Thursday tempo time

As usual, Thursday is reserved for my favorite (insert a little sarcasm here!), the tempo workout. However, despite its reputation (in my book anyway) as being a tough workout, today it was pretty fun. Yes, it was hard, but it was good to push myself. I brought my dog Copper with me (pictured, lounging under our piano), because she can usually handle the fast stuff (Sahara can't do it and I end up pulling her the whole time - no fun!).

I warmed up with an easy walk to Liberty Park in about 12:15. Then I started my tempo workout: 3 laps of Liberty Park (1.38 miles each) with heart rate of at least 160 (threshold, more or less - about 85% max). I was really fast on the first lap, and did it in 13:10. I didn't continue to push my speed, but rather, kept my HR constant, and so the 2nd and 3rd laps were slower: 13:40 and 14:00. The total of the 3 laps was 40:50, and my average pace was 9:52 per mile.

I passed one runner, and there were some others going the opposite way around the park that I was also going faster than :). I always enjoy that. I did see a very fast runner today - Rebecca Walter, who won the Deseret News Marathon in July. She is a friend of my friend Sarah, and I took a hike with them one Labor Day about 5 years ago, as a fat person. She was going the other way around the park, but I was almost going as fast as her today - I kept seeing her at the same point on each side. However, she was obviously taking it VERY easy today. She has an unusual running gait - she runs up on her toes, almost, and looks as if she is floating. It seems to work very well for her

After I finished my 3 laps, I walked home at an easy pace, taking about 15:45ish to get back (it's uphill home, and downhill to the park, plus I go a lot slower on my cool down to begin with - notice that it only took me 12:15 to get TO the park).

Total 6.7 miles or so in just under 1:09.