Thanks, Legs

Today was one of the toughest training days I've had in a long time. What a great feeling [after]!
The goal:
~1k warm up
~2k along flat with alternating 30sec at 5k race pace, 30sec run at slower pace
~2k along hills, running hard on the uphill & recovering on the down
Then reverse direction and repeat in reverse order (2k hills, 2k flat sprints, 1k cool down)

On the flat sprints I made the error of trying to keep up with another girl slightly faster than me. I could barely manage in the sprints, but in the 30sec recovery I just couldn't seem to suck in enough air. Fortunately, that ended fairly quickly!
Onto my nemesis...hills.
At this point I realized I had unwisely burned up a lot of energy in the first 2k section. Dang. But fortunately I clung onto a friend at my pace who encouraged me up every hill. Always great to run beside someone that challenges you. We may not have talked hardly at all, but in running it's not always about the conversation. Just running beside someone can be companionship enough.

We stopped at the end of the hills and I felt pretty proud. But the true test would be the way back.
Off we went. Halfway through the hills I knew my pace was dragging. I told my friends to forge on ahead and meet me where the flat sprints started. They were more than too happy to comply, since we had agreed I would be the timekeeper and pace setter for the final 2k sprint/recover section.
I may not have much endurance. I may not have great form, or great running strategies.
But one thing I do have, is the ability to run at 5k race pace by feel. Goodness knows I've been doing enough of it this year!
Happily, I didn't fall too far behind on the hills section as I really tried to keep pushing through. It was sort of fun to be timekeeper & pacer on the way back. And having a group around me really kept me focussed on driving that pace. But man, that flat section couldn't end soon enough.
I called out a cheer when we arrived at our cool down spot, but sadly no one joined me. Maybe they were too busy sucking in air, or maybe they just thought I was weird. Probably a little bit of both.
For me, the best part of working so hard isn't always right after you finish, although that's pretty good too. The best part sometimes comes later in the day, when you feel your leg muscles twinging in a tired-but-not-too-tired sort of way. It's sort of like your muscles are saying, "hey, thanks for thinking of me today. We should do this again sometime soon!"
You're welcome, legs. You're very welcome.