Sprint a Mile

Sprint a Mile

18 PAX made it out for Sprint Week #3 of the new weekly rotation (where Sprints are week #4 of the month) at Swift this past week.  While there wasn’t as much “demo” as prior weeks’ sprinting form, we blended more traditional intervals in Prep for the 1600m Time Trial next week

The THANG:

• 0500 – Small early crew already shirtless rounded the 1.3mi powerline to Rushmore to Bull Ring loop.
• 0515 – Rest of the 18 PAX gathered to head off in a similar direction down the power lines to Rushmore to the Bull Ring.  Instructions to “take it easy” and “shortcut the Bull Ring if necessary” fell on deaf ears, for this was a warm-up with a little too much vigor.
• 0525 – Traditional heels and toes, but also mixed in the walking piriformis stretch, glute stretch, and hamstring stretches.  Arm circles. A-Skip x 2.  B-Skip x 2.
• 0540 – Line up for the 1st round and round the Bull Ring which was a 16x100m Interval at 1-mile goal pace, with a 100m jog recovery.  Cones every 100m, but watch for the “gap” cones.
• Mosey back and catch the Six once most PAX had finished.  Setup on an interval to give a good ending to the next round.
• Three rounds of 300m (200m at 1 mile goal pace, 100m Sprint to finish) and 3:00 recovery.
• 0610 – Mosey back to COT.  Over-achievers Citgo and Frasier pushed to one more round of the 300m Interval.
• COT

Moleskin:

• Today’s workout was one created from two good 1mile Prep workouts that YHC found when poking around on the Interwebs.  It was one that allowed us to combine the 1 mile goal pace and some Sprints.
• The first part of the workout was from a 32 x 100m at 1 mile Goal Pace with 100m recovery.  Would have been best to do this on a track with jogging the corners and 1mile pace the straights.  Purpose is to try to feel that pace in your legs without getting too much fatigue.  However, after some PAX were struggling with this first half of the workout today, it was evident that the 100m recoveries were likely not much of a recovery.  Instead, just slower than the 1 mile goal pace.  So, in the future, in a workout like this, learn to recover properly.  There are some workouts designed with an aggressive recovery (very short, fast jog, etc.), but this was not one of them.
• The second part of the workout was one that would be 4th or 5th in a cycle of these types of workouts, but we cut it down from 6x300m to our time and fatigue constrained 3 x 300m.  Again, feel the 200m pace in the legs for consistency, but then use good finishing speed (just like you will when coming off the last corner of the 1600m time trial tomorrow) to bring it to the finish line.  Aggressive in nature for sure, but more like the fatigue you will feel at the end of a race.
• The 5th Tuesday of the month’s rotation is a bit of a drive – Charlotte Latin is not close to many of the SC and Union County PAX, but this will be a test you don’t want to miss.  There aren’t many opportunities for us to push ourselves to our limits individually to meet a “standard”, but this is certainly going to be one of them.  With a proper warm-up, fast surface (rubberized track), and warm temps, most things will be just right to produce an effort to help gauge your fitness.  Then, in two months when we have another 5th Tuesday, we’ll have another measuring point to note our progression.  Even though writing all of this is making my heart race increase and the butterflies flow, the short discomfort of four laps of the track will be worth it.
• Here’s a strategy for the 1600m tomorrow.  Say you’re shooting for a 6:00 finish, so those perfect 400m splits would be in 1:30, 3:00, 4:30, 6:00.  Without someone pacing you, it’s next to impossible to try to hit those exactly, and with all of the adrenaline, the first lap is likely to be faster than it should be.  So, let’s say the first lap is 1:27 (displayed on an iPad at the start/finish line), shoot for making the second lap 1:30 (right on pace, but still under goal time), knowing fatigue will set in for the third lap in perhaps a 1:33, but then you can bring it home with a 1:29 (not as fast as the 1st, but faster than the 3rd because you can smell the finish line and use that awesome Sprint speed) to coast in right at 5:59.
• Plan for a strategy, and then hold to it even when the legs and lungs revolt!

Announcements:

• No Timekeeper this week.  We’ll resume next Tuesday 6/5 back at Einsteins.