Man is not made for defeat. A man can be destroyed but not defeated. - Ernest Hemingway

Being out of the swing the last few weeks I was not sure where my baseline was. I decided to do a moderate LT run just to ascertain my current fitness. I decided to do a LT run for between 8 and 10 miles. I started out at a slow pace for the first mile and then pushed it up to about LT - 6 BPM. This second mile was tough. My legs were aching and I had a lot of discomfort. I decide to drop back down to a slow pace for a mile and gather my thoughts. This was an easy mile but I was surprised at just how slow it was. Once the easy mile was complete I pushed back up to the prior harder level. This mile went a little better but still not firing on all cylinders. I dropped back down again a did another slow mile. I had conceded and was just going to alternate between easy and hard for the duration of the run.

I picked the pace up again and this time it clicked. I felt strong like I should. I ran the last five miles at this exertion level and even picked it up a little at the end. It was a great feeling of satisfaction to persevere and be redeemed.