I do not have easy access to a track here in the middle of an industrial suburb of Seattle. I'm sure there's a high school somewhere within 2 or 3 miles of the hotel that has a 400m track, but I don't know where it is or how to find it. These are perhaps the most pedestrian-unfriendly streets I've ever seen. So, even if I knew where one was, I'm not sure I could get there safely. Luckily, there is an asphalt bicycle trail less than 50 feet from my hotel parking lot! It's about 15 miles long, so I have lots of room to run.
The schedule today called for 3 x 1600m repeats. Since I wasn't on a track and the trail isn't marked, I just used my Garmin and ran 1 mile repeats. Somewhere between here and Athens, I lost my gloves and headlamp. Ugh. Wait until Leigh finds out. So today was a cold, dark run. My hands were FREEZING! I left the hotel at 5:00 so I could finish up and get ready for my business here in the Seattle area today.
I did about a 3.8 mile warm up, 3 one mile repeats with a 3 minute jog between, and a 1.7 mile cool down for somewhere near 8.5 or 9 miles total.
- 6:07
- 5:54
- 5:50
Sweet. I finally broke the 6 minute mile! Those weren't all out miles. I could have run each of them faster. That's not to say that they were easy, but it does mean that I believe I can run faster for a mile and that I believe I can maintain that pace for a 5k.
The taper was beginning to take a toll on my confidence, so I needed today's workout to remind me that I have made progress and that I can handle a hard effort.
4 comments:
That is awesome! I'm working on getting mine down closer to 7. I have a 5k race 12/5 in Decatur. Wish me luck.
Awesome!...Great Job!...oooooo when Leigh finds out you lost your light and gloves!!!!..lol
Congrats! Save that sub-6 minute mile for the last 5km of the marathon and you'll have great food and support at the end as a reward. If you're in Redmond, there's a great gravel path that goes around the lake there - but dark, very dark in early morning/late afternoon runs so you'd need your headlamp.
Thanks all!
Rick: I'm down in the Kent area. It's not my favorite part of town, but it's where the business is this week. I'd rather be in Redmond! Look forward to meeting you at the finish. I don't think I'll have any sub 6:00 miles during the marathon!
Jeff: Leigh took the news rather well! Maybe they'll turn up before I leave.
Lance: Good luck this weekend! You can do it!
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