This is now the longest I’ve ever run, and it hurt. I tried to get to a place where I could run without cars, and without hills. I settled on the D&L trail from Weissport up to and through Jim Thorpe, eight miles out, then back.
It was a good idea in theory, but heavy rain soaked the trail, so each step was like pushing off from a cloud. Add that up for a few miles, and by mile five or so my thighs were killing me.
I walked a few times, stretched, ran slower… nothing seemed to help. I was eating well, hydrated, warm – but the legs just weren’t having it today.
My Apple Watch also gave me problem, stopping my run at mile eight for some reason. I didn’t even know until about five minutes later when it vibrated and asked if I wanted to start a new outdoor run (it “auto-detected” my “new” run). This pissed me off, and I think I’m done with using the Apple Watch for actual training.
I almost ended my run with about five miles to go. Then at about four miles. Finally I found some momentum, though slow, and ran the last three or so miles.
Then my watch didn’t want to let me end my run, and instead wanted me to eject water or something ? We’re done here, Apple.
I keep remembering from the posts I read on Instagram, from pro runners, that one bad workout doesn’t ruin all the work you’ve done. I held onto that the last few miles.
Once home I showered and ate a little. My stomach wasn’t super hungry even after all those miles. I napped. The next morning, I felt fine. No stiffness, no issues walking down the stairs, nothing. So while the run might have sucked, it definitely built some fitness.