Dramatically sports specific undertrained but reasonably fit generally, I hopped in the Mid-Winter Classic, a 10 mile road race held in near by Cape Elizabeth, Maine. It went pretty well, and is my best running workout of the winter.
Just how undertrained was I? Well, I hadn't run that far (10 miles) since July. In addition, I'd only run 84K in the entire month of January. My winter running goal is merely to be ready to train in April, and ready to race 5K-10K (inclusive) in the primary Maine racing season of summer and fall.
With that in mind, I approached the race as if it were a marathon in the sense that I didn't warm up (using the first couple miles of the race as a warm up) and I ran very cautiously at the beginning. This approach paid off and I was satified with the results. It helped that the weather was ideal--mid thirties F with a cloud cover and no wind. Mile splits were:
8:48 (8:59 by the gun)
8:36
8:24
8:03
7:54
8:15
8:01
7:56
7:51
7:35
1:21:22 total by my watch (I started it when I passed the start line), 1:21:33 officially.
The course is hilly throughout--with hills too long and steep to be called "rolling". My effort was consistent from mile 4 on, the time variance was a function of the hills and a bit of a harder push from mile 8 in when I knew I could cover the distance at effort. All in all a very good workout.
Now, back to the rower.
Just how undertrained was I? Well, I hadn't run that far (10 miles) since July. In addition, I'd only run 84K in the entire month of January. My winter running goal is merely to be ready to train in April, and ready to race 5K-10K (inclusive) in the primary Maine racing season of summer and fall.
With that in mind, I approached the race as if it were a marathon in the sense that I didn't warm up (using the first couple miles of the race as a warm up) and I ran very cautiously at the beginning. This approach paid off and I was satified with the results. It helped that the weather was ideal--mid thirties F with a cloud cover and no wind. Mile splits were:
8:48 (8:59 by the gun)
8:36
8:24
8:03
7:54
8:15
8:01
7:56
7:51
7:35
1:21:22 total by my watch (I started it when I passed the start line), 1:21:33 officially.
The course is hilly throughout--with hills too long and steep to be called "rolling". My effort was consistent from mile 4 on, the time variance was a function of the hills and a bit of a harder push from mile 8 in when I knew I could cover the distance at effort. All in all a very good workout.
Now, back to the rower.
1 comment:
Good run, Pete. Obviously this training regime has its benefits. I think there is also something to be said for having fresh legs and relying on muscle memory as my marathon yesterday seemed to also bear out.
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