I'm a day late with this entry.
I went out after work Thursday night for my planned 10k. It was pretty chilly - about 45, and dropping. I put on two long-sleeved shirts and a pair of gloves, but stuck with regular running shorts, figuring I'd warm up soon enough. When I first started out I wondered if I should have dressed a little warmer, but ultimately it all worked out.
The hardest part of the run was getting over my feeling of fatigue. It had been a hard day - in fact a hard four days - at work, and it seemed like such a struggle to get going. For the first 3+ miles I had constant thoughts of just tossing in the towel. Fortunately, I finally purged that listless feeling around 4 miles, and from there on seemed to get stronger. Since I was feeling good, I decided I'd do my weekly long run right then. Other motivation came from knowing the weekend weather was supposed to be cold and wet, and Saturday's schedule was complicated by workmen who'd be in the house laying carpet.
I'm not sure how or why the feeling of fatigue went away, but once it did I immediately settled into a comfortable pace. I felt strong. I wasn't watching my GPS, but I knew I had to be running 9s or under. Had it been a little warmer, and daylight, I might have gone farther than I did. I ended up with 8.1 miles in 1:14:03, which is a 9:09 pace. My last four miles were all around 8:50, and they all felt very good.