Thursday, February 26, 2009

Tempo runs


Oh tempo runs, how I hate you so. Tempo runs on a treadmill, that is. Why does it seem like everything I do on a treadmill is harder than on the road? Running a certain pace seems like much more effort on the treadmill. I don't get it. Of course, Kristen is naturally gifted and very hard working so she thinks I'm crazy whenever I say this to her. Even when I'm mentally pumped up for a run on the treadmill I still notice the difference. It's not as bad in the morning as it is in the afternoon or evening which is why I prefer morning workouts, but I swear I'm not crazy. Example: I ran a 10k this past weekend and my pace was a little faster than my pace for the tempo run that I did on the treadmill today and my legs felt like lead. My lungs and heart rate were fine, but the kickers were no es bueno. Maybe I need a jolt of caffeine before afternoon runs from now on. Any advice? Thanks!

4 comments:

  1. uh...maybe because treadmills suck?

    sorry, that's all I have.

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  2. Treadmills do suck, indeed. Unless it's raining or there's rioting in the streets, the road is always better. What's the latest Kristen report?
    BTW, we live in LA (lower Alabama).

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  3. Mike,
    So are you running the 5K at Seal Beach? I just got back on the road this weekend after nursing the slight calf strain...still hurts but will manage. 10K's are out of the question for me unless I can get a consistent training regime back, 5k's I can stil fake at our age?

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  4. @Rodney - Yesterday was my long day (7 miles) and I was all set to run it on the strand in Long Beach, but just as I was getting ready to go the wind started blowing hard. And that particular part of Long Beach gets REALLY windy (hence all the kite-surfers). So I ended up on the damn treadmill again. It went better this time, though. My pace was easier to keep up and I chugged a glass of Green Tea just before to get some caffeine cranking thru my system. Seemed to work fine, but I would have much preferred to run on the beach. Oh well, I have several routes mapped around the area and hit the road when it's convenient. As for Kristen, she's still laid up. But for Kristen, being laid up means using the Precor or spin classes. However, she did the Precor yesterday (even though I told her not to) and she was complaining afterwards that her foot was really hurting. She's going to get an MRI to see what's causing it. X-rays didn't show any breaks, but that doesn't preclude a hairline fracture. Fingers crossed.

    @Steve - Glad to hear you're back on the road. I'm signed up for the 10k and am training for it now. I'm not running anymore 5k's this year and just training for longer races to get my overall mileage up each week and month. I will probably run a 5k next year to crush my current PR for that race.

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