So I told you I just moved and that I now live on a hill. That'll be great for training runs, increasing muscle in my legs and all. And I think I figured out some streets to run on for longer flat stretches. I'll be trying some out tomorrow.

Escondido is an older town, so lots of streets don't have sidewalks in the neighborhoods, and many have older asphalt pathways that look like I'll have to be careful not to trip on the uneven surfaces. I'll have to balance wanting something solid under my feet but having to breathe more car exhaust on busier streets with wanting a quieter neighborhood but needing to be careful not to trip or run into a bad area of town…especially since I don't know which parts are the bad parts.

But I did finally get a run in last Thursday, two weeks from my last run where I used to live. Wow, talk about good hill training! I started with one block of flat, then one block uphill (it felt like 45 degrees up!), then one block downhill, then a four-block stretch with a more sloping hill down, then two blocks more sloping up, then one block flat, then another upright hill, straight down that hill, and then repeat the whole thing. It's 1.5 miles to make that lap around the “block” that I live on. No streets go through. So I ran it twice for 3 miles.

I have to say, all things considered, I was pretty happy with my results, just under 40 minutes doing the 5/1 run/walk that I always do. We'll see what tomorrow brings. I'm looking forward to seeing more of my new town by running through it. 🙂 And I'm really looking forward to getting back in shape!