Christmas Eve Workout in Tucson with the "Grinders" - (posted 1/3/06)
Today I got up to meet the Hill's running group for a tempo workout. I was supposed to do 20 miles, but didn't feel like doing it by myself, so I figured a hard workout with some people would be fun. I did a two mile warmup and met the group at the designated meeting spot. Michele and Dave introduced me to the whole group...the were great hosts, and I met some really nice people. The workout was a 3x4 minute tempo run with 1:30 in between sets followed by 45 minutes at "pace." Most of the group was training for the Rock and Roll half in Phoenix in January. We started out by doing 10 minutes of strides which was kind of interesting. It was 15 seconds on and 15 seconds off on kind of an out and back street.
We started the workout on a new loop that took us NW towards the mountains. It was a really pretty route. I think Michele stuck me with the slowest group which was OK since I was battling a cold. The first part of the workout went by pretty quick and then we were off on the 45 minute part. I was doing great, but had to make a hydration adjustment really bad. I jumped off into the bushes and the whole group passed me. I came out and had to run really hard to catch up. I passed my original group and a few more folks along the way and finished the workout about mid-pack with Michele. She was having an off day with tired legs. I chatted with a few folks after the workout and then Dave handed out little stockings with candy and running socks...they even gave me one which was really nice. Another lady gave me one of her homemade granola bars. I wished my new running friends Merry Christmas and wished them all well on their training and headed back to my brother's house. It was a really good workout with some great folks. Some people say us runners are crazy. That may be true, but we are also a very hospitable and welcoming group of people. I hope to return the Hill's hospitality if they ever make it out to Austin.
I ended up running 10 miles for the day and was happy with the effort.
Stats - 1o miles/1:22:45/8:16 pace (includes warmup, workout and cool down)
The rest of the day was nice. We took the girls to hit tennis balls with my Dad, went to mass at 4PM, and then had Mom's Chile Colorado for dinner...awesome stuff! I wasn't feeling so hot after dinner so I fell asleep on the floor around 9 and went to bed shortly after that. The kids were ready for Santa and I knew they would be up early. I really needed the sleep!
We started the workout on a new loop that took us NW towards the mountains. It was a really pretty route. I think Michele stuck me with the slowest group which was OK since I was battling a cold. The first part of the workout went by pretty quick and then we were off on the 45 minute part. I was doing great, but had to make a hydration adjustment really bad. I jumped off into the bushes and the whole group passed me. I came out and had to run really hard to catch up. I passed my original group and a few more folks along the way and finished the workout about mid-pack with Michele. She was having an off day with tired legs. I chatted with a few folks after the workout and then Dave handed out little stockings with candy and running socks...they even gave me one which was really nice. Another lady gave me one of her homemade granola bars. I wished my new running friends Merry Christmas and wished them all well on their training and headed back to my brother's house. It was a really good workout with some great folks. Some people say us runners are crazy. That may be true, but we are also a very hospitable and welcoming group of people. I hope to return the Hill's hospitality if they ever make it out to Austin.
I ended up running 10 miles for the day and was happy with the effort.
Stats - 1o miles/1:22:45/8:16 pace (includes warmup, workout and cool down)
The rest of the day was nice. We took the girls to hit tennis balls with my Dad, went to mass at 4PM, and then had Mom's Chile Colorado for dinner...awesome stuff! I wasn't feeling so hot after dinner so I fell asleep on the floor around 9 and went to bed shortly after that. The kids were ready for Santa and I knew they would be up early. I really needed the sleep!
posted by Paco at 10:48 PM
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