6 Miles to help Build Endurance - "Speed with a Kick"

Today's run was an intense one. I haven't done speed work in a while and when you couple that with a few miles, 6 to be exact, things tend to get interesting. I'm working through my 4 Month Training Plan from Run1Fast Coaching. You can follow the coach on Twitter at @Run1Fast. It was originally created for me back in August of 2009, but I figured this is probably the most concise training plan that I have ever had so I might as well put it to good use!

The plan had me warm up with a 1/2 mile at an easy pace so I warmed up at about 8:00/mile which was pretty boring. The next 5 miles consisted of 7:30-7:45 per mile pace with 5x200 meter pick-up accelerations at 6:40/mile. That was much more fun. The final cool down was back to 8:00/mile for another 1/2 mile.

I would sum up this workout as one of my favorites so far. The distance is about perfect for where my current level of fitness is and it also let me push myself to a level where I could feel like I was suffering without completely exhausting myself. The Coach at Run1Fast obviously knows his stuff because other plans I've tried have never had this level of accuracy when dealing with my own personal physiology.

The plan has me running a slow 6 on Saturday. I feel like I could do 10 to 12, but I'm going to be patient and stick to the plan, trusting that it will make me a better runner. I've already got my route picked out around the Ashford/Dunwoody area of Atlanta. It has hills and more hills so it should be a good leg burner.

I'm looking forward to it and will likely suck down some GU before and during the run. Not because I will need the nutrition. I mean, its not like I'm running for over an hour. I just like the stuff.