20 miles in 2:39:23, 7:58/mi. After dropping our truck off for a service, ran the Puyallup Riverwalk trail, then jumped onto the Foothills trail and headed out towards Orting and back. Could've done without the winds, but the rains held off and I even got a little sun, so all is forgiven. Forgot my HR strap in the rush out the door. Aimed for 8:21/mi pace for the first half, 7:39/mi pace for the second half. Around 10 miles in, inside of left hamstring started feeling a bit strained and tight. This progressed until eventually it started cramping (or what I figure is cramping, never having had cramped leg muscles before), so that I was forced to stop and massage it for a few seconds every couple of miles after 14 or so. Fortunately, it didn't seize completely (a long walk back) nor did it really affect my pace (aside from the quick stops), so I'll chalk this up to experience. I took no water with me, it was a bit warmer out today than it has been (~52F to start), and I added a new exercise to my core routine that I think worked my poor little hammies more than they're used to, so my left one started crying uncle today. Otherwise, a good solid run. The course I ran was pretty flat and subconsciously I found myself doubting my flat-course running skills about halfway through. Decided enough of that garbage, that I was just *making* myself poor at it, and lo and behold, managed my target pace without too much strain for the last 10. I really need to get this mental "I can't/I'm not good/This is hard" stuff under control, so I will focus on positive thinking on my hard/long runs from now on to see if it helps. Afterwards, I reflected on how 10 months after my first marathon, I'd just completed a long run at under the goal pace I'd set for that race easily and afterwards went about the rest of my day. It certainly helps for generating positive thoughts. Asics GT 2120 - 33 miles. | 