This past Tuesday I had the good fortune of running a mile repeat workout at McAlpine with Aaron Linz, Jay Holder and Ben Dyke. Aside from my 20 miler on Sunday, I felt like I was coming into this workout relatively fresh. When we arrived at the parking lot, I heard from Jay that Caitlin was under the weather (I was hoping to run with her). Therefore, I knew I was going to have my hands full trying to hang with the big boys.
Since it was Tuesday which is Miner's Run, I decided to get some extra warm up so I headed up towards PDS to meet some of the Miner's. I met up with Mike Beigay and Ben and that's when I talked Ben into running our workout (always recruiting). When we got to the parking lot, the 4 of us immediately ran to the 3rd mile of the famed Footlocker cross country course (lest I remind you how fortunate we all are to have this wonderful course in our back yard).
The workout: 5 X 1 mile with a 2:30 recovery followed by 2 X 400 meters.
As usual, before we started I got my mind ready. We all got to the line and Aaron said, "Let's go boys!" Immediately, Jay and Aaron went to the front, and Ben and I tucked in behind our fearless leaders. I stuck right behind them for the whole mile as we hit 5:37 (good start...1 down). As we approached the start of the 2nd mile I thought, "you stay with them!" We hit the 2nd mile in 5:27 as we were separated by inches. Upon completion of the 2nd mile, Paul Mainwaring was jogging when I looked him in the eyes and said...I'm on!" I did this because it is so rare for me during a workout or race to have it...today I did.
I knew I had more after the second mile so I was determined to stay with Jay and Aaron for the 3rd mile which I did as we hit 5:22. At this point, Ben said that he would sit out #4 and jump back in on #5. I still had more in the tank for #4 so I made a decision to not let Jay get away from me. Again, we finished separated by inches as we hit 5:16. One to go as I felt like I was going to have to go to the well. You can all guess what Jay and Aaron yelled at this point..."UNO MAS!"
We all got out well on #5, as we were together until the start of the minor hill. At this point, Jay and Aaron put 2 seconds on me which they held (and I maintained) until the finish as I hit 5:14. We finished up with 2 X 400 meters that we equated to glorified strides. 2 mile cool down to finish.
I felt compelled to write this article because it is so rare for me to feel really good/to be on on any given day. Specifically, it amounts to feeling good about once a month. The rest of the time it is a grind. This can mean heavy breathing, legs that want to go into the ground, big arm swings, etc.
My question is this: How often are you ON?
Nice workout Steve. It depends on how often I'm on. I typically have a bad workout like once every two-three weeks. The other workouts, I usually feel pretty good...However, if I feel good, doesn't necessarily mean I have fun. Fortunately enough, these past couple of weeks, I've been having good workouts and ENJOYING them. It's a great feeling of being ON - where everything - mind, body, legs, breathing, no chafing - all combine together to create a perfect running experience.
ReplyDeleteMost Excellent - I love hearing about days when people feel on - it makes running all the more special.
ReplyDeleteYou have been "ON" alot this week. Tues workout, Friday workout and today (Sunday). Always fun to have you pushing us.
ReplyDeleteGreat work Steve. Those efforts are going to translate into very fast times at the races for the rest of the summer.
ReplyDeleteCaitlin, thanks for your comment. having trained with you, you also bring an element of confidence to your running which serves you well.
ReplyDeleteMark, I appreciate your "glass is half full" comment...thanks!
Aaron, thanks for a fantastic training week!
Bill, great to see the fruits of your biking labor!
I remember training last fall and early this year and always feeling ON. I always wanted to push it and always came home with a smile on my face. Hoping to get back to that someday - wish I could run as fast as you boys because this reminds me of the camaraderie in workouts in high school and college... keep it up!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Mo! I often wondered/marveled at how you always seemed to be "ON!" There certainly is a camaraderie with this club that I cannot help but get caught up in...get it back!
ReplyDeleteI am OFF in terms of running since 1987. My knees hurt even after kneeling down to play with Emma. I am always ON after hearing or seeing great workouts. Thanks for sharing so that some of us can enjoy the moment even if we can't run anymore.
ReplyDeleteJoe...every day I try to appreciate what we are able to do. May we never take it for granted. We are too fortunate.
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