Week 4 - Key Run Workout #1

If you'd like to be notified next time I write something, sign up for email alerts or subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for reading!

Tonight’s workout should have been a 10-20 minute warm up, followed by 5 x 1k (with 400m Recovery Interval) and a 10 minute cool down. However, I decided against the workout and chose to run a 5k race at the Norfolk Botanical Garden instead. Here are the race statistics courtesy of MotionBased:

I was secretly hoping for a time of around 18 minutes, but knew the 80°F temperature would be a major factor. I arrived about an hour before the race, registered and after a quick change was off for a warm up. My legs felt sluggish and the heat was oppressive, but gradually things improved and I started to look forward to the 5k time trial.

Many of the area’s faster runners were in attendance tonight, so for me it was just a question of finding my pace (about 6:00 per mile) and sticking to it for the first half of the race with the aim of picking things up in the second half.

As easy as the first mile felt, I was slightly disappointed at the split of 5:59. It felt much faster than it actually was, but luckily my heart rate was still only at 168 beats per minute - quite a bit left in the tank. I tried to push the pace in the second mile and although I managed to pass 4 or 5 runners, I slowed to a 6:05 and my heart rate climbed to 172bpm - I was starting to struggle.

The last mile was all about survival. I tried to maintain a fast cadence, I tried to stay relaxed and I tried to stay focused. With one final loop of the parking loop where the race started, the finish clock came into view and I realized I wouldn’t be breaking 18 minutes today. Oh well. I sprinted to the finish line and stopped my watch at 18:26 - not too bad considering the heat and a great workout to boot.

For the record I finished 13th overall and 2nd in the 40-44 age group. Now I’m looking forward to Thursday afternoon’s tempo run and the challenging 20 mile long run on Sunday morning.