There's a hill beside my house that's just over .4 miles long. I run 8 repeats with the idea in mind that three intense miles is enough. It's, for the most part, pretty steep. I don't know how to guage that sort of thing -- now, if some generous patron came along and bought me one of those watches that's also an altimeter, this blog could be much more scientific.
The last time I ran it was the day before Halloween, and I ran an average time of 2:57. Before I dwell on that
My times weren't as good as the last time I ran this run, and I attribute that to several things. First off, it is much colder which, besides just meaning cold, means more and heavier clothing. Second, I blame Thanksgiving. Third, yesterday's ice skating with my daughters couldn't have helped.
But there were several things that I did note about this hill run, and none of them are new:
1. Because this is a hill workout, it's not about speed, so maybe I shouldn't be so conscious of my time up the hill, and focus instead on a consistent, tough pace -- times be damned.
2. Because this is a hill workout, I need to pump my arms more. Yes it's more of a workout when I'm using both parts of my body (top and bottom), but that's kind of the point, enit?
3. Because this is a hill workout, I need to focus on my breathing: when I ignore my breathing, I sound like a terrified raccoon. In heat. This is the kind of workout where I run best when I'm in a rhythm, focused, and consistent.
4. Because this is a hill workout, coming down the hill needs to be slow and recuperative. My best splits come after my longest recoveries: this seems like common sense to me, but common sense often goes right the hell out the window when I'm running.
5. Because this is a hill workout, it's a hill workout, not a blog post -- I found myself running best, again, when I wasn't thinking: "I hope this run is interesting enough to blog about . . ."
That last being said, there were other things that I thought about hill workouts, but I forgot them since my run. But the thing I regret was not that I forgot these things that I could be writing down this very moment; the thing I regret is that my mind was not fully in the moment during my run, and my splits reflected those stretches when I was thinking more about this (writing) moment than hitting those hills.
Times: (2:59), (3:09), (3:11), (3:00), (3:10), (3:00), (3:06), (2:57) -- these times are the most sporadic I've run since I started this workout. While I didn't expect to hit that 2:56 average from earlier this year, with greater concentration and consistency, I think, certainly, I could have averaged 3:02 +/- 4 seconds.
Something to shoot for.
The last time I ran it was the day before Halloween, and I ran an average time of 2:57. Before I dwell on that
My times weren't as good as the last time I ran this run, and I attribute that to several things. First off, it is much colder which, besides just meaning cold, means more and heavier clothing. Second, I blame Thanksgiving. Third, yesterday's ice skating with my daughters couldn't have helped.
But there were several things that I did note about this hill run, and none of them are new:
1. Because this is a hill workout, it's not about speed, so maybe I shouldn't be so conscious of my time up the hill, and focus instead on a consistent, tough pace -- times be damned.
2. Because this is a hill workout, I need to pump my arms more. Yes it's more of a workout when I'm using both parts of my body (top and bottom), but that's kind of the point, enit?
3. Because this is a hill workout, I need to focus on my breathing: when I ignore my breathing, I sound like a terrified raccoon. In heat. This is the kind of workout where I run best when I'm in a rhythm, focused, and consistent.
4. Because this is a hill workout, coming down the hill needs to be slow and recuperative. My best splits come after my longest recoveries: this seems like common sense to me, but common sense often goes right the hell out the window when I'm running.
5. Because this is a hill workout, it's a hill workout, not a blog post -- I found myself running best, again, when I wasn't thinking: "I hope this run is interesting enough to blog about . . ."
That last being said, there were other things that I thought about hill workouts, but I forgot them since my run. But the thing I regret was not that I forgot these things that I could be writing down this very moment; the thing I regret is that my mind was not fully in the moment during my run, and my splits reflected those stretches when I was thinking more about this (writing) moment than hitting those hills.
Times: (2:59), (3:09), (3:11), (3:00), (3:10), (3:00), (3:06), (2:57) -- these times are the most sporadic I've run since I started this workout. While I didn't expect to hit that 2:56 average from earlier this year, with greater concentration and consistency, I think, certainly, I could have averaged 3:02 +/- 4 seconds.
Something to shoot for.
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