Five Five Five for Five

So its W5R1 today and I have to say I felt pretty good about it.  You can see from the HR graph that I was nice and relaxed on the walk over to the gym (why I'm not sure as my new boss has me run ragged).  I started with a decision to keep the same pace I finished the last week run on, 7.9 km/h.  Rather than alternating shorter and longer runs, today's was three 5 minute intervals. 

For the first time, I finished an interval (the first one) thinking "that was easy.'  Actually perhaps it's fairer to say I finished it "with ease".  A difference of nuance I grant you but probably a more accurate statement.  I felt good.  No pain in the legs, no struggling for breath, and the 5 minutes went by quickly.  Brilliant.  The graph shows the first interval barely getting in to Z4 (80-90% MHR). 

Also obvious is the very familiar trending upward over the course of the runs.  Both the peaks and the recoveries. I also developed a new meditative 'dirty trick' today.  I found that while in Z3 territory (aerobic) I could maintain a rhythm of breathing in for 4 strides (L-R-L-R) and out for 4.  Three rounds of that was pretty close to 10 seconds.  Once I got into Z4 territory (anaerobic) I would drop it to 3 strides to breathe in and 3 strides to breathe out. The same pace 7.9 km/h but now 4 rounds was the same number of strides and also about 10 seconds.  So when the Get Running C25K iPhone app lady says "you're already half way through your run" and I know then that there is only 2 min 30 secs to go I can count "IN-2-3 OUT-2-3 IN-2-3 OUT-2-3 IN-2-3 OUT-2-3 IN-2-3 OUT-2-3" and think that's only 2 min 20 now. Rinse and repeat.  Its just enough mental activity to keep the mind busy and distracted from the things that sabotage your focus.  In fact I was so focused I missed a gym bunny sighting! Oh the humanity.

In the last run a bit of muscular discomfort in the right leg, but other than that I am feeling very good about it, and so pleased that I pushed through all that pain in the first 4 weeks.  I am actually looking forward to testing my resolve on Sunday's 8 minute run.  I confess a certain trepidation about the huge jump to 20 mins on Tuesday, but I will start with the pace dialled right back to say 7.5 km/h and hope that I can maintain my HR in the Z3 aerobic range throughout.

I haven't been for a swim for a few days (Monday I think) so I might try to get that in tomorrow too. Though it looks like a few days rest has done some good on the HR graph.

Every Buddhist knows this...
LESSON:  Suffering is transitory, so aversion to suffering makes no sense...it won't last anyway!

In my case, 4 weeks of (admittedly fairly bad) pain in my knees has now all but stopped.  And they are now stronger than they have been in years.  If I had succumbed to the aversion of knee pain I would never have made it to this stage at which I could enjoy a run.  Even a relatively short one.

I also want to take a moment to give two thumbs up to my mate 'wrong fuel' Steve who is back on track with his personal journey.  We are both finding it tough to change personal habits, even though we know they are bad for us.  It's a fight against yourself and the problem is your opponent knows all your weaknesses and exploits them. 

Which, by the way, is why I like the show Californication.  Many are happy to dismiss the show as being about a feckless man who 'gets lucky' a lot when he should be loving his wife and caring for his daughter.  It is my belief that it's a show about a man who is slave to his addictions and own self destructive nature.  Intelligent enough to know that it's self destructive and damaging to the ones he loves the most, but powerless before his own nature.  It's all back to perspective again...