Slow Turning
A million reasons not to run this morning.
It was cold and blustery. I didn't have a workout selected for this morning. It was too muddy to go through Tinicum. I had an early meeting this morning that I still had to prep for. And on and on and on.
Rebecca actually listened to this pathetic whining and suggested I blow off the run until later. This actually made sense and I decided to do it. Then she went out into the weather I was avoiding to run 3 to the gym, another 6 on the treadmill, and 3 back home. Knowing that, I also knew that I had no excuse not to get a run in today.
But I didn't have to fear about procrastinating. As I went to work I planned my workout and actually got excited about it. I would do what I call the BN loop, a somewhat sadistic workout that was a staple of my marathon training last fall. Its a 13-mile loop that features 4 tempo pace miles on MLK Drive, immediately followed by another 2.5 miles or so up a fairly steep, lengthy hill affectionately known as the "Bloody Nipple" (a running aphorism states "when a hill has a name, you know its hard") and then along an extended straightaway. The idea is to go all out for the first four, and just when you think you are finished with the hard part you are started on another hard part.
The plan was to take the tempo miles at half marathon pace and then just hammer the BN part as hard as I could. I was excited about this run because it had two functions. First, it was a good test to see what kind of distance shape I was in following all this 5k training. Second, it let me get into the mindset of training for a longer race.
So I charged out of the USP athletic center ready to rumble. The MLK miles clocked in at 5:40; 5:45; 5:39; and 5:45 - a bit slower than the 5:30-5:35 range I was shooting for but not bad considering the legendary 360 degree headwind you get in these parts was in full force today. I made it up the hill in 8:48 and took the entire second part of the course in 16:26.
Looking at my logs from last fall, these times were consistent with the times that I was running this loop back then. That is big, as it is one marker telling me that I'm in good shape to take on the half marathon in 3 weeks. That being said, I didn't feel comfortable out there. I wanted to run this feeling relaxed and in control, but I had to constantly think about pushing the pace and wondering if I could last for the whole distance. I didn't feel at ease, and remember thinking that if this were a race, I'd wonder about finishing. When I feel this way I automatically start looking for excuses, and the wind gave me one. But I feel good about not giving in and hammering when I needed to for a performance that I am now happy with.
So this represents a nice turnaround. From an unmotivated morning to a good run, and for the zillionth time reinforcing my belief that it takes a village to run (in this case) a half marathon. And I feel now that I now truly have my sights set on Allentown.
13 or so miles in 99:05.
It's been a slow turnin'
From the inside out
A slow turnin’
But you come about
Slow learnin’
But you learn to sway
A slow turnin’ baby
Not fade away
(John Hiatt)
It was cold and blustery. I didn't have a workout selected for this morning. It was too muddy to go through Tinicum. I had an early meeting this morning that I still had to prep for. And on and on and on.
Rebecca actually listened to this pathetic whining and suggested I blow off the run until later. This actually made sense and I decided to do it. Then she went out into the weather I was avoiding to run 3 to the gym, another 6 on the treadmill, and 3 back home. Knowing that, I also knew that I had no excuse not to get a run in today.
But I didn't have to fear about procrastinating. As I went to work I planned my workout and actually got excited about it. I would do what I call the BN loop, a somewhat sadistic workout that was a staple of my marathon training last fall. Its a 13-mile loop that features 4 tempo pace miles on MLK Drive, immediately followed by another 2.5 miles or so up a fairly steep, lengthy hill affectionately known as the "Bloody Nipple" (a running aphorism states "when a hill has a name, you know its hard") and then along an extended straightaway. The idea is to go all out for the first four, and just when you think you are finished with the hard part you are started on another hard part.
The plan was to take the tempo miles at half marathon pace and then just hammer the BN part as hard as I could. I was excited about this run because it had two functions. First, it was a good test to see what kind of distance shape I was in following all this 5k training. Second, it let me get into the mindset of training for a longer race.
So I charged out of the USP athletic center ready to rumble. The MLK miles clocked in at 5:40; 5:45; 5:39; and 5:45 - a bit slower than the 5:30-5:35 range I was shooting for but not bad considering the legendary 360 degree headwind you get in these parts was in full force today. I made it up the hill in 8:48 and took the entire second part of the course in 16:26.
Looking at my logs from last fall, these times were consistent with the times that I was running this loop back then. That is big, as it is one marker telling me that I'm in good shape to take on the half marathon in 3 weeks. That being said, I didn't feel comfortable out there. I wanted to run this feeling relaxed and in control, but I had to constantly think about pushing the pace and wondering if I could last for the whole distance. I didn't feel at ease, and remember thinking that if this were a race, I'd wonder about finishing. When I feel this way I automatically start looking for excuses, and the wind gave me one. But I feel good about not giving in and hammering when I needed to for a performance that I am now happy with.
So this represents a nice turnaround. From an unmotivated morning to a good run, and for the zillionth time reinforcing my belief that it takes a village to run (in this case) a half marathon. And I feel now that I now truly have my sights set on Allentown.
13 or so miles in 99:05.
It's been a slow turnin'
From the inside out
A slow turnin’
But you come about
Slow learnin’
But you learn to sway
A slow turnin’ baby
Not fade away
(John Hiatt)
posted by seebo | 1:20 PM
1 Comments:
Rebecca's workout of 3 to the gym 6 on the "hamster wheel" and 3 home is interesting. I can see wanting to run in the warmth of the gym when first starting on a cold morning but after 3 miles of warming up it would feel like an oven. Different strokes for different folks I guess.
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