This morning on my run I added the Speed Racer theme song to my brain wave radio station.

Copyright nerds:  it’s not a public performance if I’m only singing it in my head.

When I left my apartment this morning, it was snowing and I couldn’t tell how slick the roads were.  I wouldn’t know the condition of the park until I got there, so I told myself that if I couldn’t complete today’s speed workout, that it would be fine for me to just cautiously run the assigned miles.

Today’s workout:  1 mile warm-up, 1 mile 10K pace, 1/2 mile easy, 1 mile 10K pace, 1/2 mile easy, 4 x 200’s with easy 200’s in between, 1/2 mile easy, 1 mile cool-down

It was six-and-a-half miles of hard work and dedication.

When I got to the park, I was pleased to see that most of my planned route had been cleared of snow.  I didn’t have to hold back.  I could run my scheduled workout.

Or could I?

I was sincerely unsure.  Having had to take so much time off for injury last month, and only running easy runs or tempo runs for the past couple of weeks, I didn’t know how I would handle mile repeats or speed intervals.

The truth of the matter is this:  if you head out without any expectations, you will undoubtedly surprise yourself.

I met every goal.  I ran my 10K pace miles at 8:36 — a bit faster than my last official 10K time, but it felt comfortable, and it didn’t feel like I was operating at anywhere near 100% effort.  Those miles made me feel good about my (hopefully!) sub-9:00 pace for my upcoming half marathon. They reaffirmed my goal and made it feel doable.

The full workout took 1:02:23, with an average pace per mile of 9:36 (I took it really easy on that warm-up and cool down!).

I had gotten a late start this morning, so I did most of my post-run stretching on the walk home.  Think:  yoga at stop-lights.  But whatever works, right?

I did a few vinyasas on my mat once I got home and then got ready for the day.

My training hasn’t been perfect so far, but I am feeling good.  Every successful workout makes me feel closer to my goals.

Run On™