Well, running in the morning is DEFINITELY the way to go! It has to be about 20 degrees cooler, and that is NOT an exaggeration! I am training for the New York City Marathon on November 1 and I'm using Focus-N-Fly, an online training program. I love it because, much like when I trained with Team in Training, they tell you how much you should do each day, intensity, etc.
Anyway, this morning I was scheduled to only do two miles, which I did not mind at all because I'm still getting used to the heat. Two days ago I did 3.5 miles at 8:00 pm and the temperature was 93 degrees and the heat index 101. I seriously thought I had melted. This morning was great because it was soooooo much cooler. I would say it's in the low 80s with humidity, but just felt better. I also picked a less traveled path. One mile into my run a deer and I spotted each other. We were on opposite sides of the road. I stopped and slowly continued forward, she stopped grazing and watched me and we did a slow walk-by with each other and continued on our way. About 200 feet later there was another deer and we had a similar encounter.
It is a gorgeous morning here in Sulphur and I thoroughly love having the time to get up and go for a run in the morning before work. The smells are great, the trees are awesome, and it is truly wonderful to live 1/4 mile from the park entrance and have the opportunity to use the park as my running grounds.
