September Run Stats: Speed Returning?

September was the second month in a row that I didn't even reach 100 miles. Unusual for me. Felt bad at first, but I was also injury free, healthy, and happy. Hard to beat that! And I ran one race...and it went well. Only an 8K, but I ran solid from start to finish (36:42). My main goal was to run evenly by power (watts) and not worry about pace or heart rate. It worked. Held myself back at the start, but forced me to push a little in the middle. I was 24th overall out of 554 runners and 3rd in my age group (50-59). Happy. So, maybe I am not gaining endurance, but my speed is coming back. I'll take that swap. For now. Here are statistics comparing August to September:

	August 2021	Sept 2021
Activities	19	19
Total Distance	97.81 mi	92.56 mi
Average Distance	5.15 mi	4.87 mi
Max Distance	32.48 mi	12.48 mi
Total Activity Time	18:21 h:m	14:24 h:m
Avg Time	57:58 m:s	45:30 m:s
Total Elev Gain	3,540 ft	2,910 ft
Average Pace	11:16 min/mi	9:20 min/mi
Average Heart Rate	132 bpm	139 bpm
Average Run Cadence	158 spm	160 spm

Same number of total runs, about same mileage. Biggest difference was longest run (33 vs 13 miles) and average speed (11:16 vs 9:20 minute/mile). I always consider myself an ultrarunner. Now I'm thinking I'm potentially a good short distance racer. Mile, 5k, 8k, 10k. Maybe half-marathon too--that counts as short, right? I'll eventually return to marathons and ultras. For now, I'll still focus on the shorter races. I have a 5k road race and 5.5 mile trail race at the end of October. More power to me.