Yesterday’s AAF was very demanding on my legs. I decided to take a recovery day. I spent the afternoon in the Hot tub/whirlpool and in the pool swimming and running and back in the Hot tub/whirlpool for the lots of stretching and relaxing.

The air had a definite spring like feel today,  great sunshine and blue skies.

My workout consisted of 4.5 miles today on the cinders. Three full miles of Age Modified Fartlek. [Walk :30 – Jog :60 – Accelerate: 30. Repeat]

I felt strong and stopped only to avoid injury. And my Garmin says that my VO2Max is now 38.😊

Back on the cinders today for some middle distance intervals. This was a repeat of my 1st interval workout 2 weeks ago. That is running as far as I can for 4:00 with 2:00+ break x 4. I ran significantly further for each interval this time around, which is a definite sign of Improvement. I was tempted to run a fifth interval because I felt ok on number 4. But I declined because of an abundance of caution. The total workout was 3.5 miles with warm up and cool down. Positive day!😊

Following a much needed day of rest, I went to Turkey Swamp Park to battle the swirling wind. I covered 3 1⁄2 miles with frequent speed segments both long and short and a few hills for 40 minutes. An ok aerobic day. Back to HIIT tomorrow!

Monday – Got to the cinder track today on a more spring like afternoon with heavy legs. The goal was to run 1000’s today. I had in mind to run 8 minute pace but that was not going to happen today So,
I settled for running 4 comfortable thousands, which all turned out to be about 6:15. That is 10:00 pace. It was a 4 1⁄2 mile day, and I was well used up. Also, kind of cool that my Garmen noted that my VO2Max was up another point to 37!😊
Fortunately, tomorrow is a rest day. My legs need it. End of week two.

Week 2 – Day 5 – Aerobic day – Sunday
The cinder track was in excellent shape today as I set out to do some Elegant Eights. My legs were a little heavy getting started as a result of what I considered a pretty demanding workout yesterday. The goal was just to cover about 4 miles at a moderate pace today. Progressive miles entered my mind. I quickly backed off that idea as I began my 1st effort and settled for a comfortable 800 meter instead. It felt slow but ended up being a 5:15. I was pleasantly surprised at that. I quickly set a goal of 6 times 800 meters at that pace. I was once again pleasantly surprised as each repeat seemed much more comfortable and quicker;
5:15, 5:08 5 04, 4:52, 4:45, 4:56. With a warm up that constituted a positive, 4 mile, aerobic day.

I set out again today with no idea of where I was going to do the workout. I was bundled with four
No layers everywhere. And still the cold was Cutting. It was another dark, dank, drizzly, damp, 40° day. It was bound to be muddy everywhere. So, I decided to take a chance on the high school 400 meter track at Jackson Liberty. I drove this 7 miles to the school and i onmmediately realized that the gates were locked for Reasons that I can never understand. But I decided to jog the perimeter in case 1 of the gates was left open by mistake. And I found one on the far field. I had to walk and jog through about 100 yd of mushy muddy field to get to the rubberized track, but it was worth it. I wasn’t suretp if I could actually do a workout in this miserable weather. But I started moving and did a typical warm up. Then I just decided to be a badass and start my 8 x 400 meter interval workout that I had planned. After removing half of my layers, I seLt out with the goal to run as close to 2:15 as possible taking off each time at the 4 minute mark. I had no idea if this workout was actually possible under the conditions. But, because I am a badass, I banged out all 8 under 2:10.😎 The total time was 32 minutes lus half mile cool down. I arrived home cold and wet and totally pumped up.!!

Day 2, Thursday – HIIT

The weather was surprisingly pleasant at the cinder track this morning. After a long slow warm up, I managed 5×600 m repeats at between 3:10 and 3:30. And my gone and watch tells me I increased my VO2 max number by one point from 35 to 36. That produced a smile. 😊

Day 3, Friday- aerobic

Tonight was kind of like a spy or workout. It consisted of one hour in the pool area that was 15 minutes in the hot whirlpool to loosen up and stretch. Next was 30 minutes in the pool swimming and running. Then 15 more minutes in the hot whirlpool, just relaxing. To top it all off, it was just me and the lifeguard the entire time.

MIXED DAY – today’s workout turned into a half-and-half event. After yesterday‘s recovery I thought an interval workout on the cinders was in order. It was cold, but I was layered up. After a standard warm-up I ran two four minute intervals. By the end of the second one it was apparent that my legs were tired, too tired to be doing an interval  workout.  I then realized that I had done an interval workout last on Monday. So,I should be doing an aerobic workout. I proceeded to run two steady miles to complete a 3 1/2 mile day. It wasn’t perfect, but it was pretty good.

I will try some intervals tomorrow if I can get it in between the raindrops.🌧️☔️☔️⛈️

A good aerobic day 5 on the cinders

3.4 miles with multiple pick ups

2.5 under 30:00

 It was another cold and damp day that required some steeling to get out onto the track. However, after a warm-up, it felt like a fine running day.

Today, day six, was a duplicate of yesterday, cold and wet all day. I waited all day again for a break in the rain. But it never came. At 4 o’clock. I bundled up and set out looking for somewhere to do some HIIT.  I actually pulled into the clubhouse parking lot thinking that my only choice was to work on the indoor treadmill again. After contemplating for a while I made a call. The only possible available, non-muddy, soft surface was the Jackson liberty high school track. Outdoor running conditions were going to be much worse tomorrow, so I drove the 7 miles to Jackson liberty high school hoping that the track was not locked. It wasn’t!  I did a standard warm-up of 800 m, stretching and three strides.  Then I did four 600 m intervals at 3:15 with two minute recovery. It was pretty rough, but I was also pretty layered up, and I was looking for some serious work. So, I was very satisfied with the workout and with myself for not backing down. 😊

I really like this new workout plan.🏃‍♂️‍➡️🏃‍➡️🏃‍♂️‍➡️