3/1/06: Memorial Park 60/60’s on the 400M Track!

So this was my first voyage to the track since before the Half-Marathon and I have to admit I was a little hesitant. First of all, there was a group of 5 younger women (all open runners) doing their speedwork too and of course-much faster then me. All I could do was feel a little self-concious. They were all skinny, in shape, and fast, lol. I could even feel their coaches eyes bearing down on me while I did my repeats, which was a little unnerving. I mean, I still feel ackward at times when I run, especially with speedwork. So maybe this wasn’t putting me in the right mind-frame for today's speedwork, but I put on some Dave Matthews Band (my favorite of all time) and all was forgotten.

Secondly, it was hotter then sin. Well, about 80 degrees, and the sun had not quite set yet so it was in my eyes half the time I was running. Still, I managed to block this too, out of my mind and get to work. The assignment at hand: 8x 60/60. Although I knew I wanted to/needed to aim for a 10k pace on my fast 60’s, I ended up going ‘all out’ and despite Coach Steve’s words of love laboring in my head ‘It’s like Chili…’ I knew I was going to get burned pretty quick.

The first 5 repeats weren’t too bad (they never are), and I was averaging about an 8:00/mile pace, which is actually not too shabby for my first attempt at speedwork in like a million years. Then, I found myself walking my recovery 60’s and stopping to get water more then I had planned. Oh, the heat was brutal (mind you, it is about 5pm). I don’t know how summer is going to be this year, but I am certainly not ready. I’ll take 40 degrees with gloves on any day.

The last 3 repeats were okay, but I felt my legs getting tired and my feet-heavy. My form started to stink…my head sunk down and my arms swung around wildly. That was one thing I noticed about most of the girls running too though-they let their form go as they did their final repeats. I made a mental note to focus on my last repeat and make it the best one yet. Sure enough, I pushed it the hardest, and my form looked (I think) and felt great. I think the fastest girl even said ‘way to go,’ which really gave me a boost to finish strong.

The prognosis after the fact? I need to be religious about my speedwork again and aim for one track workout a week (I think spring SMART will help with this). I need to continue to my CORE workouts and with my free-weights (which are already collecting dust after only 2 weeks, lol). And mostly, I need to stay positive about my self-image. Yeah, I know I haven’t lost as much weight as I would like at this point, but I am almost to the point where half my pants don’t fit anymore! Things are coming together for me, I just have to be patient, of course. I am really excited about what this year has in store for me. As Steveee says ‘You are still in the big fat part of the improvement curve…’ and I want to stay here as long as I can!

The STATS:
4 miles
34:58 total

8x 60/60 at 8:00/mile pace
9:15 warm up (1 mile)
9:14 cool down (1 mile)

Heart-rate: 196/max (97%-right where I needed for my short repeats)

Weather: HOT! mid 70’s. high humidity.