foundation 800s

Back to track for some foundation work.  Perfect training weather, mid 60ºs, dry, but breezy.  The track was a ghost ship, deserted, the way I like it.  Was happy to see the grounds crew had put away all the lacrosse stuff.  (It usually takes them til June to do this).



This is some of the worst drudgery, now that I'm beginning a cycle.  The first 800 felt hard.  Almost felt like I did at age 9 ... after a first crushing swim team workout where we swam 2 miles, over 100 laps, I broke down and told my father afterward in tears that 'I just couldn't do it.'  Well, I hung in there and it got easier.  This proven 'long to short' approach for me is what I  have to do.  I really don't have that much time in this cycle, Nationals begin 7 weeks from today.  My first race is in only 4 weeks.

Hoka trainers on 

400m warmup, stretches, drills 

3 x 800m - 2:39, 2:43, 2:43

I took plenty of recovery, almost 15 min.    It was good to get it done.    Feet feel ok.   I'll be on the track again Sat or Sun, and then will probably settle into an every other day regime.   I hope to ramp up to 4x800 next workout, then 600s, tempo intervals ... resume hill sprints, weights, protein, creatine, and amino supplements.

I am very light but I feel I've lost strength from my peak when I was turning consistent sub 25 sec 200s.  At just 143.4 lbs after workout, I am still a bit soft, and I may very well gain weight during this training cycle.  It stands to reason that if I can put on a few lbs of muscle in a month in between Nationals and Worlds, then I can surely lose it as well.   Sarcopenia is a constant scourge for the older athlete.  Physically, I'm pretty dynamic.  I seem to be able to gain and lose fat and muscle fairly quickly depending on if I'm sedentary or training.  That said, it's never easy to put on muscle at this age.  A lot of sweat and power expended, and a careful diet.