View Workout (Matthew Simonson)

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I love workouts

September 17, 2019 (Night)

Exercise Type: Run

Comments:
In high school, I feared workout days. It was a fear mixed with eagerness, a desire to prove myself once again but tempered by anxiety about what challenges lay in store and what weakness of fitness or character they might reveal. On days when I knew we had a workout coming, the imminent test of willpower and worth would be on my mind all day, in class and in the halls, and incessant on the job over to BK, Fort Reno, or AU. After words, if the workout went well, meaning I lived up to my own expectations, I'd be glowing the rest of the night, immensely statisified in my accomplishment. At least, until the next workout day rolled around...

I have a much healthier approach to workouts now, and if you're like I was in high school, I hope you'll consider adopting it. I've come to see workouts, not as a way to test myself but to improve my confidence. They're not just a way to get in better shape physically, but mentally as well. But by mentally, I don't just mean the ability to push through pain. I mean ability to believe in yourself. When I've run workouts with the BAA for the past 9 years, I can hardly remember a single workout where I was disappointed. (And if I came up short, I had a good reason for it--I was exhausted from a recent race, being cautious about an injury, or just starting up after taking time off). And the key to not disappointing myself, I've found, is to start off conservatively. Sure, sometimes my first pickup I go out too hard because I don't really have a sense of what the pace should be, but I quickly adapt and settle on a pace I know is sustainable, rather than making the entire workout an epic test of will to push myself to the edge. With each pickup, the workout feels more manageable, even though I'm feeling more tired. I derive an immense satisfaction from hitting the same split every time, or staying with the same people, or improving compared to the previous interval. That sense of progress, even as my body feels more tired, is a secret fuel like passing other runners during a race. The physical energy in my muscles is replaced by mental energy as I grow more confident, ever more sure I can finish the workout with slowing down. I'm not trying to prove I'm worthy for the goals I've set; I'm excitely chasing after new accomplishments I hadn't previously imagined. And when I finish the workout, man, I'm downright exuberant. I nearly always surpass my own expectations.

Tonight was like that. I did just what I described (without consciously planning to) and it went swimmingly. The only usual part of it was that I showed up late and missed the first pickup, so me and another guy who were late ended up adding it on at the end. I must say it felt very weird going from a 400m pace back to a 1200, but that extra 1200 was much faster as a result. The recoveries were 400m after the 12s, 200m after the 8s, and 1 minute stumble/walk after the 4s. Later, once everyone had gone home, I ran another 2 miles on the track testing out two pairs of cross country spikes I'm choosing between (thank for Amazon Wardrobe for allowing me to make returns) and just for fun, ran over the Steeple Chase water pit barrier and a hurdle each lap. The water pit was covered up, but I was still able to practice pushing off as I stepped on the barried and propelling myself outwards toward what would normally be the shallow end. I landed cleanly every time. Gosh, I long for that event.