Treadmill 5k's

I hate the treadmill. I refuse to run more than about 4 or 5 miles on one. I get so bored I can't take it. However, I think they are very good for training. They teach you to maintain pace. You can't be a slacker on a treadmill. You know when you slow down. I decided if the snow and cold were going to keep me from outside I would hit the treadmill at work and go all out for a 5k.

On Tuesday I pushed myself to my limit. My muscles were not exhausted but my cardiovascular limit was reached. It took me about 10 minutes or so to regain my composure. I ran 3.1 miles in 21:28. This is 15 seconds better than my best 5k race time of 21:43. That doesn't impress me much because the 5k had hills.

I took Wednesday off due to the snow. On Thursday I did it again but this time, when I finished I felt much better. I don't know what the difference was other than I didn't eat as much beforehand on Thursday. I ran it in 21:15 (6:51 pace) which is 13 seconds faster than on Tuesday. That doesn't sound like much but over 3.1 miles thats about 4 seconds faster for each mile.

One other little note. I recently left my atm card in the atm machine at the bank. I realized it was gone but didn't know where at first so I canceled it and ordered another. Anyway, today I had to go inside the gas station to pay with cash there were about 3 people ahead of me. They all bought cartons of cigarettes. Not packs but cartons. I was thinking about my quasi-obsession with eating healthy and being healthy and these people were looking for there next cig. They may outlive me but you just realize that these people are slaves to the cigarettes just like I am in a way to running.

I then went to McD to get a salad. The guy in front of me ordered two mcchickens, a cheeseburger, fries and a coke. That's about 2000 calories. Now I don't know what this guy was doing that day but anyway... he was about my size maybe a little heavier it was hard to tell with the coat. Anyway my day out at lunch made me wonder why do I try so hard doing what I do. Well the main reason is shown in the photo below.