Hard Work

Just about everything this morning felt like hard work. It was hard work getting out of bed; hard work getting dressed/hair braided for the run; hard work getting out the door. Even my warm up - the two miles out to the track - which I consciously take easy, seemed like hard work. This was disappointing because I have been feeling good lately and actually looking forward to my runs.

Out to the track - slower than usual, I suppose. I didn't hold out great hope. I decided to *again* do the 5 x 200s with the 200 recovery in between. Went down like this... 52, 50.1, 50.5, 50.8... and the last one I messed up the timing somehow, so I have no idea, though I know it was slower than the prior three, maybe even slower than the first. My butt was kicked. I worked very hard for those times and was pleased (and surprised) to see them come down a little from last week. I felt like my heart would explode towards the end of those - especially the middle three. Not sure if I should stick with this routine for a few more weeks or change it up - maybe do some 400s instead.

The run home was, duh, hard work too, but not as bad as the way out and certainly not hard work like what I had done out on the track. I try to pick up the pace on the way home - just to get a little extra work on my fitness in. All in all, did the usual 5+ miles.