No pain, no gain ... Mile 21 of the 2007 Cleveland Marathon

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Intervals & distance

Today's run was initially just going to be an easy 5-miler, perhaps around 40 minutes or 8 min/miles. After 2.5 miles in, I suddenly thought that I might mix in some 200 meter sprints or 45 seconds intervals at 85-90 percent effort.

I ended up doing 6x200 intervals and backed off for a minute after each one, which means I slowed down to about 7:45/min pace in between the intervals. Kind of what they call fartlek training.

What a great workout that was! I finished 5 total miles in just over 38 minutes, just over 7:36/mile pace average. Surprisingly, I felt very fresh at the end, but still had a tough workout.

With the Turkey Trot coming up on Thursday, this was the last speed workout prior to the race, so I feel like I'm just about ready to peak again, since it's been about a month since I raced the 5-K in Painesvile and then came down with the H1N1 flu.

Although I was just starting to feel sick that day, I still competed and won my age group, not with a time I'd like, but the course was very tough and hilly and I wasn't near 100 percent.

With that in mind, I thought this tidbit was appropriate ...

Runner's World Quote of the Day:

"Recognize your victories."

Joan Benoit Samuelson, 1984 Women's Olympic Marathon champion.

Happy running!

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