It has been 18 days since my first 5K in two months. This was not my intention.
But after running on June 13th, I came down with a summer cold, curiously around the same time one struck last year. And so it was I had to wait until I was mostly recovered before officially tackling a 5K again. I knew that the combo of not running much plus not being 100% would affect my pace, and it did. I turned in my first 6+ minute pace in quite some time, coming in at 6:08/km.
Which wasn’t so bad vs. how I felt, because by the end that 5 km was feeling more like 500.
On the plus side, I am suffering no ill effects post-run, and didn’t have any issues while running, other than feeling very slow and tired. I completed the first km with a pace of 5:50, but could feel myself slowing in the second, where I dropped to 6:08. I dropped to 6:18 on the third and decided to cheat just a little.
At the 3K marker (the actual marker, I had already passed 3 km total), I paused the run, then walked to Phillips Point, which, according to Google Maps, is about a 168 m round-trip. There were a couple of people fishing there, which was a bit weird, so I only paused for a moment before heading back to the 3K marker and resuming the run. This allowed my heart rate to drop from 158 to 141, which definitely helped on the last two km, which had paces of 6:13 and 6:10.
After finishing the run, I made a beeline across the field to the drinking fountain at the playground and supped on it like a very thirsty runner.
Another plus: My training status went from Recovery to Productive. Woo!
Although humidity was high, my lips felt a bit dry, though I didn’t experience any notable dry mouth. I hate dry mouth.
And as it was Canada Day, the trail was more crowded than usual, but all dogs were leashed and people were attentive, even considerate! Hooray for polite Canadians.
Oh, and the title refers to the numerous potholes along the trail that have recently been patched. Some sections could still use a full resurfacing, but no signs of it yet. And speaking of resurfacing, of a sort, the first boardwalk as you go clockwise is canting at even more diverse angles than before. It is over two years since the signs there went up noting that “repairs are planned.” Hopefully they will happen before the boardwalk sinks into the marsh.
Overall, it was good to get back out, good to prove I could still do 5K, and hopefully the next run will be a bit easier and happen in a few days and not a few weeks.
Stats:
Run 868
Average pace: 6:08/km
Training status: Productive
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 11:29 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 30:51
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 20°C
Humidity: 68-66%
Wind: light
BPM: 155
Weight: 169.0
Total distance to date: 6,210 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (350/681/1031 km)
