I opted to do a repeat of Friday’s run. Most of the conditions were similar, except there was drizzle and light rain. This made it feel a lot cooler, so the two layers felt appropriate both before and during the run.

I suspected I would be slower and I was, which is fine. Again mirroring Friday’s run, my left shoelace came untied, forcing me to stop just past the 2 km point to tie it. Just prior to this, a guy jogged past me, and I briefly entertained a delusion of catching up to him. But then I had to tie my shoe, so that became impossible. Now I can safely pretend I totally would have caught up to him otherwise (ho ho).

My overall pace was 5:40/km and my fastest was at the end, 5:30. BPM was 149, which is good.

While it was kind of drizzly or lightly showering for much of the run, it wasn’t bad at all. I never had to look over my glasses to see. However, it had clearly rained a fair bit earlier because there were puddles aplenty and the trail next to the sports fields was basically puddles with small sections of trail between them. I may write a letter.

But other than having to carefully navigate puddles post-run, it was a perfectly adequate way to start the week.

Stats:

Run 986
Average pace: 5:40/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 10:00 a.m.
Distance: 5.02 km
Time: 28:28
Weather: Drizzle, light rain
Temp: 8-9°C
Humidity: 89-87%
Wind: light
BPM: 149
Weight: 166.7 pounds
Total distance to date: 6,760 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Saucony Peregrine 15 (20/34/54)

Music: Voices, Hall & Oates

I missed my Wednesday run because I was waiting for a delivery and the timing was about what you’d expect (vague window of many hours, then delivered some time after that window had passed), so I was unsure how today would go.

One thing I changed up, though, was my insoles. My Peregrine 15s come with unusually cushy foam insoles and I decided to just leave them in, instead of putting in my increasingly worn orthotics that date back to the simpler days of 2016. And it actually went fine! The only foot-related issue I had was the left shoelace threatening to come untied just as I was heading past the parking lot at the rowing pavilion. I stopped to re-tie it, then finished the run, which was already in its final km at that point.

As for the run, it went well. I started strong and only dipped to 5:40/km for one km, then finished strong, with an overall pace of 5:34/km and BPM of 148. It was the coolest¹Not Fonzie cool, of course run of the fall yet–only 7C to start, but I wore two layers and the utter lack of wind meant it was fine. I never felt cold. I saw half a dozen or so other joggers, though no regulars. Someone who had just finished a run was returning to their vehicle at the parking lot by the aforementioned rowing pavilion–and had gone sans shirt. Show off. Admittedly, he had stuff to show off, but still.

One other thing of note. I am considering making an inquiry to Metro Vancouver, as the trail adjacent to the sports fields is very swampy and puddle-rich, as seen in the photo below. It’s a pretty miserable experience for both joggers and walkers. Even skirting the puddles is iffy, because the grass is often saturated with water, too. I’m hoping they finally do something about this, but I’ve been running here for 14 years now, so I’m not exactly holding my breath.

Overall, a good run to wrap up the week. Hopefully next week stays dry and I get in all three runs.

Stats:

Run 985
Average pace: 5:34/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 9:48 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 28:00
Weather: Cloudy
Temp: 7-8°C
Humidity: 87%
Wind: light
BPM: 148
Weight: 165.9 pounds
Total distance to date: 6,755 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Saucony Peregrine 15 (15/21/32)

Music: Green, R.E.M.

For some reason, I was very unmotivated this morning. Monday blahs? Moon madness? SAD¹Seasonal Affective Disorder?

Whatever it was, I almost reached a point of not running at all, which would have been bad, because it has been four days since my previous run and I don’t like long gaps between runs. They have a tendency to grow.

Also, it wasn’t raining, so I really had no reason to not get out.

I started my run just shy of 1 p.m. under extremely mild conditions–it was 14C, which is 5 degrees warmer than normal, with little wind. I wore two layers, which felt like too much until the walk home, when the wind did pick up and the cooling sweat began to chill.

My ambition on the run was to just do it and have a respectable, if somewhat plodding pace. Mission accomplished, as my overall pace was 5:47/km, rather pokey by my current standards. I did get faster as I progressed, at least, and managed 5:39/km for the final lap. The trail was not too crowded even at this later time, probably because while it didn’t rain, the overall feel was kind of gloomy.

Or maybe that was just me.

Also, it’s bring-your-own-water until probably March 2026:

In any case, the first run of the week is done!

Stats:

Run 984
Average pace: 5:47/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW, short loop)
Start: 12:58 p.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 29:06
Weather: Mostly cloudy
Temp: 14°C
Humidity: 82-80%
Wind: light
BPM: 148
Weight: 165.7 pounds
Total distance to date: 6,750 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Saucony Peregrine 15 (10/8/18)

Music: Face the Music, ELO