Every runner knows the Work. The Pain. The Laziness. But every runner also knows the Energy.
Long, warm summers are the antithesis of the Energy. Dark, cold winters of painfully cold mileage are the antithesis of the Energy. I would tell you what the Energy is, yet at the same time, one cannot understand what the Energy is without understanding what it is NOT. The Energy, by nature, is defined more by what it is NOT than what it is.
It is the runner's contradiction.
The deep, debilitating tired state of the runner is at its peak during base season. You have to be very tired, all the time. If you're not, you're not doing enough work. You break down, and oddly enough it is expected. You become slugging, irritable, and sleepy. Above all else, sleepy. All your body wants to do is rest and stop this madness.
Once summer is over, you get into workouts. Fartleks, tempos, intervals, hard 10mile runs, etc. The tiredness is not as deep, but it hurts more on the surface than summer did.
Once fall and workouts are over, you get into winter base for track. You go back to the debilitating, break-you-down status. Except this time - there is no solitude of sunlight. The dismal darkness is your only friend. I hope you like skiing.
Then Track and spring comes. The tired pain is gone, and replaced with the fresh pain of speed. Speed kills, and lord knows that metaphor works both ways. The track is hot, and your legs churn well over 15mph.
And FINALLY we come to it....the Energy.
You see, all of the work you've put in over the previous year, all the hard miles the deep grind, the sharpening, all this leads to a machine. Your body is a machine. It can change gears faster than the worlds best Indy racer, it can put in a surge that would leave any other mortal vomiting and clutching their sides - before you actually make it.
YOU. are ready.
The finally touch, the Coup de Grâce so to speak, is the tapering phase. You are 1-3 weeks away from conference, nationals, worlds, the Games or whatever meet you choose.
The work.....starts....decreasing? The intervals, though fast, are so easy....What...what is this feeling....
A couple reps here, a recovery run there.
I am awake at night, unable to sleep. It's 3 AM, and my energy levels are off the fucking roof. The normal debilitating work that throws me into a deep, dreamless sleep has been cast off like an unwanted blanket. My heart jumps, what is going on?
All you want to do is get out there and go. Just destroy everything that comes between you and the finish line.
THIS is a new you. The normal leg bounce you have in class is getting out of god damn control. It's like you're trying to fuck your desk your legs are bouncing and twitching so much. They talk to you. They want you to set them free.
You want to kill the workouts to get back to that feeling, but wise coaches demand you hang back, not let loose. Your legs are most important when the time comes. This dinky interval - this means nothing.
The RACE matters.
You will harness all of that Energy, all of those extra cells not used, every breath not breathed, every heartbeat not taken.
And NOTHING will get in your way.
But.
Nothing.
Friday, April 23, 2010
Monday, April 19, 2010
Dreams and Drive
We trained through last week, which was annoying because my legs were toast for my race on Saturday. Didn't really matter, but it's never fun to run slow.
When you're in a distance race, and you feel good and ready to go, you wait. When you're ready to move again, you wait. And when you finally are ready to go - you wait 200m more. Then you fucking GO.
We've trained through every meet this year. I'm not really used to the "run fast twice" mentality just yet, but I'm sure I'll get there. Conference is coming up, and the workouts are getting faster, but easier. I'm going to try to go sub4 in the 1500m final (assuming i make it, of course), but place is more important than time, so I'll run as brilliant of a tactical race as I can. Lord knows I've seen every tactic known to man, and tried most of them out, and I know my own strategy, and when to go.
I'm not someone who drops and insane amount of time throughout the season. I go out there, I run hard, and do workouts, and shave off a few tenths here, a second there. My summer (and to a lesser extent, winter) determines how fast I become.
I know I have limits, I just say fuck you and punch them in the face.
"Quinn Chasan from CMS in the lead through 1200meters...."
I've run too hard, and I know it. My legs are screaming and I can barely stay up. There's 300m to go and I can't pick my legs up. I went too hard too early and I'm paying for it. ShitShitShitShitShit. People drift by me as if I'm in a dream, a painful dream. Why'd I run a 29sec 200 in the middle of my 1500?!?! Stupid.....
That was weeks ago, and I ran 4:04. I know I can run sub4. If I do, I will be 109.344 meters away from running a sub4 mile. Every year I will cut that distance down. If you asked anyone on my team if I will run a sub4 mile in my career, they would say no. But I know what I must do. I am arguably one of the most die-hard fans on the planet, and lord knows I know my own body.
Right now, I am about 130m away from a sub4 mile.
Wittle it down, wittle it down, wittle it down.
"With 200m to go Quinn Chasan is at 3:29, he only needs a 30sec last 200m....."
And I'll think back to when I was a 4:21 miler, who could drop a 29sec 200 in the middle of his race to break free.
"And with a finishing time of 3minutes, fi-..."
and the rest is drowned out in the crowd
When you're in a distance race, and you feel good and ready to go, you wait. When you're ready to move again, you wait. And when you finally are ready to go - you wait 200m more. Then you fucking GO.
We've trained through every meet this year. I'm not really used to the "run fast twice" mentality just yet, but I'm sure I'll get there. Conference is coming up, and the workouts are getting faster, but easier. I'm going to try to go sub4 in the 1500m final (assuming i make it, of course), but place is more important than time, so I'll run as brilliant of a tactical race as I can. Lord knows I've seen every tactic known to man, and tried most of them out, and I know my own strategy, and when to go.
I'm not someone who drops and insane amount of time throughout the season. I go out there, I run hard, and do workouts, and shave off a few tenths here, a second there. My summer (and to a lesser extent, winter) determines how fast I become.
I know I have limits, I just say fuck you and punch them in the face.
"Quinn Chasan from CMS in the lead through 1200meters...."
I've run too hard, and I know it. My legs are screaming and I can barely stay up. There's 300m to go and I can't pick my legs up. I went too hard too early and I'm paying for it. ShitShitShitShitShit. People drift by me as if I'm in a dream, a painful dream. Why'd I run a 29sec 200 in the middle of my 1500?!?! Stupid.....
That was weeks ago, and I ran 4:04. I know I can run sub4. If I do, I will be 109.344 meters away from running a sub4 mile. Every year I will cut that distance down. If you asked anyone on my team if I will run a sub4 mile in my career, they would say no. But I know what I must do. I am arguably one of the most die-hard fans on the planet, and lord knows I know my own body.
Right now, I am about 130m away from a sub4 mile.
Wittle it down, wittle it down, wittle it down.
"With 200m to go Quinn Chasan is at 3:29, he only needs a 30sec last 200m....."
And I'll think back to when I was a 4:21 miler, who could drop a 29sec 200 in the middle of his race to break free.
"And with a finishing time of 3minutes, fi-..."
and the rest is drowned out in the crowd
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Running Free
Today was an easy base run, only 40min. We went out to a big public park around a lake, and did an out & back @ ~7min pace. We were just cruising, making jokes, laughing, getting pumped for the post season, summer base, and next XC season. Runners are always looking one step ahead.
This is what it's all about.
The spring sun bared down on me, the heat negated by a cool breeze coming off the water as we ran along side of it. Just me and a couple other teammates, all of us having run under 4:24 in the mile, enjoying the easiness and lightness of this run.
If a runners high existed for the non-jogging elite, we harnessed it.
To us, this is easier than walking, at a pace that would startle pedestrians. Normal people don't know what it feels like to be in this kind of shape, and usually it's not the best feeling. Constantly tired, sore, tight, and stiff.
But not these days. These are the days where we can just let cruise without getting tired, where we feel like we could run forever. These are the tapering days, that special two-three week period that comes twice year before the conference meet where the work gets very hard, but short, and the legs begin to recover quickly.
These are the peaking days.
These are the days where we can just go out and Run.
Free.
This is what it's all about.
The spring sun bared down on me, the heat negated by a cool breeze coming off the water as we ran along side of it. Just me and a couple other teammates, all of us having run under 4:24 in the mile, enjoying the easiness and lightness of this run.
If a runners high existed for the non-jogging elite, we harnessed it.
To us, this is easier than walking, at a pace that would startle pedestrians. Normal people don't know what it feels like to be in this kind of shape, and usually it's not the best feeling. Constantly tired, sore, tight, and stiff.
But not these days. These are the days where we can just let cruise without getting tired, where we feel like we could run forever. These are the tapering days, that special two-three week period that comes twice year before the conference meet where the work gets very hard, but short, and the legs begin to recover quickly.
These are the peaking days.
These are the days where we can just go out and Run.
Free.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Life DOES Revolve around.......
Yesterday, we had a pretty big invite @ Pomona. There were ~1500 entrants, aka 11 heats of the 100m, 4 heats of the 5k, etc. Everyone was in a heat where the competition was good and fierce, but not too slow and not too overwhelming. A good, solid meet.
I ran the 1500m, and with the 16th best seed time of 4:05, my goal was to run aggressively in 2nd/3rd the whole way, and kick if I could. The #1 seed time was only 4:00, so the pack would be very tight.
As the race went out, I sat in 2nd for the first lap, which we came through in at 65.high. Upset, I took the lead but made TOO strong a move, running the second lap in ~62.0, and leading the penultimate lap in 65 as well. I was dieing HARD with 400m to go, and I held on for 5th with a 4:04. That second lap just killed me, and I feel that I can run 4:00 in an even paced race. Very painful way to run.
Throughout the team, events were taking their mental toll. Some were elated with their marks, some were okay (that's me) with their marks, some were upset, and some dropped out of their events, defeated before it even finished.
We got Sunday off, so a lot of us Track types were partying together behind a dorm Saturday night. It was the usual party scene except for one distinct feature - Everyone who had run well was having a BLAST, and those who hadn't were downright depressed.
The mind of an athlete is a fragile thing, and it was interesting to see a usual charismatic 200m runner visibly morose after running 0.6 slower than his best mark. Try clapping the difference of 0.6 seconds. It's not that much time. At all. But in the world of Sprinters, 0.6 seconds is a lifetime. As far as those who live and die by the explosive power of muscles are concerned, if you're going to run 0.6 seconds slower than your previous best mark, just don't run. It's pointless.
On the flip side, a tiny Pole Vaulter who is often quiet was the bounciest and happiest I've ever seen her, and it took me several tries to understand that she had cleared a height 3 or 4 inches higher than her previous best. When you're being literally LAUNCHED into the air, well over 10' up, you would thing that the 2% difference wouldn't matter much, but to them, its a world of difference.
A 4:30 miler respects a 4:20 miler far more than a 5:00 miler does. The same goes for a 4:10 miler respecting a 4:00 miler in comparison to the same 4:20 miler. 404 ~ 4:21, so as a 4:20(ish) miler myself, I can tell you that I have tremendous respect for 4:00 milers, but in all honesty I have no idea what running at that speed feels like.
I image it hurts.
Our sport of Track & Field is tumultuous, at best. The highs and lows of really ANY athletes career is reflected back on their life in either a positive or negative light. But when the sport is purely individual, it reflects that much more on the individual. There are no teammates to fall back on, no excuse that your "touch" was off. YOU were the one who screwed up. YOU were the reason you failed. YOU were the only one controlling the event or race that you fell apart in.
Or, YOU are the person who just ran an absolutely ridiculous time.
And it feels gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooood
I ran the 1500m, and with the 16th best seed time of 4:05, my goal was to run aggressively in 2nd/3rd the whole way, and kick if I could. The #1 seed time was only 4:00, so the pack would be very tight.
As the race went out, I sat in 2nd for the first lap, which we came through in at 65.high. Upset, I took the lead but made TOO strong a move, running the second lap in ~62.0, and leading the penultimate lap in 65 as well. I was dieing HARD with 400m to go, and I held on for 5th with a 4:04. That second lap just killed me, and I feel that I can run 4:00 in an even paced race. Very painful way to run.
Throughout the team, events were taking their mental toll. Some were elated with their marks, some were okay (that's me) with their marks, some were upset, and some dropped out of their events, defeated before it even finished.
We got Sunday off, so a lot of us Track types were partying together behind a dorm Saturday night. It was the usual party scene except for one distinct feature - Everyone who had run well was having a BLAST, and those who hadn't were downright depressed.
The mind of an athlete is a fragile thing, and it was interesting to see a usual charismatic 200m runner visibly morose after running 0.6 slower than his best mark. Try clapping the difference of 0.6 seconds. It's not that much time. At all. But in the world of Sprinters, 0.6 seconds is a lifetime. As far as those who live and die by the explosive power of muscles are concerned, if you're going to run 0.6 seconds slower than your previous best mark, just don't run. It's pointless.
On the flip side, a tiny Pole Vaulter who is often quiet was the bounciest and happiest I've ever seen her, and it took me several tries to understand that she had cleared a height 3 or 4 inches higher than her previous best. When you're being literally LAUNCHED into the air, well over 10' up, you would thing that the 2% difference wouldn't matter much, but to them, its a world of difference.
A 4:30 miler respects a 4:20 miler far more than a 5:00 miler does. The same goes for a 4:10 miler respecting a 4:00 miler in comparison to the same 4:20 miler. 404 ~ 4:21, so as a 4:20(ish) miler myself, I can tell you that I have tremendous respect for 4:00 milers, but in all honesty I have no idea what running at that speed feels like.
I image it hurts.
Our sport of Track & Field is tumultuous, at best. The highs and lows of really ANY athletes career is reflected back on their life in either a positive or negative light. But when the sport is purely individual, it reflects that much more on the individual. There are no teammates to fall back on, no excuse that your "touch" was off. YOU were the one who screwed up. YOU were the reason you failed. YOU were the only one controlling the event or race that you fell apart in.
Or, YOU are the person who just ran an absolutely ridiculous time.
And it feels gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooood
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
The Typical Day: Run, Puke, Rally
It was hot today. Too hot. Upper 80's at least. The workout was hard, 6x400 @ 60s, followed by 2 sets of 4x200 untimed but quick. The goal for the 200's was to run "comfortably fast."
We got a lot of rest on the 400's, about 3min, but each one was exponentially harder than the one before it due to how quick they were.
It was hot today. Too hot. After 4 my head was swooning, and I could feel my feet blistering as I pumped hard to get around the turns. I would try to go through the 200 in 29.mid so that I had some buffer for the second 200. On the 5th one, I went through right at 31.0, and my heart sank. No one likes to try and negative split workouts. I hit it though. I always hit it.
Coaches are cruel, they give you splits based off of years of experience, splits they know you can hit, but ones that you have to bust your balls to hit. They are meticulous. Cruel and meticulous (These thoughts always go through my head around the 300m mark, oddly complaining about coaches who are TOO good, know the body TOO well, and know what I am capable of probably better than I do).
It was hot today. Too hot. After the 6th rep of 400, I stumbled forward, trying to catch myself so that I wouldn't crumple. I spent a little too long with my hands on my knees, and I knew immediately as I stood up that I was going to vomit. Soon. Very soon. Very ve-.....too late. I barely made it to the bushes before I turned the lush green the color of my lunch. It's really a shame, I liked my lunch today. At least I missed my Lunas.
I shuffled around for 5min, the amount of rest we get between intervals, wishing I could run 4flat for the mile, so this shit would be easier. I wonder if it is, or if it gets harder as you get better? I guess there's only one way to find out.
It was hot today. Too hot. The combination of the heat and my unfortunate yakking made me very dehydrated, and being an idiot I drank a shitload of water on my rest between the 400's and the 200's. Even though the 200's couldn't have been much faster than the 400's pace was, dear god it hurt. I finished the 200's feeling like a drunk person driving faster than they should, and I definitely clipped the bar on the inside of the track more than once.
After that, and weights, I took an ice bath, stretched, and headed off to dinner with the team. After dinner we went our separate ways to our dorm, and I realized that we have the same routine every workout day, and that as hard as today was, it was just another normal day.
Run, puke, and rally. The name of the game is Pain, and the call and response between body and time leaves the runner cut out of fucking STONE.
It was hot today. Too hot.
We got a lot of rest on the 400's, about 3min, but each one was exponentially harder than the one before it due to how quick they were.
It was hot today. Too hot. After 4 my head was swooning, and I could feel my feet blistering as I pumped hard to get around the turns. I would try to go through the 200 in 29.mid so that I had some buffer for the second 200. On the 5th one, I went through right at 31.0, and my heart sank. No one likes to try and negative split workouts. I hit it though. I always hit it.
Coaches are cruel, they give you splits based off of years of experience, splits they know you can hit, but ones that you have to bust your balls to hit. They are meticulous. Cruel and meticulous (These thoughts always go through my head around the 300m mark, oddly complaining about coaches who are TOO good, know the body TOO well, and know what I am capable of probably better than I do).
It was hot today. Too hot. After the 6th rep of 400, I stumbled forward, trying to catch myself so that I wouldn't crumple. I spent a little too long with my hands on my knees, and I knew immediately as I stood up that I was going to vomit. Soon. Very soon. Very ve-.....too late. I barely made it to the bushes before I turned the lush green the color of my lunch. It's really a shame, I liked my lunch today. At least I missed my Lunas.
I shuffled around for 5min, the amount of rest we get between intervals, wishing I could run 4flat for the mile, so this shit would be easier. I wonder if it is, or if it gets harder as you get better? I guess there's only one way to find out.
It was hot today. Too hot. The combination of the heat and my unfortunate yakking made me very dehydrated, and being an idiot I drank a shitload of water on my rest between the 400's and the 200's. Even though the 200's couldn't have been much faster than the 400's pace was, dear god it hurt. I finished the 200's feeling like a drunk person driving faster than they should, and I definitely clipped the bar on the inside of the track more than once.
After that, and weights, I took an ice bath, stretched, and headed off to dinner with the team. After dinner we went our separate ways to our dorm, and I realized that we have the same routine every workout day, and that as hard as today was, it was just another normal day.
Run, puke, and rally. The name of the game is Pain, and the call and response between body and time leaves the runner cut out of fucking STONE.
It was hot today. Too hot.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Big Fish, Small Pond
So, I'll start out by saying that my race this weekend was shit, but we had 3 workout days (mon-wed-thurs), a long base run (tues), and a 20min base run + core-weights (friday), and my legs were just donezo. I realized I have to be pretty fresh to run a good solid 800, and that I can crash and burn EASILY if I'm not hot. We'll see how my next (and likely last) 800 goes. Oh well.
Anyway, other guys ran exceptionally well at the meet against Redlands (side note - we won by one point. ONE. We haven't lost a dual meet in ~18 years, and we won by 1. Jesus.), and C-M-S now has the:
Fastest Frosh over 1500m (3:57) in the country, the 2nd fastest Frosh in the 3k Steeple (9:42?)in the country, and the 3rd fastest Frosh in the 5k in the country (15:05).
What's cool about this to me, is that none of these guys are the best at their respective events on the team. While all are very good marks, they aren't the best, or even close to it.
Personally, I have the 4th fastest 1500m time on the team in 4:05 which I ran about 8 weeks ago.
Everyone on my team was the best at their High School in their respective event. Not "almost the best" or "mostly the best"....THE best. The 3:57 frosh was actually a State Champion in New Mexico.
Because of this, there was a lot of racing and overtraining in workouts early on in the season. No one likes to get rolled, especially when you've been accustomed to being the one "doing to rolling" so to speak. I call this the "Top Dog" syndrome. Too much time at the top only makes the fall harder. And boy, a number of us fall HARD when we overtrain. Myself included.
It took some time to get used to, but we all realized that it's actually okay to run a 61 second quarter mile repeat.....and come in 8th on the team.
We've learned our strengths, and different people lead different workouts. We're coming together as runners, and one by one we're dropping great times.
Being a Big Fish in a Small Pond in HS is all well and good, but at some point outkicking guys who are 10seconds slower than you loses its pazzaz, and you need to Billy-Mills it over some other Fish.
Eating bigger Fish will make YOU bigger.
I'm racing the 1500m this weekend at Pomona's relatively large invite.
And lord knows I can't let those other Fish win, even if their on my own team. I'm looking for sub4:02, which would put me easily on the top10 Frosh in the country over 1500m, and also give me a converted sub420 1600.
Time to eat some bigger Fish.
Anyway, other guys ran exceptionally well at the meet against Redlands (side note - we won by one point. ONE. We haven't lost a dual meet in ~18 years, and we won by 1. Jesus.), and C-M-S now has the:
Fastest Frosh over 1500m (3:57) in the country, the 2nd fastest Frosh in the 3k Steeple (9:42?)in the country, and the 3rd fastest Frosh in the 5k in the country (15:05).
What's cool about this to me, is that none of these guys are the best at their respective events on the team. While all are very good marks, they aren't the best, or even close to it.
Personally, I have the 4th fastest 1500m time on the team in 4:05 which I ran about 8 weeks ago.
Everyone on my team was the best at their High School in their respective event. Not "almost the best" or "mostly the best"....THE best. The 3:57 frosh was actually a State Champion in New Mexico.
Because of this, there was a lot of racing and overtraining in workouts early on in the season. No one likes to get rolled, especially when you've been accustomed to being the one "doing to rolling" so to speak. I call this the "Top Dog" syndrome. Too much time at the top only makes the fall harder. And boy, a number of us fall HARD when we overtrain. Myself included.
It took some time to get used to, but we all realized that it's actually okay to run a 61 second quarter mile repeat.....and come in 8th on the team.
We've learned our strengths, and different people lead different workouts. We're coming together as runners, and one by one we're dropping great times.
Being a Big Fish in a Small Pond in HS is all well and good, but at some point outkicking guys who are 10seconds slower than you loses its pazzaz, and you need to Billy-Mills it over some other Fish.
Eating bigger Fish will make YOU bigger.
I'm racing the 1500m this weekend at Pomona's relatively large invite.
And lord knows I can't let those other Fish win, even if their on my own team. I'm looking for sub4:02, which would put me easily on the top10 Frosh in the country over 1500m, and also give me a converted sub420 1600.
Time to eat some bigger Fish.
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