...except for the fact that I haven't posted since the 9th apparently. Damn, guess I officially suck as a blogger. Ah well, I'm still here, still writing, and you're clearly still reading, so maybe both of us don't have lives.
I think I need to develop some sort of style to how I post here. Not sure where I'm going to go with that, addressing whoever you are directly seems to be working out OK, but really I should be writing more often. I know that'll help.
Whatever, truth is folks, I am exhausted, and looks like I have almost two weeks to catch up on, and some of it is really good. So, here we go...
Looking at my log, guess its not so bad. The particulars of any specific run aren't all that interesting anyway, unless they are, in which case I'll make more of an effort to post right away. I know that I have definitely been enjoying the last few weeks of absolutely beautiful weather we've been having here. High pressure has meant we've had close to two weeks of continuous sunshine, almost as unheard of in these parts during winter as a foot of snow is. Must be El Nino. A temperature inversion though means its been quite cold in the valley, which has brought home what I really don't like about running in the northwest: the chill. I don't mind rain, and I don't mind overcast skies. Heck, I don't even really mind the cold. What I do mind is my hands being cold every time I go out for a run, if not my arms and legs, until I warm up. Makes it difficult to get started every day. Suffice to say, I'm pretty sure somewhere since the 9th I meant to put up a post about how glorious the weather was, and how it really felt more like spring than winter. Quite pleasant.
The workouts themselves: as I said, this month is a three harder days/four easier days cycle, with 6 mile workouts on Mondays and track type stuff on Wednesdays. The 12th was pretty good, one of the 6 milers at Nike, and I was quite pleased with the times I was putting out there (though I shouldn't really have been keeping time, as it was more of an effort workout than a time workout, but oh well). The 14th on the other hand was a bit of a struggle; I forgot that school was back in session, so I couldn't use my old high school track like I was planning. So I shifted back to Oak Hills with the half-ish mile loop. I wore my regular shoes, not racers, and the ground was soggy, meaning mushy footing. Hitting the times, even on a three-effort workout, felt like a struggle, and I really didn't feel too confident afterwards.
This was a problem, because I had committed to my first race of the season at UW on the 17th, and indoor 3k at Dempsey. I had submitted my lifetime PR of 8:33, which made me the top seed in the second of three heats. I had a gut feeling that I might be able to better that time, but also the usual doubts about my fitness, and the wisdom of such a lofty goal for my first race.
But warming up for the race, I had a flash of one of those Nike commercials with Lance Armstrong. He says, "This is my body, and I can do whatever I want to it. I can push it, study it, tweak it, listen to it. Everybody wants to know what I'm on. What am I on? I'm on my bike, busting my ass six hours a day. What are you on?" I must admit, I had been trying to conjure up other such inspirational videos, quotes, vignettes. But suddenly, when that one sprang to mind, fear left me, and only regular old jitters remained. "This is my body" made me realize I was fearful of the pain that others could inflict on me in the race, which is preposterous; I am the only one who decides how fast I go, how hard I push, and when.
I absolutely hate the kind of athletes who need mental coaching to figure out how to do what they do, or even worse, to remember how to do it as well as it used to. But I must be honest, I feel that this was a little bit of a seminal moment for me. I have been fearing what the race would inflict on me, rather than using my body to inflict my will on the race. Its absolutely ridiculous that I had forgotten this, and I feel ridiculous admitting it. But hey, what would there be to read if you didn't know about my ridiculousness.
Suffice to say, it was the best race I've had in a long, long time. Led the first lap in a 68 400, and felt amazingly relaxed. Second lap was maybe a touch slower, and a tall dude took over the lead. I was content to sit in second for a few laps, when I found myself creeping up on him. I checked myself, realized I really wasn't pushing hard at all, and so I let myself take the lead again. I never looked back, and felt I got faster on every lap. I know I probably wasn't, but I had a healthy kick in the end, ended up winning by a few seconds and PRed by four, breaking 8:30 with an 8:29.44. First race of the season. And perhaps more importantly, it felt GOOD. I was confident, aware, never anxious, and every step of the way I was completely in the moment. The best way to race. Don't know what it is, but I must be doing something right. Plus, looking back, I really wasn't that tired afterwards, and recovered quickly. Had I been in the fast third heat, I probably could have broken 8:25, if not better. This is precisely the territory I should be in. It goes without saying it was a huge boost to my confidence.
Sunday's regular run in Seattle was beautiful, and I felt absolutely amazing, not just post-race, but in general. Monday's 6 miler at Nike was on par with the others, and again I felt surprisingly good considering my race over the weekend. Today's workout however was tough by the end, despite wearing spikes and being on the track. And naturally, since I wore spikes on the track, I feel like an old man walking around the house this evening...gotta pay the piper sometime.
Saturday, 1/10-1:03:28 easy
Sunday, 1/11-1:02:13 easy
Monday, 1/12-6 mile workout:
warmup
1 mile easy (combined with warmup)
2 miles fast (10:16 loop of Nike)
2 miles easy (14:34 Nike)
1 mile fast (4:58 Nike)
cool down
Tuesday, 1/13-1:01:13 w/2x5 min pickups
Wednesday, 1/14-Workout @ Oak Hills:
warmup
1 mile @ 4:52, 4 min rest, half mile @ 2:40 (misprint?), 4 min rest, mile @ 4:52
Actual: 4:51, 2:23, 4:54 regular flats and soggy ground made for not so great workout
cool down
Thursday, 1/15-53:20 easy (slow with Fred EARLY in the morning)
Friday, 1/16-26:51 easy (race prep warmup)
Saturday, 1/17-RACE Indoor 3k at Dempsey Indoor on UW campus. 1st place, 8:29.44, 4 second PR.
Sunday, 1/18- 58:52 easy mostly along Burke Gilman trail in Seattle, felt great.
Monday, 1/19- 6 mile workout @ Nike
2 miles easy (just made this the warmup to Nike)
2 miles fast (10:21 Nike loop)
1 mile easy (7:12 Nike)
1 mile fast (4:57 Nike)
cooldown
Tuesday, 1/20-1:00:55 w/2x5 min pickups
Wednesday, 1/21-Workout @ Sunset track:
warmup
4x800m @ 2:20 w/1 min rest, jog 5 min, repeat
with spikes, actual: 2:18/2:20/2:20/2:20//2:19/2:20/2:20/2:18
cool down
felt pretty crummy by the end, walking like an old man tonight
No comments:
Post a Comment