Whoops, I swear I didn’t mean to go another two weeks between runs again. But I also didn’t expect to develop FOK1Fear Of Knees. I am now paranoid about my knees giving up, giving in and giving out. It has made me afraid to run at all.
But today, with the weather being nice again (finally), I decided to get out there and…do half of a 5K. If it went well, I’d do the second half on Friday, then resume full 5K runs on Monday.
I think it went well.
My pace was off, which is no surprise. I have done so little running in the last few months that I have lost my form, stamina and sense of direction. Fortunately, there are signs to help with the latter.
My route began at the Jiffy John for reasons best left unstated, then I followed the Spruce and Conifer Loops, turned back after rejoining the main trail and ended my run right near the bridge at Silver Creek–just about exactly what I was hoping for. This had the secret bonus of little overlap on the trail, despite how short the run was (see map below, which makes it look like half the area is dead because they obviously stitched together satellite data from different seasons).
I ran in my Speedgoats, which are probably nearing time for replacement. Last Friday I snapped one of the laces, so took laces from my old Brooks Revels and used them. They were fine, even if they aren’t colour-coordinated with the shoes. I didn’t have anyone scream at me, “You fashion monster!”
Speaking of colour-coordination, I saw a guy running on the river trail. He was passing by me from the other direction and his t-shirt was utterly soaked in sweat. Kids, don’t let runners wear cotton when jogging!
The weather was nice, around 14C, with a mix of sun and some high cloud. I only encountered a few people and my BPM of 153 was fine, though my average pace of 5:50/km was a bit slow. That should improve as long as the knees allow it.
We’ll see how the back-half of the 5K goes on Friday.
Stats:
Run 865
Average pace: 5:50/km
Training status: Recovery
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW, short loop)
Start: 11:33 a.m.
Distance: 2.51 km
Time: 14:38
Weather: Sun and high cloud
Temp: 14°C
Humidity: 65%
Wind: light
BPM: 153
Weight: 168.5
Total distance to date: 6197.5 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (337.5/634/971.5 km)
