Tempo Tuesday - Burnaby Lake

Since the race on Friday I have run up and down Mt. Seymour (Sunday long run) and cruised a 10k recovery run (Monday). Tonight I was meeting Simon at Burnaby Lake for a 10k tempo. I ran in the new Brooks Glycerin last night for the first time and loved them. I am not sure if it was the shoe that made me feel good or if I am just starting to feel more like a runner, but the easy run last night was fun. I was buoyed by the way I felt last evening, but was unsure of how 10k at 3:30/km on the trail would feel, especially since holding 3:24/km in a race was difficult a mere four days ago.

Sonja and I got out of the car around 4:30, meeting Simon, Katrina and Lucy in the parking lot of Burnaby Lake. After some catch up, Sonja set out for her workout, Lucy and Katrina made way to the playground, and Simon and I began our 2k warm up. I like Burnaby Lake, although it is no Elk/Beaver Lake in Victoria. The loop is very twisty with very soft ground and a few very long straight-aways. This makes it a challenging loop as there is never really any point at which you feel rhythm, which is Jay's secret to success.

Simon and I fell right into 3:30 pace from the start and it felt good for me. This was a little surprising because after the past few days of running, I would have expected a little let down. What I found was that I felt strong and comfortable, although the run was not easy. I was able to hold pace throughout the run, although I had to do a lot of self-talk in the last 2k to keep it together. The run was a solid confidence builder heading into Scotiabank in a couple of weeks and one I could not have done it on my own.

I am looking forward to workout on Thursday and meeting up with the rest of the blue train after their great showing last Friday. 3rd through 8th and a bunch right after that. What a group.