The past 8 weeks I have had to miss all of the Thursday night workouts through the speedwork program at BU. Each Thursday morning I would get an email with the workout options for that night, and every time I read it - I would simply sigh, knowing hours of boredom in the pool and on the elliptical were awaiting me after work. I was diligent, and I was dedicated, but I was not satisfied.
A few weeks ago, while staring at my reflection in the blank tv screen in front of the elliptical, my mind became completely detached. I had apparently had enough two-hour sessions, and off it wandered. Normally, I'm not big on motivational sayings, but for some reason - once my mind returned, I found myself repeating the same thing over and over again:
I will be fast. I will be fit. I will be strong.
I will work hard. I will train smarter.
I will race my f___ing guts out.
I must have repeated that for 45 minutes straight. And while I'm sure it sounds a little lame, my pace quickened, and my heart rate elevated. It served its purpose.
...All of this brings me to last nights workout. My shin had been feeling much better, and I've gone out for a few 2 milers here and there. So when I received the email showing the workout: 800/1200/1600/1200/800/600
I decided I'd show up to at least do the warm up, drills, and strides.
I kept my clunky trainers on and ambled along at my own pace for a good 25 minutes. I lined up, and I did the drills. And all along I had no pain. I did the strides, and opened it up a bit on the straightaways. Again, I felt good. So I decided I would let the group I normally ran with start the workout, and I would go on my own, ready to stop at even the slightest twinge, pull, or tug in my shin.
The first 200 meters of interval number one, I listened to the shin. I heard nothing and finished the first 800 - 3:02. A little slower than what I remember, but considering I was easing back on the workout - not bad. I walked the recovery to let the adrenaline settle down and again listen to the shin for any barking. Still nothing. And so it remained.
Onto the 1200 - 4:30. Next up the 1600, be careful with this one - 6:00. That felt smooth. Keep it easy. 1200 - 4:31. Legs are there, but don't push it. 800 - 3:05.
Each interval felt strong, but I was nervous. I had been putting plenty of time in at the gym, but nothing but 2 milers up to this point. Just under 3.5 miles worth of intervals in addition to a ~3 mile warm up?...not what I was planning, but I wasn't pushing it too hard and I was ready to stop at any time. Only I didn't need to...And so I had one more interval to go - the 600.
Not often do I give a lot of thought to any particular workout, but up to that point - I felt like I was killing it. My first workout in two months, and I felt strong and in control. But I'm happy to say that I did what I believe to be the smart thing. I left the 600 on the track. I may have been killing it (at least for this hack), but I would let the 600 live for another workout.
"I'm Back Baby!"
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