Running for time

I didn't get the chance to run my 2.25 or 3.25 miles today but I did have the opportunity to run for time. I went down to the local high school track with my wife and kids to run a mile for time. I'd never run before for time, well, at least not in the last year, so I was looking forward to it.

I wanted to run a mile under 8 minutes. I know that isn't exactly the world's fastest mile but I felt that if I could run it under 8 and document it, it would be a good place to start for me. I haven't gotten a watch so I took a digital recorder and had my wife turn it on when I started and off when I stopped. I do need to invest in a watch, though, and soon.

The run didn't start off greatly. I had a mental block or something creep up when I stepped onto the track. For some reason, four laps seemed really long but from my front door to the one-mile mark on my morning runs doesn't seem that long. That mental block screwed me up.

I never really got into a rhythm. I ran as I normally do but I felt discombobulated from the start. It's difficult to explain, really. I felt fine physically. I ran okay and wasn't out of breath at all. But when I went for the high gear, it wasn't there as consistently as I would have wanted it to be. And I blame the track.

Whatever the reason, I wasn't exactly firing on all cylinders. But as I rounded the final corner I did find that high gear after all. I told my wife to get ready as she had been walking around the track as the girls rode their tricycles in front of her.

I sprinted as hard as I could, not worrying about conserving any strength for any further running. I crossed the mile mark and put my hands up to let my wife know that I was done. I turned around and walked back to her to check how much time my recorder had recorded.

7:38

Okay, it wasn't great but it was under 8 minutes. I was worried that I wouldn't finish under 8 minutes and had actually convinced myself that I wasn't going to cross it. But I did. And now at least I have some sort of foundation for future runs.