20k benchmark run

So, yesterday morning, I finally did my benchmark run. It was hot and humid in the morning and the sky was overcast for most of the run. I started off doing the “official” Austin fit route of the 7 mile loop from TxDot to I-35, to Mopac and back to TxDot. That portion took 83 minutes, which all in all isn’t too bad. It works out to an 11:51 pace, which is close enough to pace for me.

After the official run, only Rachel, my co-coach, wanted to do any extra. She wanted to go down to Lamar and back, but I talked her into going up the Riverside hill again, and then crossing back at Congress Ave. Well, lemme tell ya, it was hard running up that dang hill again. We went up the hill, across 35, and then just after the second walk break, I hit the wall. My legs felt like cement, and they felt like I couldn’t go another step. I told Rachel to go ahead and go since she was still able to run and I walked for a bit extra.

I decided to do 4 min run, followed by 1 min walks until I got back. Lo and behold, I pushed through the wall, and by the time I got back to Congress, I decided to just go down to 1st street and turn back there. That would make the loop a 4 mile loop, for a total of 11 miles. After I did that, I still felt like I had a little left, so I did the one mile loop around the TxDot and Statesman block, then I did about another half mile down the trail. So, I did my 12.5 mile benchmark run in a total of 2:28:31 for which the total pace works out to 11:53.

After the run, I went for a swim in Barton Springs, and ran into my swim coaches while there. I swam for a bit, then went to lunch at Thai Kitchen. I had a voracious apetite and thoroughly enjoyed my lunch while watching my longhorns in the big 12 championship game. I came home about halfway through the second period and slept most of the afternoon.

Today’s stats:
Terrain: mostly dirt, some cement sidewalk
Distance: approx 12.5 miles
Total running time: 2:28:31
Pace: 11:53
Total time including bathroom breaks: 2:42:31
Course: I-35 to Mopac loop on the Town lake hike and bike trail, followed by the I-35 to 1st street bridge loop, followed by the 1 mile loop around TxDot and the Statesman.
Noteworthy: Only Rachel did extra mileage with me, and I managed to push through the wall and complete the 20k benchmark on my own. I rule. Today (Sunday) I feel sore, but not as sore as I was expecting to. All is well on this front, next Saturday, an easy 10 miler.