Metric Miles

Yesterday evening, I watched the weather man talk about the potential for thunder storms to roll through Charlotte during the early AM hours.

Planning for the worst is always the best approach when it comes to dealing with the rain. Extra towels, socks, and clothes went in to the back of my car.

Then, there is nothing like raising from a heavy REM sleep to hear the rain pounding on my roof.

Pushing my car door open, I could feel the ugly humidity level and 70 degree temperature, but luck must have been on my side because there was no rain.

Ryan, Megan, Paul, Steve, and Caleb joined me for my warm up miles. Caleb and Steve would join me for my metric mile workout.

Why metric mile? Well, because this workout focused on the 3k and 1500 intervals during the workout: 3000 (800 recovery) 1500 (400 recovery) 800 (200 recovery) 400 (100 recovery) and 200 (then a cool down run).

This is one of my favorite workouts for a number of reasons.

·         Ladder workouts  - Different distance intervals requires different energy levels

·         Ladder workouts – Running descending interval means running each subsequent interval at a faster pace

·         This workout is also a great 5k race simulator. With these 3.5+ miles in intervals, it takes me just beyond a 5k race. Right up to the point where I would be sprinting to the finish line.

·         Then, there is the short recovery. My quads are burning still with lactic acid which scrubs off my ability to run well

·         Lastly, there is the twist of doing 3000 and 1500 instead of the more standard 3200 and 1600. Sometimes the brain can get locked into doing a certain pace for a certain distance. Throwing something different out can get the brain to run faster than it might otherwise allow.

During the 3000 Caleb and I ran stride for 2400 meters. Then, he pushed hard over the last 600 meters. I finished in 10:32. The 1500 was more of the same. This time Caleb punched it during the last 400 meters. I ran 5:16. Steve jumped back in for the 800, 400, and 200. I ran 2:46, 79, and 39 for these intervals. They were slower than I wanted but like I said earlier. The lactic acid burn was taking its toll on me. I clearly needed more recovery than I was allowing myself.

Over the last few weeks, Caleb and Steve have joined me for my Tuesday morning speed sessions. I cannot express how much that I appreciate their company. I can push myself pretty hard when I ran solo, but when I am running with these guys, I found that I can take a little more. This is the best kind of “peer” pressure.

 

Sharing one thought at time,

The Cool Down Runner