds felt like something straight out of Antarctica and chilled me to the bone.
Thankfully there was no ice around - ok a very small amount on the south portion. This made my run 100% better than last week. I could get into a nice rhythm and cruise the lakefront.(I don't run with music) Last week was so mentally and physically exhausting dodging all the icy patches.
Ice in the harbor. Thank goodness not on the path!
While I was a tad underdressed for this run, I also felt pretty damn good once I warmed up after a few miles and could actually feel my fingers and toes again.
the Geese walking on ice
The miles flew by even faster than I anticipated. According to my schedule, miles 6-7 and 8-9 were to be at 8:00-8:10 pace- something a little quicker than marathon pace, but at a manageable sustainable effort.
The "steady" miles felt really good. Might have also helped that the piercing cold wind was at my back. This workout gave me a lot of confidence regarding my current level of fitness which has been a huge question mark lately.
I was so cold and possibly delirious that I thought I saw a penguin. Haha
I sported my owl head hat which kept my head and ears nice and toasty. I also took a Gatorade prime before which I believe contributed to the success of this run. (And maybe the 10 servings of leftover spaghetti i had last night- i usually dont carb load for training runs.) I only drank water during the run. No Gu or anything.
Midway through the run I took a sip of water and was surprised to feel a chunk of something. I then realized my water was starting to freeze! By the end of the run it was turning into slush. I've never experienced that before!
I don't run outside during the week because it still gets dark early, the path is not well lit with very uneven pavement, and I don't pick up my feet high enough while running so my odds of tripping go way up. I run on the tread for 3/4 of my workouts. Running outside is something I look forward to on the weekends and while I wasn't fancying running in this weather- what benefit can one gain from sub freezing temps? I was so happy to be out on the path enjoying life and seeing the area north of Navy pier which I haven't seen in a long time!
I LOVE THIS VIEW!
Post run and shivering, I had one thing on my mind.
A huge steaming bowl of ramen with pork belly!!! Which was exactly what I needed after this cold run.