Finding my Way

Last night I went back to the Fells in an attempt to regain my trail running stripes.  I took a few precautions this time to avoid the fiasco that happened last time; getting lost, coming out after dark without a light, no food or water.  This time I made a few changes:

• Started and ended at Sheepfold, which cut about 2 miles total from the loop
• Carrying my running belt with a map, flashlight, phone, and water
• Planned out my route before starting and stuck to it

The run went pretty well, about 5.5 miles averaging around 11:30 miles on some fairly rough trails, but I did end up with the same pain in my left foot that I need to address.  Right now I'm resting and icing it, but some stretches and exercises are probably in order.  This run was on the new Asolo trail running shoes, but I'm not sure they're ideal.  They offer more cushioning than the Innov-8s but I don't think they fit as well.  More tinkering is in order.

The weekly trail run is a nice addition to my cross training.  I now have a 5.5 mile and a 7.5 mile loop so I can tune it to how much time I have or how I'm feeling. One thing I am not using for the trail running is my MP3 player.  It's nice to listen to the sounds of nature, and it's good to be able to hear the mountain bikers coming up behind me.