First Time Intervals

Last night, I ran my first set of intervals on the treadmill. Not sure what to expect, I decided to start conservatively and increase the pace as necessary. Having never raced a 5K before, I wasn't sure what pace to run the 600m intervals at, so I decided to start at 7:30/mile pace and see how my heart rate was after the first interval. To begin with, I ran 4 miles around 9:00/mile pace and then started the intervals. The first one was relatively easy and my heart rate was only in the low 160s. So after a 45 second jogging break, I ran the next one at 7:19/mile. My heart rate was a little higher, in the mid 160s, so I decided to run the next one a little quicker. The 3rd interval was around 7:09/mile and this brought my heart rate to the high 160s. Knowing that I could push my HR a little bit higher, I ran the last 2 at 7:00/mile pace. This finally got my HR working at close to 100% VO2 max rate - in the mid 170s. To finish off the run, I ran around 2 more miles to complete the 8 mile interval run. The next time I run the intervals, I think I'll start at 7:00/mile pace and go from there. Overall, I enjoyed my first set of intervals. Between intervals and tempo runs, I think that I prefer the intervals, probably because growing up, I've always been more of a sprinter than a long distance runner. Who knows how long before that switches around.

On Tuesday I also ran a GA 8 miler at 9:00/mile pace. Tonight I ran a recovery 5 miler at 9:30/mile pace. Tomorrow is a rest day followed by another 8 miler with strideouts and then a 14 mile long run on Sunday. This week will bring my mileage to 43 for the week. Surprisingly this is a recovery week per Pfitz. Next week is the highest mileage week of the program - 55 miles! The good news is I have Spring Break, so I'll make sure that I get lots of rest in between runs.