Jun 20 - p

FUEL:
I wonder if the oranges are starting to go bad... coming up on 1.5 weeks now.  I'm up to 20.5 two-fist-sized oranges.  They weren't little ones.  We'll see how tomorrow goes.  I don't have all that many left.  I froze half a giant box, and I have half a box left, so I ate a box.  That's a lot of oranges.

Also in fueling news... It's interesting how post-run, I crave high-quality, nutrient-packed foods.  Fruits, and sometimes veggies.  Sometimes protein powder.  At the end of the work day or right after work, it's the opposite.  I want junk-style food.  Not terrible, but carb+fat combos, like chips or goldfish and cheese.  Salt and crunch.  Strange, that after sitting all day, that's what I want.   After running, I want the opposite... juicy & sweet & light.  Oranges hit the spot, even though I had one at dinner and one at lunch already. 

LIFE:

Halfway planned on waking up at 5:30am to run outside again this morning.  Did not happen.  Slept at 1am, so didn't quite work out.  Woke at 7:00 instead.  A groggy start to the day getting ready, but lots to do at work.  Got a good bit done today.  Busy week ahead, but I should be able to get a good chunk off my to-do list by Independence Day.  That list has been growing and growing.  I wack off an item every now and then, but 3 usually grow in its place each time. 

FIT:

Anyway, got the run in after work.  The outside thing wasn't going to happen... 95 degrees at 7pm, 92 degrees at 8pm or something like that.  Since I couldn't get the muscle activation variation on the grass, I wanted hills on the treadmill. 

3 x [0.5 @ 1 degree, 0.5 @ 5 degree] @ 7.0mph, followed by two miles of stretching out my legs with some speed.  Hard to hold at the end due to mechanical issues in my legs, but I compensated for the jarring forces on my legs by swinging my arms more and made it through.  Dunno what it is.  I need a deep tissue massage or something.  I've been stretching and rolling, but I may need to get in there and dig around a bit to work out the trouble spots.  Last 2 miles were at 7:59 and 7:32 pace @ the usual 1 degree (after 3 miles at 7mph = 8:34). 

I had been crying a little right before the run.  Family issues.  Tough when you just don't know what to do.  Feel helpless.  The run helped, though.  It clears your mind of everything, all the junk.  So that you have the mental capacity to deal with it and try to help.  After the run, I felt like "okay, I can take it on now".  It's like a battery getting re-charged or a cup getting filled.

5.0 in 41:15, 8:15 ave.

The hills weren't that tough.  I think it was mostly just the minor kinks in my legs. I can do something harder next time.  Even a little bit of speedwork or hillwork will help, though, so this was good.  It's good to ease into something new, in any case.  This is just the second hill session, so don't wanna jump into it too quickly or recklessly.

Oh, by the way, while it's possible (based on that one comparison) that the treadmill doesn't factor pace into its calorie count, it seems like incline may be factored in.  In this 5-mi run, it counted 425 Cal, vs. 405 like the other two 5ers.

Ooh, just checked http://www.hillrunner.com/training/tmillchart.php and saw that 7.0mph @ 5 incline = 7:19 pace.  Not bad.