3:08

I am not writing this at 3:08Am or Pm.. however the number in the title does pertain to my post.

Last Tuesday, after our really solid 6,4,2 x 3 workout John told us that we should run 5 on Thursday because we would probably have a time trial on Friday.
Well, not surprisingly, I didn't feel 100% on Wednesday and even for my 5 miles on Thursday. The workout on Tuesday definitely took a lot out of me, but I recovered very well from it.

I got a decent amount of sleep this week. I've been trying to get 9-10 hours every night. I woke up on Friday feeling pretty drowsy as I usually do in the morning, but my legs felt pretty fresh. John told those who wanted to workout to meet at the Gym at 1:00pm. I got dropped off (since my car is still in need of being fixed) and walked in. Found Devon, we chatted for a bit, waited for Chris to come, then John. John told us we were doing a 1200 meter time trial; Just the three of us.

As usual, we warmed up about 21 minutes and stretched. We also brought our race spikes today. Chris would later inform us (to Coach John's disdain) that he actually only had one spike in total in his 2 racing shoes. I thought this time trial would be a good little event to break in my Christmas present: Nike Victory s.
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So we warmed up, did our strides, and went to the back straight of our 200m track to start the time trial. Why did we head to the back straight for our start? Well the bleachers were covering all of the track lanes except for lane 1 on the home straight because there was a Basketball game scheduled a few hours later. So we couldn't make any passing on the home straight, just run in lane one. John decided that we should start from the back straight since he would have the person in front move to the back every 400m.

For some reason, when working out with Chris and Devon (and occasionally Marc) it has become custom for me to take the first interval. I don't know how it started, but now I always end up with the first interval. John asked who out of us wanted to take each 400, so Chris goes, "Sam has the first 4". I guess I was okay with that. Devon ended up taking the middle 400, and Chris the last 400 to complete the 1200m distance. John told us that we should run strong the whole way through, but have it be more like running a mile effort. Trying to run around 3:12. I think this was good because that mindset would prevent us from going out in anything crazy.

So we began, got out, passed the home stretch running in lane one with all the bleachers out and our few fans (Kerwin, Beth, and Alyssa) cheering. As we were coming to the first 200m I was expecting to hear 32 but John says, " 30 ". Hmmm.. it almost felt too comfortable to be true. We kept going, I tried not to slow it down too much. Right before the 400m, I went out into lane 2 on the backstraight and let Devon and Chris pass me.
At 400m John says, "62"
Now, I'm behind Chris, with Devon leading both of us. I can make a ton of parallels between the effort I felt during my first mile a few weeks ago (4:31) and how I felt now. After 400m in that mile in December, I was already feeling like I was struggling.
At this point, with Devon leading us, I didn't feel any struggle, I felt VERY awake. We must've went through the 600m in around 1:35, but I don't remember hearing John yell out the time. I remember John saying something like "Halfway, alright get stronger as you go along". During this lap I definitely felt like I was very comfortable in my zone, I didn't feel any struggle in my legs, but my breathing had increased a little. As we got to the 800m, John said something along the lines of "400 to go, lets get going". I don't think he said our time, but he told us the split later was 2:08.
Devon moved out into lane 2, and Chris took over. We picked it up a bit this lap. I felt like this was the pace we needed. Going to the 1km mark and 200m to go, something went off in my head. I was thinking that I was little too comfortable and that the pace needed to be even faster.
So, with 200m to go I decided to pass Chris and I really started to turn over. I remember John being like "Keep it going" or something to that extent. We passed through the 1000m in 2:39, but John didn't give the split till we asked later. Well that last 200m really flew by, I just remember picking it up even more. I held the pace all the way through the line and John yelled out "3:08". Chris and Devon were right behind both in 3:11. I ran the last 200m in 28 high.

Overall, the effort was great. I definitely felt tired afterward. On our cool down we were on cloud 9 though, and admitted that we could run extra intervals if we needed to. Devon was like, "I could do another 1200!"... I think I responded with, "Well, maybe 800, a 12 might be pushing it". We cooled down about another 21 minutes and stretched out. Devon also said that he felt strong, but not that sharp yet. Which I think is a good thing considering it's early January. To be honest, I surprised myself with the turnover I had on the last lap. It bodes well. It'll give me a little extra confidence in my kick in my races.

Essentially, the time trial left us feeling pretty good. We all, including John, got what we wanted out of it, which was a good effort and a good indication that we were in good fitness. I guess if I had run another 400 meters in 70 seconds that would be a 4:18 mile. John says the workouts we've been doing and the time trial indicate that the three of us are in 4:20 shape, maybe better.

So this has been a really pleasing first step. I am pretty content with my 3:08, considering it was on a flat track, and that the three of us were in T-shirts and spikes. Racing will be another thing though. It won't just be with supporting teammates. There will be a lot going on, and I'm definitely ready for it. The trial didn't just leave me satisfied, but left me hungry for more as well. More fuel for the fire. The past few weeks of solid work have definitely payed off.
Now, time to bring the next few meets to attention. Terrier Classic @ BU in 2 weeks. Bowdoin Invite in a week. Time to get the racing season underway.
Good health.