I didn't think I could cover 10 miles but I did just that this morning. I drove out a route of about 8.5 miles around Griffith Park knowing that some of the trails would add some distance to the route.
I set out at a slow pace and took a few short walking breaks along the way to make sure not to burn out too soon. I felt strong, confident, but at times tired and would have to break through. My ipod - having been fully restored and re-calibrated - kept my pace on track for the long run.
The longest run of my life. Only 3 miles short of the distance I will cover on Sunday, November 16th in Pasadena for their inaugural marathon.
I reached the parking lot at mile 9 and realized that I had the energy and the resolve to keep going and get in another mile. Again, I am stunned. I did it! 10 Miles. 10 freakin' miles!
And here's a few photos that I took on my walking breaks to share my 10 mile run with all of you:
View of Mile 1 and Mile 9

Me at Mile 2

View of Mile 3 behind me - this is the uphill section

View of Mile 5 behind me - coming down the hills

View of Mile 7 ahead of me - the dirt trail portion of my run

It was incredible. Admittedly, I was a bit nauseous after running for 1 hour and 49 minutes and yet extremely hungry too. Three hours later and I'm camped out on the couch covered in tiger balm to recoup. Glowing in my accomplishment of the day. Definitely need to do some yoga this weekend to stretch out my legs.
Hope your weekends are as fabulous as mine!