Day 24 - Tuesday 6th July: Milton 5

Run: 4.95 miles
Time: 41 minutes 35 seconds



Phew - a fast one today, though surprisingly it didn't feel fast. It felt good, but I wish I'd hydrated better earlier in the day, as I was thirsty after only a mile or so. I kind of wanted to beat last week's 43 minutes, but was resigned to not putting in a great performance because I'd only had one cup of tea and a pint of water during the morning. However, I made the first mile in under nine minutes, and just got faster on miles 2 & 3. I kept thinking about how fast I ran the Birmingham Half marathon (about an 8min 20sec pace), so subconsciously I think my legs got the hint, as that's the kind of pace I managed through miles 2-5.

Afterwards I was both amazed and strangely disappointed to have set a PB for this route - knocking 1½ minutes off last week's time. Why did I feel let down instead of elated? I can't put my finger on it - but perhaps it was because next time I want to beat this time, it's going to be harder - because I've raised the bar higher than I was expecting. Beating a time in small increments is achievable, whereas beating a time when I've already knocked a sizeable chunk off (3.5%) makes me think I'll have to work harder next time, just to match the same PB (let alone beat it).

Then again, I may just surprise myself and manage the elusive 40 minutes!