Speed Work

So today was my first workout that included speedwork. The entirety of the run was four miles and it included five x one minute pickups. I did a slow first mile to warm up and then got right in to my first one minute pickup. Suprisingly I felt really strong the entire minute. I felt like I had a nice hard jog and I checked my pace during the first pickup which came in at a 5:20 per mile clip. Follwing the first pickup I used a two minute recovery period. During the second pickup I felt just as strong although I started to fade during the last 10 seconds. I definitely felt some lactic acid building up too. Still I felt good, but this time I used a three minute recovery.

The last three pickups were much harder and although I tried to keep the same pace as the first two pickups I know I wasn't going as fast. Each pickup definitely got harder to do which is good. I know I put the same amount of effort into each one. I finished the 4.04 miles with a time of 29:01 which averaged out to 7:10 per mile pace. I'm not sure how the total time during a speed workout is supposed to measure up to a regular workout, but this time is in line with a regular workout. Can anyone shed some light on that?

The craziest thing about this workout is that my shin splints didn't bother me at all. When I finished I didn't even feel as if I had to ice. I iced the right shin anyway, but this is the best it's felt after a workout yet. Hopefully these shin splints are on their way out. Tomorrow is an off day and then Sunday will be the longest run for me yet: a 7 miler. Till next time, keep running and git er done.