I talked myself out of doing a short loop at the lake and doing a full loop instead, though still only 5K for the running part.
It was the chilliest run of fall yet, starting at 6°C and rising only one degree by the end. I wore two layers, but swapped out my regular t-shirt for a long-sleeved one. In the end I think I was a bit overdressed–not for the walk to the lake, but for the actual run and then the walk back. Noted for next time. The humidity was high and didn’t budge during the run, which may have also factored in.
Bonus: you don’t have to wait for the water in the fountain to get cold. The fountains are still working.
At the end of the first km, I felt comfy, but my Performance Condition was a mere -1. Also, my pace was 6:05/km. I was running in grandpa mode–and continued to do so for the next two km. Technically it may have been the next three because the watch reported the 4th km as 5:59/km but the post-report rounded it up to 6:00/km. I did some math, which is probably dangerous for me when running, and figured if I put on the gas for the final km, I might manage to still get an overall pace under six minutes–and I did!
I came in at 5:38/km for the last lap, which gave me an overall average of 5:58/km.
I didn’t have any issues at all during the run, so I can’t explain the slow start, other than it was cold and maybe it just took me some time to literally warm up. The run was fine otherwise.
For some reason, nearly every dog owner had their dog (or multiple dogs) off-leash today, which is unusual for Burnaby Lake. Boo to them, I say. The owners, not the dogs, who were relatively well-behaved.
Also, post-run I saw two Douglass squirrels chirping at each, and saw some Steller’s Jays and a nuthatch bouncing about grabbing seed. In all, a good start to the week.
Stats:
Run 1,082
Average pace: 5:58/km
Training status: Maintaining
Performance Condition: -1
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 9:55 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 30:02
Weather: Mostly sunny
Temp: 6–7°C
Humidity: 88%
Wind: low
BPM: 147
Weight: 171.4 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,210 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (190/387/577)
Music: Shuffle play