Miles for the week: 15 (3/4/3/5) TRAINING WEEK ONE
5 miles LSD: 58:12, av. heart rate 139; splits supposedly 10:12, 10:10, 11:04, 13:04, 12:32; RPE 3-5
Weight: 116
Resting heart rate: 49
Fitness test: 49

Setbacks on resting heart rate and fitness test, but I think it's lack of sleep. This was production week for Drop Dead, so I was up late waiting for Jonathan, out late after performances, etc.

I did my long run yesterday, because we had company staying over Saturday night, and it was yet another wonderful day for a run and yet another great run! I was concerned I went out too fast, and I still think I should have taken it slower, but 139 average heart rate is the lowest I've ever had for ANY run EVER.

But my Forerunner GPS that I was so excited about says that the run was 5.08 miles, and that contradicts both a car tripmeter and Microsoft Streets & Trips, which both say 4.8 miles. I wish the Forerunner were right, because that would mean I'm running faster than I thought, but I'm afraid it's not. And that level of inaccuracy makes it practically useless. Bummer! I am going to try it on my upper arm and see if that helps... The GarminF newsgroup also says that leaving it outside for 15 minutes before a run so it can maximally lock on to satellites can help. There's even an amplifier antenna you can get, but that sounds too complicated & expensive to me.

On this run the only form thing I was working on was high stride rate on the downhills. I found this long discussion of various techniques and that seems to be what most people agreed was helpful. Since most of Steamtown is downhill, I need to be thinking about that.

New wildflowers this week: Canada thistle, some kind of white aster, viburnum, daylily, St. John's wort, sumac, wild basil, lesser pyrola, wild parsnip. Honeysuckles berries are ripening. The flower I couldn't identify last week (because I thought the leaves were simple when they are divided) is white avens. And some corrections: what I thought was wild sunflower was actually goatsbeard, and the phlox is dame's rocket. Thank you to my co-worker Mary Beth who shares my love for wildlife and knows more about it!

- posted by Hilary @ 12:35 PM