Friday Training (The pre-work early 10k)

I was in a really nice place.  Cant remember what I was doing, how I was doing it with...but I was in a nice place.

BEEP BEEP...BEEP BEEP...BEEP BEEP

BEEP BEEP...BEEP BEEP...BEEP BEEP

BEEP BEEP...BEEP BEEP...BEEP BEEP

It was the bloody alarm on the iPhone.  Ugh.  Turned over and there it was 5:32, it had already been going off for 2 mins before I came around.  Snooze...only another 8 more mins before the 5:40 alarm went off.

Crawled out of bed.  Literally.  Tiredness didnt even register on the zombie scale at that point.  Bathroom.  Check.  Lycra.  Check.  Hi-vis gilet.  Check.  Water belt.  Check.  Trainers.  Check.  I was out the door.

The brain wasnt working but after a gentle stretch, I headed off towards Welling High St.

 

The plan was to run at a half-decent pace rather than just bimble around my usual 10k loop but I probably even went out a little quicker than usual but was feeling pretty good in all honesty. Down Welling High St into Park View Road, crossed the lights at Crook Log and turned left into Pickford Road/Lane. Sraight past Bexleyheath station and I was in cruise mode. Looking down at the Garmin told a story. Av HR was only 155 at that point, pretty stable but approaching half-way, I was comfortably cruising at 8:30 min/mile pace. The stretch from the station up to the roundabout at Long Lane has always felt like a drag but today, it absolutely flew by. Long Lane still comfortably holding pace then I hit Gypsy Road. Downhill all the way. Well for almost a mile. This wasnt cruise mode, I was flying. 

Bottom of Gypsy and into Northdown, I felt a minor little twinge in my quad so thought best to just wind down the pace again until I got back up to Upper Wickham Lane. All good. Upper Wickham Lane was feeling good again and then started to wind up the pace as I hit Wickham St and into Welling station.

Finished the 6.21 mile course in 52:01. Pretty much bang on PB pace for the most part, albeit with Northdown taken fairly conservatively. Had I not felt a twinge, I may have put the hammer down again earlier but for a 5:55am run before even the slightest bit of breakfast, I've got to be happy with that.

Further data from Strava concludes pretty much this was spot on for a tempo run.