Higher Intensity Distance Run
Not much to photograph today. I was too busy trying not to fall off the treadmill.
Tiff and I had originally planned this run to be a low intensity distance run outside. One of those days where you just want to test out the joints and see how they feel after covering a lot of ground. Last year, close to this time, we were putting in 15-18 mile runs on a weekly basis while preparing for the NYC marathon. This year is a completely different story. I am crossing my fingers that my knees and ankles will hold out for 10.
The Map:
The course was changed last minute due to some inclement weather. Therefore, the map is the treadmill in our apartment building gym.
The Distance:
10 miles at a low intensity
*I actually decided to change this to a moderatly-high intensity once I got on the treadmill for two reasons:
I was a lazy ass the night before and didn't put in my swim workout, so I had an abundance of rest time.
On a treadmill you can really focus on pacing because the numbers are right in front of you. I wanted to push that "race pace".
The Results:
10 min warm-up
60 mins; 3% incline; 7.5 mph (slightly slower than race pace but with an incline for muscle recruitment)
20 mins; 0% incline; 8.5 mph (slightly faster than my current long distance race pace)
Total: 10 miles in 01h20m
My Thoughts:
A struggle. An absolute struggle, from beginning to end. This was one of those workouts where you count down the seconds but they seem to take hours. I am happy with the results, I was able to maintain a relatively high intensity for a long duration and hit my 10 mile goal. Joints felt good and I pushed past the mental barriers on many occasions. Now I want to forget that workout ever happened.
What is your ideal "race pace" and ideal race distance? Let me know in the comments down below.