16mi Coyote Creek (+90C, Full Sun)

Pretty grueling. This morning we ran the longest of our weekend 'long runs' - 16mi along the Coyote Creek Trail in South San Jose.

It was supposed to have cooled-off by today (Saturday); instead it was the hottest day of the week. When I finished after ~2.5hrs, at only 10:30am, the temperature was above 90C, and a lot of the run had been in full sun. That took its toll. I went out too fast. Through ten miles, I was on cloud nine - felt great. And as it was I finished 16mi in a respectable time. But that last 4-6mi were very, very hard. I had to walk most of mile 15, and ran mile 16 only because I willed myself to finish running rather than walking.

I learn something on every long run - this morning I learned two things: 1) you need to dial it back a bit when it's warm, and 2) on a long run you HAVE TO run a reasonable pace from the beginning and resist the urge to run fast through the first few miles just because it feels good. You pay for this mistake during the last miles when your legs are done.

Otherwise, you know what? This was the longest single distance I've ever run, and, after drinking a lot of water since the end of the run, I feel good and I realize that 2.5hrs was very respectable for me for that distance. I've come a long way in a couple of months, although I still have to say that the idea of running another 10mi beyond what I did this morning remains a daunting thought.