Gravel vs Pavement hmmmmmm gravel gets stuck in the bottom of my running shoes and sometimes little pieces of gravel end up inside my shoe but I can definitely see a difference on the pounding of my joints. It's a bit softer than the pavement. Running on pavement is much more stable than the crushed rock but I don't like the traffic!! So what did I do this morning, I decided to run a different route and to run on pavement instead of the crushed rock. Besides almost getting run over by a O.C. Transit bus, my run was good. I actually found it allot easier running on pavement as I didn't have to brace myself as much and I didn't have to be careful not to twist an ankle.
| Tues May 25 08:00am |  | Temp 22 | Wind | W12 | Humidity 58 |
Today's Stats: 5miles, 8.06km in 51:24, avg pace 6:23/km burned 744 cal, avg heart rate of 154 bpm, I felt pretty good, the first half of the run was on pavement so that went pretty smooth but I took the trail on the way back found it a lot harder. Meaning I had to concentrate more, stabilize my footing on the gravel and not to mention the trail has lots of up and down elevations to deal with, so I was a bit slower on the second half of the run. But over all a good run. Didn't push myself to hard today either as I'm trying to keep my runs withing the parameters of the training program that says '5 miles easy'. My time is a bit slow looking at my avg pace but it's within the range of what I've been running that last few weeks, so all is good.
Hi Laura, of course, like Sonya, Dan is absolutely right. It is about time, after your race, that you start to mix things up. Not only running on pavement but especially running on hills. So this means finding some real quite streets in your subdivision whieh has little traffic and some rolly-polly hills to start with.
ReplyDeleteFor example, my 6 mile run consists of running through UNB, down past the gym, out through the gates and down the trail to Waterloo Row, up the Green to Rookwood Ave., through O'Dell Park to King's College and then home. That is my easy day. My hard day is the same route reversed and you know that means I have to run up through UNB, past the gym and across in front of the SUB. to King's College Rd. and home. Also, once a week I run the 5 Bridges, which is 10.5 miles. So far I have run them 6 times. The easy route is down the Princes Margaret. The hard route is the other way and up the Princess Margaret. I went out Monday @ 30 @ 1:30 p.m. Got a nice sunburn and a fabulous run. Wow, am I ready for the Cabot Trail or what.
Anyway, Honey, I say all this to say that you must vary your runs. However, you didn't need this for the first 6 to 8 weeks. You do seem to be stronger now but just start with small hills. Thanks, Dan, for the help!!!
Cheers, Phil.