4 Miles Is Still Easier Than Boot Camp

There's another heat advisory in Cincinnati today. So, naturally, I decided to take my first "long run" this morning. And it went well! Yay!

I ran on the Five Mile Trail in Anderson. It's actually 4 miles from where I started (it's named after the street it starts on and follows for a bit ... though it may be 5 miles if you start at the Anderson Center). It's a really, really nice trail! It wasn't really crowded, but I didn't go more than maybe 5 minutes without passing someone, and it got a bit more populated as I went. Plus it runs through a wooded "residential" area (a handful of yards butt up against the trail).

Well, I had been afraid to take a long run by myself because I knew I had to go to a longer trail to make myself keep going for more than 3 miles -- short trail = short run. And I didn't want to ask someone to go with me and risk that he or she have to speed up or slow down to stay with me, but running this one by myself this one was great. I loved it. It's crazy hilly but it's in the part of town I grew up in, so I felt really safe. I even saw my high school from the trail's turn-around. Apparently I was too early for the band camp kids to be up on the field, but I did hear the drum line a little later. Awe, don't you all wish you were at band camp right now? Riiiiight.

Anyway, I took lots of pictures along the way, so enjoy!

Near the beginning, from the top of the hill at the Anderson library.
You go all the way down this one and up the other side. Whew!

The bridge that crosses over Hunley. Very cool.

Looking over Hunley from the bridge.

From the other side of the bridge.

A happy sight! Newtown Road, the half-way mark for me.

From Newtown Road. I took a mini-break before tackling the first painful hill.
The rest of the hills were just a bit more moderate than this one.

I'm pretty sure this sign was for me. I mean, I do have to contain myself a little sometimes.

Hill. Bridge. Oi!

So, I did it all in a little over an hour. My interval timer app stopped a little before I was finished and I did take an un-timed break at midway, and paused for some pictures that took a few seconds. Not bad, eh?

I was a sweaty mess by the time I got back to my car, but I still wasn't as wet, nasty, and exhausted as I was after an hour of boot camp. It's so weird to think that, but it's true ... an hour of boot camp is harder than an hour of running.

Oh yeah, I ran/walked for 2 minute/1 minute intervals. But I did walk the big hills. I tried running them for a little, but my lungs weren't up for it.

Next weekend's long run is the WCPO BigK 5K in Covington and downtown Cincy. I believe my friend Sarah is joining me, and possibly Jeff. Yay! I'm so ready for this one. I'm confident I'll have a better finishing time than the Redlegs Run for Home 5K this Spring.

That's all for today! Check in next time for some weight loss talk. I've figured out how to share my progress without telling my real weight. Forgive me, I'm still not ready to share!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!