On The Right Track

A Tough Workout

Things are going along really well right now and I hope it continues on this track!  Speaking of, we had track again this Thursday at the cinder oval behind South High School. I made it on time for the session and joined the team (about twenty of us) for a few initial  drills that develop form and fleetness. “High knees”, “Crossovers”, “Striders”-these exercises get the blood moving and joints flexing for the challenges ahead. The team then split into smaller groups for more personalized workouts. My task for the night was to run what is called a reverse ladder. It starts with a mile (four laps around the track) at my 5k (3.1 miles) pace-far faster than I’d be running at the marathon. After that fast mile, it would be one lap of slow recovery followed by a half-mile run at a slightly faster than pace than the mile pace. The distances continued to get shorter and the pace continued to get faster for both the active and recovery phases until the final half-lap which was run very quickly-almost sprinting. Coach Greg offered this workout to help us find our personal racing threshold and to demonstrate how fast we can still run despite tired legs and lungs. Altogether tiring, but very satisfying. The next day I had some soreness in muscles I’d been using regularly but not with the intensity that I used on the track. The final part of the night’s training included some hill workouts, strength training, and stretching that devolved into joking and socializing-just the right chaser to a good dose of mutual suffering.