Injury again?

Ok, last week I was running on Monday, did a Tempo (3 miles) with each mile in the 6:20s...I felt good and strong--not like I was overdoing it...

When I first had the idea, I thought of doing 6:45s...But once I got going it felt really good and so I pressed the pace to hit the 6:20s...

Bad idea.

Later, when I got back to the office, I had a sharp pain on my lower outside of my left knee--something was wrong...It only came for a few seconds and then faded away, but it was sharp (not dull like in the past). It would happen several times that day...

So I decided to take a week off. With ice and rest, it did get better over the last several days. Today is Saturday--I hope to run on Monday. But I'm going to reset the clock and start small again.

This is how I have learned to be patient though. In the past, I would try to start running too soon, and impede the healing process. Now, I'm not afraid to take a week off if I need to. I know that this is part of being a mature runner--taking the injuries when they come, and learning from them.