Bit Of A Minor Breakthrough

   Back when I first started running, I ran and I ran and I ran. I ran regardless of the weather and I ran if it was my day to run, even if I didn't feel quite like it. I was a newbie runner in my late fifties and eventually I found myself running 5K in the mid thirty minute range.
  Then a whole bunch of life happened.
   I came down with PF, cured that but then it was a whole string of medical issues and all manner of distractions and then, before you know it, it's a couple of years later and I'm running 5K in the low forties---my last timed race back in the summer had me clocked at 41:27.
   Back in August, though, things began to change.
   I decided to stop eating meat, for one thing. This was more a matter of conscience than anything and I'd been thinking about doing it for a long time. I also decided to re-dedicate myself to running consistently.
   When I combined these two things, two more things started to happen---I lost weight and I got faster! Who knew that eating healthier and getting regular exercise might lead to some kind of weight loss and increased performance? Weird, eh??
   I generally run the same 5K route in my neighbourhood and starting in late August the time it took me to do this started decreasing by 15 to 30 seconds a session. I basically had to work my ass off for those seemingly minimal gains and I always had the feeling that the next time out would be a disaster. Except for the occasional blip (getting attacked by a dog, stopping my Garmin at a stoplight and then forgetting to restart it), there were no disasters!

From this....

   The one run I did which resulted in the smallest improvement was, oddly, the one run where I didn't stop for a walk break. The walk breaks had been happening less and less and I decided that I would attempt a whole 5K running. I managed to do this and took a look down at the Garmin and discovered I'd only dropped five seconds by not walking. It then occurred to me that the occasional very short walk break then enabled me to run faster afterwards whereas, without one, I needed to slow down and pace myself. I vowed at that point to take a walk break whenever I absolutely needed to.

...to this!

   Yesterday was a bit of a breakthrough. I actually ran a full minute faster than the previous time and this brought me down to the mid-thirties again. Kinda back where I started! Not only that, there's been the odd time lately when, if I'd run early in the day, I actually felt like running again, later on. This was the clearest sign to me that I was back to where I really wanted to be.
   From here, it's kind of uncharted territory. My biggest goal for the longest time has been to break the 30 minute mark in a 5K. Though maybe not impossible, this has certainly seemed improbable. Until now, anyway...