Finally . . . . A Workout!

Exactly 3 weeks to the day since my last workout (and 3 weeks to the day since my hip/back got zapped) I was on the track for a quasi-legit session.  

I've been feeling much better these past few days.  However the calf/adductor combo that caused some issues going around the turns on the track is still present, albeit to a lesser degree.  

I had 3 goals for this session:

1.  Determine how far the calf/adductor have come along over the past 10 days.

2.  Get in some controlled speed work .

3.  If possible, get into the spikes for a few quick repeats.

I wasn't exactly sure where my fitness would be w/ about a week off and two very down weeks, but I penciled in the following wo as a target:

2 x 200m (at whatever the calf/adductor would allow - hopefully under 30)

5-minutes to re-stretch the trouble spots

2 x 600m @ sub-1:45 (3-min rest between)

8-minute set break

3 x 300m (in spikes) w/ about 90-second rests.  Pace TBD depending on how I was feeling.

I could feel the calf on the turns of the 200s, but I was able to get to a slightly quicker pace before they flared up, and the discomfort wasn't nearly as bad.  The 200s came in at 28.8 and 28.0.

The first 600 felt really good.  Relaxed, controlled effort and pretty even pace the whole way - 1:43.  On #2 I did what I usually do and let the pace come naturally.  Typically this means that #2 is faster than #1 and this was the case early on.  At 300m I was 2-seconds ahead of the rep-1 pace and I was looking for a 1:41-1:42 . . . but at this point, my fitness drop became apparent.  I struggled a bit through the 2nd half and finished w/ a 1:45.  Not that big a deal, it's probably going to take a couple of weeks to get that fitness back up - at least I now know where I stand.

During the set break I changed into my spikes and got ready for my 300s.  I figured I'd need to be careful as the calf issue was definitely going to be there to some degree.  On the first 300 I could feel the calf a little during the opening straightaway - this was new - I assumed it was due to being in spikes, but it wasn't too bad.  Thankfully, it didn't get any worse on the turn and I came through the finish in 45.1  After a 100m jog back to the start followed by an additional 1-minute rest I was off on #2.  I backed off on the pace just a hair to keep from flaring up the calf and surprisingly this worked perfectly.  No calf issues at all on #2 and I was still able to come in at 45.9  

At this point I decided not to press my luck w/ a 3rd rep - I had gotten everything I wanted out of this session and I felt it was important for me to leave the track on a high note w/ some precious confidence restored.

Overall things went very well considering I haven't done much these past 3-weeks.  My fitness is off obviously, but probably not by too much.  Clearly I did not feel like myself during the 2nd half of the 2nd 600 - but I guess that should have been expected.  The calf/adductor are getting better, but not all the way back.  This kept my speed from being back near 100%, but that was only because the tightness kept a lid on how hard I can push it.  The massage is helping tremendously here, but they were so locked up that it's going to take a few sessions to get these guys back to normal.  Hopefully I continue to make progress here in the coming weeks.

Finally - the hip/back gave me ZERO issues today.  Again, I'll need to be hopeful that this remains the case going forward, but so far so good.  

Easy day tomorrow - massage on Monday, and if all's clear, the next workout should be Wednesday.  

Training:  

Fri, 6/19:  31-minutes @ 6:51 pace

Sat, 6/20:  2 x 200m (28.8, 28.0), 2 x 600m (1:43, 1:45), 2 x 300m (45.1, 45.9)