Yesterday was my first tempo run of my new training program. It called for a total of 5 miles, including warm up and cool down, with 3 miles @ 9:28/mile. It did not go well.
First, let me get the excuses out of the way—it was warm (mid-70s), it was humid (strong chance of thunderstorms), and it was windy (S 20 MPH, gusts to 30 MPH). Also, miles 1 and 2 of the 3 mile tempo run were too fast: 9:22/1st mile, and 9:16/2nd mile. Mile 3 ended up at a 9:32 pace. I only did .18 mile of my 1 mile cool down, and I did that walking.
This is the first time I haven't completed a scheduled run, and it really bothered me yesterday. Okay, the thunderstorm that blew in as I was in the last quarter mile of my tempo run did have a little to do with me not finishing the full 5 miles, but still... I even tried telling myself HTFU!