Nothing heartfelt about this morning … No shorts … way too much wind. Think Spring only takes you so far … especially at 28* with 10-12 mph winds whipping around every direction.
Yesterday, I finished up around 2:30pm. This morning I hit the streets at 7:30am. I generally don’t like stacking runs within a 24-hour period, but I wanted to take advantage of feeling somewhat refreshed after a decent night’s sleep (miracle, huh?). Knowing that today would be a recovery run provided the added impetus to get out the door early.
Another advantage to getting out quickly after a longish or hard run is to get the blood moving before lactic acid / stiffness set in. My legs were not overextended yesterday so I really didn’t anticipate any issues. Notwithstanding my pre-run physical state, I nearly created a giant problem by testing the limits of common sense. Whenever possible I avoid back-to-back runs on asphalt. The recent snowstorm pounded NYC (and most of the country) and made the Reservoir and Bridle Paths almost impossible to traverse. Typically within a few days, temps warm up enough to melt most, if not, all snow. Old Man Winter is not cooperating this week. The snow is densely packed and, in most cases, has become an impromptu ice skating rink.
With this as a backdrop, of course I went right to the Reservoir Path to give it a go. For the first time, I was the only runner on the path at prime running time. I guess that was a sign of how dicey the conditions were and also indicative of my stubbornness. Between the combination of dumb luck and the Grandpa Shuffle, I never fell. The only upside is that I was forced to go beyond slow. Fear tends to concentrate the mind. After one fate-testing loop, I decided the risk outweighed any theoretical reward and shifted the balance of the run to the Outer Loop (asphalt).
The balance was uneventful except that I wanted to incorporate some hill work into an otherwise easy run. I decided to hit Harlem Hill and another hilly spot I usually have trouble with at a hard(ish) effort … likely at HM pace. The only way to improve is to increase reps, right? I didn’t do repeats, but felt it was a decent re-introduction to hill work. I do “enjoy” the fun of Harlem Hill on Thursday night tempos, but believe I need significant work in this area.
Overall, 9 miles at 10:02 pace (told you I was rocking the Grandpa Shuffle on the ice path). 
Happy Valentine’s Day!