Pages

28 January 2012

Hill Repeats - the Good, Bad, and the Ugly

Jen was super secret squirrel and slipped this gem of a workout - HILL REPEATS - into my recovery week. I obviously didn't check my schedule too closely this week because I almost had a bird this morning when I saw what was on the docket for today. You want me to do WHAT on my Saturday? Haha, it would be funny if you weren't serious.

Anyway. There is a hill a couple miles away from my house and that's the one I use every time I do this particular workout (which I've done on 2/4/2010, 4/2/2010, 3/9/2011, and now today). Before I do a workout that I know I've done before, I never go back and check what my previous stats were. I just don't want to know. Because then I'll be thinking about those times the WHOLE workout and I'll probably just get frustrated. But you better believe I check and compare the stats afterwards. I love and loathe the hill repeats - love them (and hate them) because they are hard, love (and hate) how I feel when I am doing them, but LOVE how I feel after they are over. Especially if I don't have a meltdown in the middle of the workout. The repeats are an exercise in both physical and mental fortitude. And now that I've done this exact workout a few times, it serves as a good benchmark to see where I am fitness-wise compared to previous seasons. Oh, and they are a great way to make your thighs even bigger (because we all know that's EXACTLY what I need). To add to the fun, the workout doesn't call for me to just go up and down the hill, I'm supposed to get progressively faster with each one, descending times, if you will.

I only looked at my watch when I'd click the lap button at the top of the hill, clicking off another repeat. The times were decent, but I thought I'd done them faster in previous years. They had done some construction to the sidewalk recently, maybe they moved Street Sign A at the bottom of the hill (signaling the beginning of the repeat) and Street Sign B at the top of the hill (signaling the end of the repeat). Maybe they moved them around and I'm actually running further than previous workouts. Yes, yes, that must be the reason I'm not getting the times I think I should be getting. Anything to make myself feel better. For as much drama as I'm throwing into my description of this workout, it was actually pretty drama-free. I came, I ran (up and down alot) and I finished. No meltdowns (unlike on the 3/9/2011 workout, according to my notes when I apparently just stopped in the middle of one repeat and had to talk myself into finishing the workout). No super slow times like the first time I did it. And my times were consistently faster than the previous occasions I did this workout. Nothing spectacular, but... Progress. I'll take it (along with some ice cream, an apple, and two slices of pizza to recover from my efforts).

PS - finished The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks yesterday. A quick read, total chick lit, but really cute.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

I LOVE hill repeats! There are definitely good and bad moments in each workout, but, exactly as you said, the feeling at the end of a hill workout is totally worth it. I feel pretty bad ass while I jog my cool down miles. Glad you made it through drama-free.

Caroline said...

You hit the nail on the head. I am always tired, but satisfied, when the hills are over. Good times. Great for building strength too!