running in the dark - just can't avoid it

blah blah blah daylight savings is so great. sure it gives me an extra hour of sleep technically, but now it also ensures that i run in the dark whether it's before or after work. boo winter.

i got in my 5 recovery/shake out run today after work, the sun set in the first mile leaving me for 4 dark miles. i am definitely feeling yesterday's 18-miler. i guess it's not as bad as it could be because i really don't feel that bad, but i am a little sore in some random places and i could feel the lactate in my leg muscles as i ran. my legs were slightly stiff this morning when i woke up but they loosened up as i was getting ready for work. my neck muscles have been sore all day, probably from bad running form yesterday? i noticed it mostly when i went to try to scratch an itch and even the light contact hurt. weird.

mile 1 - 9:26, 133
mile 2 - 10:07, 144
mile 3 - 9:44, 144
mile 4 - 10:04, 148
mile 5 - 9:32, 150

yeah my splits are slow and of course i wish they could've been more around the 9:00 range for a recovery run, but i was trying to focus more on keeping my hr in the 140s (150s on hills). i know my easy days should focus more on maintaining my 65-75% hr zone and not worrying about time. plus i figure yesterday's long run is still influencing my muscles and heart. so, basically, i'm obviously not proud of my times but i am glad i held back, took it easy, and hopefully helped my legs and body recover. tomorrow lies mile repeats and thursday a tempo run.

pm run: 5 miles, 49:00 (9:48 avg pace), avg/max hr (144/163)