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Sunday, March 3, 2024

Reality Check

Today I got up and made my way to Chestnut Hill to check out the Greater Philadelphia Track Club practice. I contacted the club's membership person and he told me about their weekly practices. Nice track at a local school. They divide between distance runners and sprinters, so I opted to trail the distance runners, since they were planning on running splits of 500 meters. There were four or five of us in the group, and I was the youngest (they were, I believe, early and mid-sixties). The workout was 5 x 500m and 1 x 400m.  The split times were 3 minutes 30 seconds with 2 minutes between each split . . . and the 400, 90 seconds.

How I did: well, I completed every split! I was with the group (tail end) throughout, but to be completely honest, 500m number 5 was really challenging for me--I finished probably 5-10seconds behind the leader. I came back to life for that last 400, and finished pretty strong. But, overall, it was a humbling experience. I thought my training thus far (and to be fair, I've only been training on the track for three weeks at this point) might have me better prepared for a faster pace and reduced rest periods. I didn't feel any pain in my joints, no straining/tight muscles, etc. But I was really "breathy"--especially the last two 500s. I was floored by these guys--really strong runners in excellent shape, and all, as mentioned, older than I. 

I hope to go back next Sunday, and I think I will become a member of the club. I will definitely benefit from the knowledge of these experienced runners. They seem like a nice group. Since I really don't know exactly what I'm doing, getting input and ideas about how to train will be invaluable. Plus, it's a gift to have talented runners on the track to challenge me to push myself a little harder. 

After track, I drove back home and went to the gym, did weights (chest) and Pilates on the mat. It was a beautiful day today--sunny, 61 degrees. 


Another vintage pic of me starting a race out of blocks in 1982 . . .  the meet was at a high school in Los Angeles. I think I competed in the 200m, 400m, the 4x100m relay, and the 4x400m relay at that meet. 

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