We Bought A Zoo!!

We bought a zoo!!  No, of course not.  However, I joined a gym!  I did a 6.23 mile run (50:06, 8:02 pace) around the neighborhood this past Sunday.  I took Monday off.  Tuesday rolled around and it was pretty miserable outside.  Lots of rain, wind, and cold temperatures.  If we are in for another winter like last year's, I wanted to have options.  I prefer running outdoors, especially in warmer weather, but running on the snow and ice (mostly, the ice) is not that fun and something I wasn't too keen on repeating on a regular basis.  Don't get me wrong!  Running after a snowstorm can be quite beautiful and exhilarating.  But in the days after the storm, when the snow turns to ice and then slush and then massive puddles on the side of the roads, it can be downright treacherous.

I didn't want to take Tuesday as another rest day so I moseyed (yep) over to Dolphin Fitness to see what kind of specials they had.  I like Dolphin the best out of all the gyms in the area.  It's one of the least expensive.  Lucille Roberts is cheaper than Dolphin, but the equipment is limited.  I always had to wait for a treadmill and then once I got on, they only allow you to run thirty minutes.  Thanks, but no thanks.  Bally's is pretty inexpensive, too, but they have valet parking.  Enough said.  Dolphin is no frills.  You just go, work out, and leave.  There's no bullshit.

Lucky for me, Kerry was working at the front desk that day.  She watched the baby in the nursery at the gym last winter.  The baby loved her.  In fact, when she would get mad at me she would mutter under her breath, "Kerry hates you."  Sweet, huh?  Anyway, I told Kerry I wanted a temporary membership to hold me over through the winter.  I got four months for $175, about $43 per month.  I didn't waste any time and jumped on the treadmill.  I ran 5.1 miles with 5 x 400m strides in 41:05, an 8:03 pace.

Wednesday wasn't looking too promising either.  I went back to the gym and ran another 5 miles on the treadmill.  This time I did a tempo run between a 7.2 and 8.4 speed.  I finished in 37:06, a 7:25 pace.  This was actually almost a minute faster than my 5 miler PR at the Garden City Turkey Trot last year.  Interesting...

I took Thursday off and then ran 8.08 miles this morning through town.  I ran without my watch because I wanted to take it nice and easy without any time pressures.  I can't help but try to keep my pace up when I have the watch.  This is fine a couple of times a week, but the rest of my runs should be easy.  I'm too competitive even with myself, therefore I need to be completely in the dark about my progress.  Pathetic, I know.

So tomorrow morning I have my first race since the Brooklyn Half Marathon.  The Petite Pacer, the Emerging Runner, and I are running the Jingle All the Way 5k in Seaford.  I'm curious to see what my time will be after taking it easy for the past eight months.  Wish me luck!  And if you're running this race, be sure to say hello!