I walked the uphills and ran the downhills. My average pace wasn't spectacular, but since my left leg really didn't complain at all, and my bandaged right ankle didn't force me to stop, I'm pretty pleased.
I felt great throughout, and great at the end. That is a spectacular feat in and of itself.
Now for the complaint. I ran with a local running group (I'm out of town, and thus not with my people). These people are amazing runners, as was demonstrated by how many times they each lapped me. But, I work very hard at not comparing myself to others. For every single person that passed me by, I offered positive reinforcement; I am nothing if not a great cheerleader during runs. Almost none of them offered me positive reinforcement in return.
Kids, I give what I require in return. So when I'm huffing and puffing and loudly proclaiming things like, "WAY TO GO! KEEP IT UP! GO GIRL! YOU'RE AWESOME! GREAT JOB!" it's not just because I want to encourage you. I require positive reinforcement. Running is ridiculously difficult. It seems to me, if you're doing something hard and you see someone else working hard too, you should occasionally cheer them on. When I run at home, without fail, when I am passed by other runners, they always cheer me on. Even when I'm not training with my team. These people here were wholly unsupportive as I ran. And that sucked.
But, regardless of the almost complete lack of positive reinforcement (after the third time of me cheering some on, they did reciprocate), I think I had a great run. Not my best run, but pretty fucking great.
It doesn't look steep, but I promise it is!
nearing the top
thumbs up for a great run!
the other side
I did one full lap, then went almost to the end of the bridge (I knew if I got off the bridge, I'd quit prematurely), then went back to the top and back down, for a lap and a half. I then did repeats until I hit my goal of one hour, which worked out to four miles.
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