Back to Humid

 This fine Saturday morning was the start of what has become a very hot day. At 4:19 p.m. it's 105 degrees with a heat index of 114. This morning when I ran it was way better, only 80 degrees but also very humid. I decided to keep it reasonable and did my 5 mile routine. It went pretty well. Lots of people out before the day got steamy. I also went to the pool and relaxed for a while before coming home to mow the lawn. My take is that after all that I'm done sweating for the day.

Pounding the Pavement

 I was actually excited about running today since the temperature was in the low 90s. Humidity was high and it actually was a heat index of 100 when I walked out the door, but it didn't really feel like it. A storm was coming out of the north but stayed to the west of us, and at points it offered a little shade. I did my 5 miles again. This time I picked up the pace the last 200 yards or so of my next-to-last interval. Felt pretty good. For as humid as it was supposed to be it was a good run.

Blip

 Saturday was a running blip since my favorite pub opened back up after being closed basically since March and I spent the day there instead of running. I mean, I could have run. Being lazy seemed like a better course.

Today I got back out and did my 5 miles. My right knee has been barking again, but not too badly. I was wondering if running downhills again like I've been doing recently is causing the issue. So I walked until I got to level ground before starting up. As of now it feels good, but we'll see about tomorrow. I'm doing my best to avoid issues again. Shutting down for the winter is not going to keep working for me.

Difference

 Just like Tuesday, it sure makes a difference when the humidity is low. Today was 92 degrees with a heat index of 92. It felt great, way better than 99 with a heat index of 108. I ran my 5 miles, except this time I started my GPS at the place I've always started it when I ran. That means I walked about .15 miles before starting the clock, so I actually ran a little over 4 of those miles. I think. Regardless, it was a good run.

Spider Bite

 Last Wednesday I hung out late on the back patio, standing in the grass, sitting at the table, and somewhere along the way a spider bit me. Not sure when or where, but when I woke up the next morning I had a red spot and bite mark at the base of my right big toe. And it bit the hell out of me. The swelling in my foot on Thursday was way too much to put on a shoe, and it stayed that way pretty much until Sunday. I monitored it closely, wondering a couple of times if I would end up at urgent care, but the redness never got too bad. The worst part was the itching.

Today I felt just fine and went out for a lovely 5-miler. Temperatures were in the 100s every day last week, but a big storm blew through Sunday night and knocked down the heat. Today it was 95 degrees when I went out, and the heat index was...95. That hasn't happened much, if at all, recently. And it actually felt that way with low humidity for a change. I was glad to get out after missing a couple of runs. And of course now I'm watching out for spiders.

There Goes Another Fiver

 99 degrees at 5:30 p.m. when I went outside, with a heat index of 108. Fortunately there was shade, and even a few clouds at opportune times. Today's run was much better than a few days ago. Out of the 5 miles today I probably ran 80% or close to it. I also tried to run slower, especially mid-run. It worked out okay. The streams were very low due to lack of rain lately, and some of the feeder branches were completely dry. No sign of rain in the forecast, just a lot more heat. It is definitely the dog days of summer.

Whoa

 Saturday morning was my favorite: humid. As usual that did not go well. Although it also could have been the three previous nights of beer and scotch, but let's just say it was the humidity. I started out well, also as usual. I think part of the reason the first half was good was because I was running into the breeze, which helped quite a bit. After the turn I had the wind at my back and that didn't help nearly as much. I took more frequent walk breaks until the final mile, when I walked all but about a third of a mile. Overall I went 6 miles but it was rarely pretty.

Nice Evening

Work kept me at the computer until after 5:30 p.m., at which time the temp was 92 degrees and the humidity low. I barely even sweated even though I ran most of the first mile. Overall I went 5 miles and ran probably 80% of it. It was a really nice evening, especially for early August in Texas.

Walk Then Run

Yesterday morning (Saturday) I started out with a walk with The Wife. It was a lovely cloudless start to the day. We walked a bit over 2 miles, and then I went back out for a 4-miler on my own. I thought about going farther but ended up running more than my usual, at least lately, and probably ran about as much of that as I have been on my five-mile outings. Felt good overall, and by the time I was finished I'd been outside for probably ninety minutes. Cloud rolled in later in the day but it was a nice beginning to the weekend.