Call me Capt. Obvious.
Most runners hate hills. I know I dread them. I'm registered for the La Jolla Half Marathon in April, and the main thing that occupies my attention about that event is the 420' rise between the 5.5 and 6.5 mile marks.
When you run to better your time over a given distance, hills are obstacles. Hills slow you down. Hills hurt.
I ran a big hill on Sunday morning. I'd been wanting to mimic the Black Mountain 7K Summit Run for sometime now, and finally got the gumption to give it a shot before I started on my marathon training, big-mileage increase program. I didn't know how hard it was going to be. Today? I'm all tuckered out. My calves are stiff. My quads are sore. My ankles hurt. If I didn't know better, I'd think I'd have run a 15-miler at race pace. Parts of that climb were 12% grades, according to the topo map.
The lesson learned? I need to put in some serious hill work. Running is not all about flats and getting your best time in perfect conditions. It's cycling rather than running, I know; but probably the most exciting and dramatic segments of the Tour de France are when the competitors are struggling up the steepest Alpine climbs. Racing the fastest isn't always the most thrilling.
The one and only time I ran the Del Mar to La Jolla half marathon, 22 years ago, I had to walk most of that hill up to Torrey Pines. I don't want to do that this time. Even if I'm slowed to a 12-minute mile, I want to maintain a running gait all the way to the top.
I have some work to do. I can do a 220 yard 12% grade climb after 4-5 miles of running. I can probably even do 440 yards. But a mile? Not yet. (Okay, so it's not 12% for the whole mile, but still...)
Anyway, back to today. I had planned to crosstrain today with some swimming and circuit weight training. I intentionally left my running shoes at home to avoid being enticed into running, even if for just a little bit. Usually, when I do that, I wind up running more than I should. But if I'm going to stick with my plan for the week and press myself with a pace run and speedwork, today has to be a recovery day. Unfortunately, work and time got away from me and I couldn't get my gym session in at all. I've got to convince myself that that's okay. I can do with a day of rest after yesterday.
