The vacation is over.
As horrible as it is to get injured...there is a little something nice about it. That something nice is guilt-free days of not setting the alarm clock for 4.50am, and the way ones butt begins to carve a perfect shape into the couch after one has parked it there for many weeks of lazy bliss.
And then the other something nice is that return to training. That careless, "I'm taking an easy day" excuse one throws out to fellow runners and coaches alike when there is something hard coming up. 3k time trial? No thanks, I'm still recovering from my injury! I'll stick with my 200m reps and then walk back to the car.
But then there comes a point where one has to face the music. That day was yesterday, when I learned that fitness was having a greater impact on my run than my ankle. No more excuses! It's time to let the couch cushions resume their normal shape and get my cushy butt back to training. It's time to remind my muscles what it feels like to get fatigued after a hard work-out.
This morning we had 3-4 1k reps followed by a 1k recovery.
The pace my coach set me was 5.30min/km to start, progressing 5sec faster each time. Seeing as how I finished at a 5.30 pace yesterday, I was pretty sure I could do it.
I find it hard to pace slower, so I joined up with a gal who was set to go at 5.15 and planned to keep track by going just a bit slower than her.
Somehow that fantastic plan didn't quite work, and we ended up pushing each other! I ran until there was nothing left in my energy reserves. But the good news is, my ankle is holding up beautifully, even if my endurance is not.
First 1k rep*: 5.10min (and only because I slowed us down on the second half of the run, after seeing our time at the turn-around!)
Second 1k rep*: 5.12 (this was a push for me)
Third 1k rep: 5.28.
*I should also note that even in the recovery 1k jogs I could feel my heart rate was elevated. I probably should have taken a slower recovery! That is the bittersweet result of running with friends...they push you wonderfully in the reps, but sometimes also push you too hard in the recovery!
As you can see by my rapidly dropping 3rd rep, I was at my absolute limit. There was an option to do a fourth rep, but I was so exhausted I walked back to the car instead. Yep, I WALKED back.
Because sometimes running is over-rated. Or maybe it's just that my endurance is ridiculously non-existent.
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