Aside from nailing a goal in a big race, there isn't much more exhilarating than completing a hard workout in the same fashion. That's exactly what I did this evening. What made it even better was that I had a less than stellar long run on Sunday.
I wanted to bike yesterday on my off day, but it was just too windy. I'm not devoted enough to ride in the wind. That meant that my legs had over 48 hours of complete rest after my long run beat me up and was cut short on Sunday. My legs thanked me for the rest by putting in a strong performance this evening.
The plan was to do 8X800 repeats with 400 repeats of active recovery in between them. Last week's workout was pretty good, but I was only able to do 6 repeats. Today, I had to do more. I needed to get in at least 7 and was really hoping I could get in 8.
I wanted to run after work, but I was very hungry, so I needed to eat lunch. That also meant I had to wait a few hours to run. Looking at the forecast, it looked like things would get a little warmer around dinner time. I opted to take a nap and head out to run then. Dinner would have to wait until later on.
I headed to the Saucon Rail Trail. There was a slight breeze that could be a little annoying at times, but really the conditions were almost perfect for a good run. I just had on shorts and a short sleeve shirt.
I had to run across the road in front of a car and my calf bothered me a little when I did that. That was before I actually started the run and I was thinking that this might not be a good day. Instead, it was exactly the opposite. The calves only bothered me for a quarter mile at the most.
The warmup was great. My legs felt strong and had some snap. I thought this would be a good run. The rest really paid off immensely. It was a great night with people running, walking and biking all over the trail.
I started off the first repeat feeling pretty good. I tried to keep this one under control. I might've pushed too hard in the first couple repeats last week. I was still moving at a good clip on these first two, but I felt like I was saving a lot. There is just such a fine line between pushing hard and overdoing it. The first repeat was a solid 3:19 and the second an even faster 3:16.
Going out is always tough here. It is more uphill. Knowing that, I knew I had to just battle through the first half. After 4 repeats, it would get easier, even if I was more beat up.
I didn't think the first two repeats were that hard, but clearly I overdid it and paid for it on the next two. My times dropped to 3:26 and then 3:27. The latter was still under a 7 minute pace. I started to get a side stitch during that one. My legs still felt good. Clearly they were stronger than my breathing.
On the way out, I passed a lot of people. Plenty of them were mixing running and walking. I'm not sure if they were new to running or just didn't get out much in the winter time. They could've been a group. I also ran by two huge dogs that an owner was walking. They looked like small horses, maybe mini clydesdales. I wasn't too worried about them because they appeared to be old.
I ran almost the entire trail. I did dart out kind of in front of a car one time, but didn't really have any trouble with the road crossings. I turned around right after the 4th repeat. Going around people slowed me here and there.
Much as I expected, heading back in was easier. I was starting to slip though, so it still took some effort. I was pretty good through 6 repeats. That is as far as I've gone through this cycle. I just tried to stay focused on the next repeat and I tried to recover well in between repeats. I tried to start each repeat under control and then push it towards the end. The 5th one was a conservation 3:21, but the 6th one dipped back under 3:20 with a 3:17.
I saw an older lady going the other direction as I was heading out. She was probably in her 50s, but seemed pretty fit. She ended up being a big help. I caught her and passed her right near the end of the 6th repeat. She definitely pulled me along.
The final three repeats were consistent from a time standpoint. They were all 3:17, but each one got much harder. The 7th one was certainly tough, but I used the same strategy that I had been (start out conservative). It was good to be done with that repeat. After that, I knew I would be running an 8th one. I just didn't know how fast it would be.
In between my 7th and 8th repeats, I ran into Gayle and Jessica from BCR coming the other direction. They are racing this weekend, so I guess they were taking it easy. I know quite a few people who run this trail, so I figured that I might see someone on this nice evening. Usually, I run in the afternoon, so I don't see anyone I know. Most of them have normal schedules.
Again, I started off slowly on the 8th and final repeat. My legs were good through 7 repeats, but now they were shot. I just had to battle through it and post whatever time I could. I figured that I could muster a hard tenth of a mile, so I just needed to get to .4 miles into this one. My pace was over 7 minutes at some points, but I picked it up towards the end. I ran that final tenth hard for a 3:17.
I decided to recover with a 3/4 mile cooldown. That would end the run at 7.5 miles. That worked out well since I did 14.5 miles the other day. It evened the weekly mileage out.
This was such a great run. I was actually pumped up on the way home. I love when that happens. I figured that on an even surface, I could probably run pretty consistent 3:20s. That ended up being exactly what my times averaged out to today. Yasso 800s would say that I'm in 3:20 marathon shape, if I could run two more repeats like that. I don't have the long runs for a marathon yet, but I am probably pretty close to 3:20 shape. Not bad, considering I've done less than 10 hard runs this cycle. I'm shooting to get under 3:00 in the fall marathon. That will take some work, but I still have almost 5 months to pull that off.
Tomorrow, I'm running at Trexler. Hopefully, I can build on today's strong run. I might run with my friends Tim and Aaron. They go there nearly every week too and are faster than me. I need to start running with them, so I can race even better there in a couple months. May the good week continue.
7.5 miles - 55:42 (7:26 pace)
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