Hooray for new PR's!

Well, as promised, I did the run. Perhaps not with as much grace and ease as I had promised, but I did it nonetheless. Actually, it was a new record for me, with my total distance being 4.87 miles and my total running distance being 4.11 miles!

Now for the details:

• I walked the 1st 7 minutes because that's just what I do... Then I stretched and then I was on my way. I ran more than a 5K before stopping to walk a bit. I caught up to a really nice woman called CJ, and we chatted for about 4 minutes about fundraising. I thought, at that point, that I could run it in the rest of the way. But, I was wrong. After one more teensy short walk break, however, I made it back to the starting point.

• I am proud of myself because this is the longest distance I've ever run. But at the same time, I'm disappointed in myself a little bit just now. I mean, did stopping to walk for 4 minutes really make that much of a difference? I can't remember. I would not have covered any additional distance overall, but I would have had more distance running rather than walking. (And we're all clear here that I use the term running rather loosely.) It may not look a lot different to you, but it is very different to me.

• The Highline Canal, where we ran today, is a really great spot for running. It's a gravel-ish trail along a canal (go figure), that winds through residential areas and has great shade cover. It's very similar to the Boulder Creek Path, except gravel, rather than concrete (my knees say: 'thank goodness!'). Looking at the schedule, it seems like we do several runs at this location, so hopefully before too long, I will begin to recognize landmarks the way I do on my weeknight runs... that really helps keep me going sometimes.

Now for the bad news: I am hurting. I have not been stretching enough, and my right calf muscle (the soleus, I believe), which has been bothering me since June, is still bothering me and appears to be getting worse. On my way home, I went out and bought The Stick (not to be confused with the Foam Roller, which is a torture device that physical therapists love to recommend). If you haven't met The Stick yet and you are a runner,... let me introduce you. Stick, this is a runner. Runner, this is your new best friend. Seriously. It's like a really cheap massage.

OK. Enough rambling now. I'm off to shower and get on with the rest of my day. I'll write more later. I have some thoughts about today's run that I haven't shared yet.