Killer Workout

Crunch Time

The next few weeks are considered the most critical time in the preparation for the Denver Marathon. I’m glad to be coming into this period with my fundraising goals met so I can just concern myself with the running. Tonight’s workout was specially crafted for me by Coach Rick to push me to the same level of exertion I’ll need to complete the marathon in a Boston-qualifying time. I began with 3 miles of warm up. Then the real workout began. Everything I did was at a 6:20 mile pace today. It started with an 800 meter (half-mile) run, then a short rest followed by a 1200 (3 laps), a 1600 (4 laps or 1 mile) then a 1200, an 800, a 400, and a fast 200. This type of workout is called a ladder because you step up the distance and then step down the distance. By practicing this at a 6:20 mile pace, far quicker than I’ll be running on race day, I’m preparing my legs and lungs to withstand the expected strain of the race. The workout went pretty well, but exhausted me and caused soreness in my quadriceps and hamstrings for the next several days. I’d done a poor job of hydrating and staying well-fed that day and I think it made the effects of the training more severe than they would have been otherwise. I’ll need to adjust my eating and sleeping habits to ensure that I’ll be able to get the most out of the coming weeks. My performance today however tells me that I’m on track right now to meet my racing goals and as long as I can stay healthy and committed I should be successful. The thing about the marathon though is that you just never know. It’s a long race…