3/31/10

Wednesday’s Training – Am: 8*1 mile with 3 mins recovery @ Lake Mary Rd. 4.53, 4.42, 4.37, 4.47, 4.50, 4.46, 4.49, 4.48. Pm: 57 mins easy

Mileage – 24 Miles

I slept well last night which was great because I needed that if I was going to put a good effort in on the workout. I wanted to feel a lot better than I did and I guess I must be getting pretty fit as I am recovery well, day to day. I checked what the wind was going to be like and sat down on the computer with some coffee and toast. We were meeting at 8am so I left the apartment at 7.30am so I could get a little jog and stretch in before we warmed up for the workout. The wind was definitely blowing from the South West but as I ran out one way it was in my face and then turning around it was in my face again. Once Greg arrived we debated for a while which way we should do the workout or whether we should just do it on one stretch of road and have him drive us back to the start each time. We decided to drive out to the 11 mile mark and just head back to the 3 mile mark (it gets really hilly after that and we wanted to be finishing at a good pace). I would be doing the workout on my own although Paige was doing the same thing for 6 miles and only 2 mins recovery as her workout was more marathon pace orientated and mine was to get the legs moving quickly. I guess you could say it was more of a speed session.

Lake Mary Rd is very undulating and curves around in all sorts of directions. We would be predominantly heading in a North West direction with the hope of taking a little sting out of the wind. We arrived at the start only to find that the first rep was going to be straight into the wind and I was running it I thought I was going to be way over 5 minutes but I was pleasantly surprised to finish in 4.53. I felt very easy and the rep went by quickly so I knew the session wasn’t going to be a grinder today. We managed to catch the wind a little bit on the next rep although as I was approaching the finish it suddenly felt like I had run into a wall as the wind turned around and pushed me back. I knew the next rep was going to be fast as the road curved around and it was slightly downhill. This would be good as it would make my legs a little more tired for the rest of the workout so I would have to concentrate and work hard. Right enough I ran 4.37 and it felt pretty easy. Greg was laughing and saying that I should have no problem 2.04 in London if I keep that pace up. The rest of the reps were much the same apart from the last 2 where my left calf started to tighten a little and they were going to be the hilliest reps. Luckily on the 7^th rep I got a nice push up the hill from the wind and it didn’t seem to take much out of me for the rest of the rep (in recent years I have started to really lose my hill strength so having the feeling back was great). I thought the last rep was all downhill and I could go really fast but once I crested the top of the hill after 400m I noticed that half a mile down the road it started to go up and continue to where Greg had parked. I luckily didn’t know about this as it would have been pretty dejecting before I got on with the rep. I cruised the first 800m and then worked really hard for the remainder of the rep and manage to continue the pace I had been going so I was happy that I finished the workout with all the reps being a solid pace and without hammering my body too much. Greg dropped me off at the 1 mile mark and I ran back to the car and then added on a couple of more mile once I had gotten my bag in the car. I took a trail that I only just noticed for the first time but it meant I was heading straight into the wind and it was nigh on impossible to get any faster than 10 minute miling. Luckily it turned off in the forest and I got a bit of respite and then of course I got to head back out there and run with the wind on the way back. I headed back to the house and finished off my protein drink as I prepared my breakfast. I couldn’t eat a whole lot as I had to get out the door again by 2.20pm for an hour run as I had work at 4pm. I managed to get a good nap in and just relax for an hour before heading out into the gale force winds again.

A little bit of stretching before the start

Long road ahead

In full stride

Mile 4

Mile 5

Finishing up the last rep

Trying to suck some air

All done!

My second run was really, really slow! I had no choice unless I wanted to go inside and onto the treadmill to run as the wind was going to be strong where ever I went. I decided to head up the trail to Buffalo Park and do a couple of loop and head back to the apartment. At one point I came to a total stand still as the wind was like a brick wall. It was probably the best thing for me anyway after the hard running I had done this morning. I got back just in time to have a shower, grab a little food and then head off to work for the evening (starting at 4pm). It turned out to be a long night when my last customer decided that she would just sit and sip her beer for 30 minutes after we closed. I was trying my best not to stared her down and give her a hint that we were closed but my eyes kept glaring over at the bill that I had already presented her. Finally, just as I called Julie to not wait up for me, John (my manager) went over and asked her if we could close her check as we were waiting to close and we could get our paper work done if she did so. Finally she paid and I could do my report. It was a pretty good night for a Wednesday but I was pretty tired as it was later than I would usually stay up. I was going to pop over to the Green Room (Local bar) to say hi to some of my friends but I knew I would be useless as I was getting sleepier and sleepier the longer I stayed up. I finally got back and to the house and fell right asleep once I had gotten ready for bed.