I ran to school this morning, and ran my first real speed workout in about 2 weeks. I have decided that the calf issues I am having have little to do with the rest I get, or how fast I run, so I figure that I just need to train like everything is normal and back off if there is any discomfort. So, I decided to run 2 x 2 "miles" hard followed by some short sprints at the end of the run. If the calf felt good I would keep going, and if it hurt I would back off and run easy the rest of the way. Anyhow, the distance between major intersections in Vegas is approximately 1 mile, and after a mile warm-up I began my first 2 "mile" repeat, meaning that I ran from one major intersection, went through the second, and finished at the third. This gave me a decent stretch of road with only 1 stop light in the middle. Splits were 4:45, 4:39 for the first repeat (so, a little less than 2 miles total, but not by a lot) and I was able to get through the only stop light without any interruptions. I took a 1 "mile" rest after the first repeat, and then began the second repeat running splits of 4:57, 5:10. The second repeat had 3 lights, and I ended up needing to stop at 2 of them (one halfway through for about 30sec, and one about 3/4 into it for 3-5sec). The last "mile" of the second repeat probably gives me the best indicator for how fast I was going, as this was the closest to a true mile that I ran. So, I would guess that I was averaging 5:10-5:15 pace for the bulk of the time I spent running hard. I was pleased with how my calf felt, as there was no tightness or pain, and I was able to run the short sprints at the end of the run as well, without any pain. 57:25 total time for 8.6 miles. PM: I ran part way home, and then had Kimia pick me up, because I was late getting out of school, and I didn't want to come home any later than I had to. Total of about 5 miles in about 38:00.
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