Speed Work is a DOOZY!
I think we all know this, but I haven't FELT this for some months now. Ever since my heel injury in early May, I was either not running, or just getting my running legs back to get through Vineman. Then for the past month, I just sorta did what I wanted training wise.
Now, I've got my sights on a half marathon in late October, a few sprint triathlons along the way, and my foot is ~90% better, so I'm ready to pick up the pace with Picante with running.
Well, good grief Charlie Brown, getting back to speed work S*Cks! Or should I say, finding the mental toughness to just do em' again is HARD.
Monday I was supposed to do my first speed work session. Well, I only had the gym treadmill as an option and I poo-poo'd out after the first set. I just didn't have the mental stamina at ALL.
Then I was supposed to do the speed work Weds. Well, I was tired after standing up for 3 hrs at work, and had kid duties, etc, etc. so yah, no mental toughness there. Then I read Magg's latest post on mental toughness, and remembered what a CRUCIAL component it is to training. You need to train your brain just as much, if not more, than the body. I sorta forgot about that. duh.
So this morning, I told myself to just DO IT. I don't care if I'm ~20 sec's slower than my expected interval time. Just get back into it. I had my prescribed set from Run Less Run Faster and I told myself to just suck it up and go.
Well, it did S*ck! I haven't felt sick to my stomach or out of breath for a looong time. And man, the mental games your head plays. wow. But I did a speed workout. No, I didn't follow it to the T, as I gave myself more rest than prescribed, and mixed up some of the 800's for 200's but it was SOMETHING. And now I have something to work off.
And the main reason I'm sharing this is because you all were SO in my head when I was beginning to wimp out, or about to do less than I knew I could. In the sucky moments, I was grateful to have 'suck it up buttercup!' and all your strong athlete voices and stories of mental stamina in my head. Thanks for the push. Now...get on out there and RUN!
Now, I've got my sights on a half marathon in late October, a few sprint triathlons along the way, and my foot is ~90% better, so I'm ready to pick up the pace with Picante with running.
Well, good grief Charlie Brown, getting back to speed work S*Cks! Or should I say, finding the mental toughness to just do em' again is HARD.
Monday I was supposed to do my first speed work session. Well, I only had the gym treadmill as an option and I poo-poo'd out after the first set. I just didn't have the mental stamina at ALL.
Then I was supposed to do the speed work Weds. Well, I was tired after standing up for 3 hrs at work, and had kid duties, etc, etc. so yah, no mental toughness there. Then I read Magg's latest post on mental toughness, and remembered what a CRUCIAL component it is to training. You need to train your brain just as much, if not more, than the body. I sorta forgot about that. duh.
So this morning, I told myself to just DO IT. I don't care if I'm ~20 sec's slower than my expected interval time. Just get back into it. I had my prescribed set from Run Less Run Faster and I told myself to just suck it up and go.
Well, it did S*ck! I haven't felt sick to my stomach or out of breath for a looong time. And man, the mental games your head plays. wow. But I did a speed workout. No, I didn't follow it to the T, as I gave myself more rest than prescribed, and mixed up some of the 800's for 200's but it was SOMETHING. And now I have something to work off.
And the main reason I'm sharing this is because you all were SO in my head when I was beginning to wimp out, or about to do less than I knew I could. In the sucky moments, I was grateful to have 'suck it up buttercup!' and all your strong athlete voices and stories of mental stamina in my head. Thanks for the push. Now...get on out there and RUN!
Comments
I agree 110% that the track workouts will help you to improve mental toughness! I often get a little intimidated when I get to the track and think, "I have to do 8 800's at x:xx pace? That's gonna be rough!" But counting them down helps, and finishing the workout is a great feeling of accomplishment.
And yay for blog friends helping to keep you motivated! :)
I was dreading it. It was hard. It sucked big time. But I kept going at it. I kept telling myself to run really really really fast for two minutes and then you will get a break for 2 minutes. OMG. It was hard! But I was super proud I did it.