Shades Creek Workout

24 min. w/u (3 miles)
5xmile @ 6:10-6:15 with 1 min. rest in between
(6:20, 6:15, 6:10, 6:10, 6:06)
15 min c/d (2 miles)
Total: 10 miles

I woke up this morning even more sore than I was yesterday, if that's possible. The thought of doing 5xmile did not interest me at all, and for the briefest of moments I thought about sacking it and going for an easy wog instead. But then I thought, WWJD? The "J" could be any of the pertinent J's in my life at this time...Jilane, Jordan, Jeff...and I knew each of them would put their big girl face on and run the workout. So, that's what I did.

As I'm still in Birmingham, I chose the relatively flat and tree-lined Shades Creek Greenway to do the workout. After gradually loosening up during the warm-up, I decided to run back and forth along the same marked mile for the intervals. Lame, perhaps, but it provided some consistency. While the miles are marked fairly accurately on this trail, there are about a million interim markers that start and end from various points, so there was really no way to judge intermediate splits. However, after noticing a few landmarks on the first go, I devised a crude way of gauging my pace (ex: I should reach this mark at about 2:30, I should cross over from shade into sunlight at about 4:45, etc.).

Overall, I was surprised by how well my legs responded during this workout. The aerobic part was tough, and one minute's "recovery" seemed to go by before I could even catch my breath, but I kept things under control and felt strong through the end. Will I be able to run a similar pace during an 8k race simulation on Sunday? We shall see. For now, as I said earlier, if I am able to walk tomorrow it will be only by the grace of God.