slowing down

Wow, did I run slow this morning...

M and I have been running together (with the jogger) for several weeks now but this morning he and our son stayed in while I went out in the 40 something degree weather for a little run. I decided to run an old favorite loop that is approximately 4 miles. This particular loop was a staple during marathon training. If nothing else, I made sure I got in this loop as a minimum. The first 2.25+ miles of it I used to run in less than 20 minutes. This morning it took me 24 minutes and I didn't even run all of it. I took a little walk break up the big hill to slow down my heart rate and another one later on in the run. My total distance was 3.34 miles and I averaged just over an 11 minute mile pace. Good grief. Wasn't I just running 8:20s not that long ago??