Running Log: Wednesday, March 24 2010

Canal -> Great Western -> Maryhill Rd -> Queen Margaret

10 miles in 1:07:00, average pace 6:42/mile
Splits: 7.19, 6.58, 6.56, 6.56, 6.50, 6.47, 6.40, 6.30, 6.05, 5.58

Notes: another damp, cool evening; the hardest part about shifting to higher mileage training blocks is the first 5 miles of a run; it is often really hard to get through those opening miles, which is perhaps why so many runners back down from running 10 or more miles a day, every day; however, once you get through these notorious and painfully grinding warm-up miles, the body 'wakes up,' the aerobic system 'opens up,' and it is surprising how what was once stiff, awkward, and forced, is now smooth, precise, and comparatively effortless; so even when it hurts to walk out the door, even when the first 2, 3, 5, 7...miles feel like your circulatory system has calcified and your legs are to the point of rigor mortis, persist and you will hit your stride - the miles will roll and "miles make the champions;" which brings me to a point of concern regarding training amongst nearly all our local club runners (as far as I can tell): because we typically do 2-3 "sessions" per week, which invariably target the anaerobic system through harder efforts, and because we carry out these sessions (in addition to racing) year round, we are failing to develop the aerobic foundation properly and maximally, which means all that anaerobic training, at some point, amounts to banging one's head against a ceiling.