1000m Intervals
The good news is that my times today were pretty consistent. But I’m getting ahead of myself. We started out as usual by meeting at RunTex, doing a little stretching, and running over to Austin High. It was raining a touch, but nothing too bad, just a pleasant sprinkle. This time we did a 9:10 pace for the trip over there. I wanted to go a bit faster, but at the same time I didn’t want to exhaust myself before the workout even started. Besides, my calves were really aching this morning - they’re just not recovering quickly.
After our drills (almost a mile of them), it was time for the intervals. Gilbert said that we were to do 3 to 5 of them at an 80% effort, starting halfway around the track so that he could see us finish, separated by 200m of jogging or fast walking. The group cut across the middle of the track and headed off.
Thirty seconds into the run, I could tell that this was not going to be an enjoyable time. As I passed Gilbert the first time, he told me to move my arms more and to lean forward a little bit. Alright, no problem, and I think I was able to keep my arm motion going for most (80%+) of the rest of the workout. These were the longest intervals I’d ever done, just like the 800m ones on Tuesday were :-)
My times were pretty consistent:
Time: 5:13 - 5:12 - 5:16 - 5:14
Pace: 8:24 - 8:22 - 8:29 - 8:25
My calves were screaming at me the whole time, which is why my times were as low as they are. After all, I just did the Chuy’s 5K at an 8:12 pace, and it was hilly and humid. Then again, we were told to not go all out, so maybe its alright.
After my fourth one, I asked Gilbert again about my calves. He told me that I really had to work on moving my knee up and my leg forward, and showed me how I had been running in comparison. We finished out with four sets of running 200 meters focussed on form, and walking 200 for recovery. When I kept my knees up, my calves really did feel better - I think I just need to suck it up and run slowly, correctly, rather than fast and badly, until my body figures out how to do this.
We took the trip back to RunTex pretty slowly, but there were a few stretches when I really tried to run properly, feeling like my feet were moving in a circle as if I was pedalling a bike. That really seemed to help and, while my quads got tired very quickly, I did pick up about 30 seconds of pace by doing that without really trying. This is probably a Good Thing.
After we got back, we chatted with Gilbert for a while and he showed us some brutally effective hamstring stretches. He also offered to meet us at the gym one day and work with us to develop a weight program for our legs, which he suggested we do every day before a hard workout - meaning Monday, Wednesday and Friday. He said that it will actually help us with recovery. So sometime in the next couple of weeks, I need to take him up on that offer.
Total mileage: 8.4
Popularity: 1%
May 13th 2004
11:01 AM
Is Gilbert with AustinFit? Do you find his critiques helpful, or a nuisance? I’m trying to picture moving my legs like I’m on the bike, seems very unnatural.
May 13th 2004
11:14 AM
Good question! Gilbert Tuhabonye is probably the fastest distance runner in Austin. He’s an Olympian & NCAA All-American, an elite marathoner who also coaches about 30-40 runners during the week to help pay the bills - and because he really seems to enjoy coaching and helping other people. His advice has been pretty useful to me… Also, his story was in the March 2004 issue of Reader’s Digest if you’re interested - he was a survivor (barely) of the Burundi genocide just ten years ago.
edit: I found an online summary at http://www.acu.edu/alumni/acu-today/spring99/cover01.html
May 13th 2004
12:28 PM
I’m trying to condition myself to not take constructive criticism personally, if I’m going to join Seattle Fit. I’m really bad about that actually, runningwise or otherwise.
May 13th 2004
12:34 PM
I’ve found that most of the running coaches here and in AustinFit will let you run the way that you want to - may be a side effect of the laid back atmosphere in Austin. However, if you ask one of them, “What can I do to improve?” or, like I did, “Why are my calves hurting so much?” they’re very helpful and happy to work with you to improve. YMMV of course. You’ll probably find some people in SeattleFit who are there mostly for the social aspect, and some who seriously want to improve their form/conditioning - if you figure out where you want to be and let your coaches know accordingly, they’ll probably do their best to give you the level of help that you need. Don’t know if that will help you or not…
May 13th 2004
12:49 PM
That does help a lot, actually. I’m still tossing the idea around; I’ll know more when I’m allowed to start running again and can assess my pain level, or lack thereof. Gracias!
May 13th 2004
6:43 PM
As the running baby here (infant really), the work you are describing sounds not even doable from my limited perspective so I can only mostly just say - wow.
May 14th 2004
10:22 AM
Yeah, I agree. Wow. Great job, Richard!
May 14th 2004
11:57 AM
Intervals are NOT at all easy - or enjoyable while doing them - so all I have to say is:
YOU ROCK! Great job!
(and isn’t a great feeling when you’re finished and you know that you’ve successfully maneuvered through a hard workout?!)
The SF Fit experience re: coaching is pretty much the same, which I appreciate. I *have* asked for and received some valuable advice. However, as one coach put it so eloquently:
“Everyone has a different opinion or piece of advice about every aspect of running.”
May 14th 2004
6:00 PM
Aww, thanks! Intervals are a little frustrating, but I credit them more than anything else to getting my speed up. Between the fast repetitions with little to no recovery, and the form advice I’m getting, I’m actually beginning to feel fast! Not compared to the top folk in my age group, of course, but I’m on my way… and enjoying the journey, however long it may take.