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February 09, 2006
Re-Training the Mind
One thing that I am guilty of, and I believe that most runners are guilty of, is comparing what they did today to what they have done at some point in the past. We tend to be the most guilty of this when it comes to actual workouts. Everyone has workouts that are sort of a staple in their routine-the ones that can be used to judge what kind of shape you are in. We all tend to compare when we do these workouts to how we did them in the past. Whether that past is a week ago, a month ago, or years ago-we know what we did each of whatever it is in and compare to that. This is good in that we can have benchmarks to aim for, but it is bad in that circumstances may not permit the same end result. This is something that I am trying to remember as I think back on tonight's workout.
This year we are doing our hill repeats differently than we have the past several years. Usually we do six weeks of the steep hills, starting at 3, working up to five working in two week segments. So we do three hills for two weeks, 4 hills for 2 weeks, and 5 hills for two weeks. Since some people seem to get injured when we do these hills, this year we are alternating the steep hills with longer gradual hills. Today was the first day of the steeper hills. Normally, the first week would be 3 hills, but given when the race we are looking at is, I needed to do four of them tonight. I'll only be able to get two weeks of these hills in, so getting them in is imperative.
My tri buddy J did the hills with me. He opened his mouth and told people that we were doing four, so a lot of them did four, even though they were not supposed to. I still felt a bit on the sleepy-tired side, but not too beat up tired. I actually felt strong going up the hills. The fourth one was a bit tough, J saved up his energy to "outkick" me to the top of the last hill after I pulled him up the first three. We did the four miles of hills in 29:40. This is where the comparison comes into play. I usually will do this workout in around 28:50. Now, after doing a hard effort on Sunday and travelling, it is not the same as usual. Also, I've never jumped into doing four right away, I always have at least two weeks of three hills under my belt before doing four. The main thing for me was to feel strong going up the hill, which I did.
Oh, I also did my morning run this morning. It was just four miles out and back. It was the first time that I have had to run in truly cold temperatures in a long time. As long as I was moving, it wasn't too bad. The problem came about half a mile from home when I had a dog/puppy encounter. It looked to be a puppy, didn't have on tags or a collar and there was no one around that looked to be an owner. It ran out into the street around me and then would run away. Finally, it ran accross the street to the park where a woman was asking me if it bit. I was so happy to be done with it that I yelled over to her that it isn't my dog, I don't know.
This afternoon I completely wasted my new haircut. My appointment was at 4:30, so I got my haircut and then immediately put on a hat to go run. What a waste. It will never look like she had it tomorrow. The haircut was much needed, my hair does not fit into a mini-ponytail anymore. I think that the next time I get it cut I'm going to get even more layers in it so that I don't have to do as much with it.
Posted by Blondie at February 9, 2006 08:01 PM
Comments
I know what you're saying about comparing times. I wouldn't worry about it too much. Like you said, you usually do this workout later. The important thing is that you improve.
I also hear what you're saying about the hair. My hair looks awesome when I leave the salon, never to look the same again. I should plan outings after I get it cut, so I can show it off.
Posted by: Caitlin at February 9, 2006 08:31 PM