By week three, our group's numbers had dwindled. Only a handful of us got together for our weekly meetup. (I will admit it was a serious challenge to make it every week and required putting my social life on hold. Bye, happy hour!) This time, we focused on tempo runs, or a "comfortably hard" running pace. After running at about an 8 of 10 in terms of effort for about an eighth of a mile, we walked back to the start line and did it again. And again. And again.
That weekend, we headed to the Dream Hotel in Hollywood for an in-person Nike Training Club session with Nike Master Trainer Kirsty Godso. It was a hot day and I was sweating even before we started to move. Kirsty is so strong and effortless that just attempting to emulate the grace she brought to some of her insane moves, like whatever this one is, was a workout in and of itself.
The next morning would be my last chance at a long run before the race. I fired up another guided run on the Nike app and set out. Muscles that seemed to have appeared overnight in my midsection were extremely sore from the HIIT session the day before, but it was a cool, sunny day, and I felt upbeat as I hit the pavement. As I ran through West Hollywood, I looked down at my watch briefly to find that I only had a few minutes left in the run. I decided to burn any leftover energy I might have, running at full force in those final moments. When my app announced I'd hit the 65-minute mark, I was completely out of steam. But to my surprise, I'd managed to run more than seven miles and average an 8'50" pace. I couldn't believe it.
