You’d think we’d be running 7 and 1 today. When I first took a running class, that was how things were done, except in the old days all times were run with six reps instead of the current variable rep limit.
This week we’re running 8 and 1s, and I must say I am a little intimidated. But that is tempered by the past 7 weeks’ experience. In not quite two months I have gone from a couch spud who needed to stop to rest during a spirited walk to someone who, last Saturday, ran an extra set of six minutes just because I could. It is amazing how quickly the body adjusts to accommodate the new demands.
More than the distance, or maybe in addition to the distance, the hard part is trying to ignore the passage of time. I’ve started wearing ear buds with my aged MP3 player to distract me. The rest of the class is usually way ahead of me, so I’m always being left to run alone. (There is one lovely lady who, a few times, ran with me to chat even though she was capable of keeping up with the lead group — always welcome.) This is why I say this class is not meant for all ages — running alone while seeing a group ahead of you laughing and talking and enjoying their efforts is, frankly, cruel. If I did not have the history I have; if I did not have the motivation I have, I would have dropped out to make up with my sofa for the rest of whatever. In the ten mile class, I saw a lady who I assume was about my age — and in that class was obviously fit and not overweight — who was running at a relatively slow rate compared to the others in her group. That implied to me that speed is affected by age. If I can improve to her pace, I will be a happy camper.
Eight minutes is a long time. But I do notice, when running on my own on my previous routes, that I’m covering some impressive distance. And music really helps. I do keep my volume set low enough to hear traffic and even to hear footsteps coming from behind as a safety measure. Funny when people yell “Good morning!” thinking I can’t hear after I’ve greeted them in a normal tone
Eight minutes! I did three sets on my own on Saturday. And of course I brag about it on social media. Darn right I brag. I’ve worked hard and earned the right. Next week we do 10 minutes running and 1 minute walking which is the goal for the course. Bring it on!
Recent Comments