Quadracool: Finding new limits of comfortable

Before I even ran Woodstock, I promised myself I'd let my legs return to normal before I hit the pavement again. I had a long, hot summer of training and a few days of complete rest was needed both mentally and physically.

Though my legs hurt like hell the first hour or so after the race, the pain dissipated rather quickly. Steve, his DW, and I took a long, but slow walk on Sunday and I think that helped to move things along. By Wednesday, I actually felt no lingering stiffness and decided it was time to go for a run.

I was dog-sitting for a few days at my dad's house and so I got a chance to run a new route after work along the Chattahoochee River.

The new Hoka Cliftons I put on my feet felt deliciously cushy. The pavement felt deliciously fast. I just ran at whatever felt good and didn't look at my watch until I was done.

Guess I was aching for speed?

I went back to the same place the next day and though I didn't feel quite as fresh, I still was a bit shocked that I wasn't trudging after 50 miles less than 120 hours prior.

I took off Saturday and then returned to my home turf on the Greenway on Sunday.

The humidity was low, temps were in the 60's, and I had on my magic shorts. I just couldn't resist laying down a sub-7 mile when I felt so. dang. good.

I had Monday off of work and decided to just cruise for awhile longer. The weather had finally turned and I was so elated that I didn't feel like I was dying every step of the way.

Oh, and the news of getting into Boston for my 2nd year? It just sweetened every step. I seriously could slap myself for being so deliriously happy on that run.

Tuesday night, I did my Superman thing at work and changed into my running gear so I could grind out a few miles. Though I was a bit sad it was starting to get dark as I finished up my run, I couldn't complain about the temperature. Too many runs of "feels like 100+" after work makes me appreciate the 70's.

Which brings me to today. I always have intentions of a slower pace. But this just makes every run progressive because it starts off easy. And when I felt strong and exhilarated, I want to keep cruising hard. If it starts to get hard, I back off. If it feels good, I maintain pace. It's a good exercise for racing. At some point, you will feel like crap. Backing off by a few seconds for a short amount of time has taught me to ride the suck. And then keep finding new limits of comfortable.

It helped that the Greenway is full of fall magic now. Leaves are starting to litter the ground. The weekday crowd has lightened. I don't have to carry hydration.