The previous week I had started to worry if my training was working at all. This week I got some reassurance that it was. It did remind me of one lesson I had once gotten from Mystery Coach (and I paraphrase):
Workouts show where you are. They are not there to get you into shape.
I always had some troubles with the second part of that statement because if the workouts don't get you into shape, what will?* But the first part makes total sense, definitely, and I can see the wisdom yet again by having done a 5k time trial on a few occasion (ok, three) on the same course and under pretty similar conditions, so there is some data that can be used for comparisons and to measure progress, or the potential lack of it.
I am toying with the idea of doing a parkrun instead of doing a 5k loop on my own, but I'm trying to run them at 90% effort rather than race it, and I know myself too well to be under any illusions that I would resist temptation to beat the guy just ahead of me, even in a non-competitive event like a parkrun (yeah, right). Anyway, 90% effort on my own it is for the time being, and the first time I did that loop I ran it at 7:08 pace, two weeks later I was in crisis mode after 7:15 pace and this week the world is all rosy again after 6:59 pace, and the fact that there is a "6" at the start is very nice indeed, thank you very much. On a sidenote, I guess I will never see a "5" again at for a 5k. I try not to compare it to how fast I would have run that a few years ago, so let's not go into that any further.
Anyway, further proof that things are going well came the following day when I did a rather hilly long run, the longest in quite some time, and despite the hamstrings starting out pre-fatigued from that workout I got around pretty well. My spirit did start to sag a bit at 14/15 miles but somehow I recovered to finish pretty well - I was feeling pleasantly tired afterwards, as Lydiard would have had it. All good.
I'm definitely starting to get into a pretty good rhythm and little real-life details, like not being able to run on Tuesday because I was stuck in a conference all day, didn't do anything to sidetrack me. I think I might be looking forward to that 50k in February after all.
* Miles and recovery. Miles and recovery. Miles and recovery.
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