Hill Repeats, Basketball

Early afternoon

A treadmill interval session quickly turned into a hill repeat session up Tech Drive with Chris R. and a someone I haven't met before, Alan something. Actually mistook him for another Alan who works here. Mildly awkward. At least it happened as we were finishing up. Seemed like a nice guy though.

After a quick warmup around Great Valley Parkway, we descended down the Tech Drive hill. I remember the first time I tackled this hill was in the final half mile of the GVCC 5K run about 3 years ago. Everyone said don't go out too fast because there is a killer hill at the end. Jibberish! But I was none the wiser and had nothing else to lose. Who cares if it's in the last half mile? You're pretty much gassed out by then anyway.

Even though we didn't start from the very bottom of the hill, it was still a pretty steep trip up. I think it actually amounts to a similar grade and distance as the North Lane hill in Conshohocken. Good to note. Took the first rep easy enough. There's a point where the road bends sharp to the left the wind hits you square in the face. Not to mention the sharp increase in grade too. Next too repeats I went out a little harder. Not an insane workout, but I was huffing at the top of each.

3 X 400m hill repeats

2:00, 1:56, 1:52

Evening

Basketball game. First win in a while. I was starting to feel a serious bout of depression coming along with all the losses we've been racking up in both leagues.

Metcon, Hill repeats

Early afternoon

For Time:

15, 10, 5 reps of

DB Thrusters (2 X 50#)
KB Swings (#53)
Pullups

5:30

Short rest

1 mile warmup
2 X 3/4 mile hill repeats (treadmill) 7% grade
3 min rest between repeats

6:46, 7:23

Short cooldown

Road Cycling Hill Repeats

10.4 miles total in 47 minutes.


5 X 0.20 mile repeats at 11% grade.


60, 56, 53, 51, ??, did an extra at 53.

Workout comments: Did not record the 5th repeat, so I had to do an extra one. The hill should probably be a little longer and steeper if I plan to this workout in the future, but it's one of the few hills with little traffic so I can safely make the U-turn down the hill. Speaking of rest, I only rested during the ride down, which averaged roughly 45-60 seconds. Felt good to ride the bike again, even though the weather was cold and windy. I defintely need to spend some more time in the saddle to get all my "bike" muscles back into shape. I'd like to spend significantly more time mountain biking this summer as well.

Paleo faults: 2 slices of wheat toast,

Deadlifts and Pushups

Early Afternoon

WU: 1 mile run, Shoulder dislocates, Samson stretch, 2 X 10 Deadlifts (117#)

Workout: Deadlift (1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1)

Loads: 277#, 297#, 307#, 317#, 327#, 337# (failed 1st attempt but made second), 347# (failed first attempt but made second attempt)

200 Pushups for time: 11:23

Late afternoon

WU: About a mile of trails before starting the hill repeats.
Workout: 8 X Hill Repeats

30, 28, 30, 30, 30, 27, 29, 26

My workout was going to be 30 seconds on, 20 seconds off using the treadmill, but who wants to rot away on one of those things when the sun is out and the trails are begging to be traversed. I made my way to a monster hill at the intersection of Bells Mill Road and Forbidden Drive. I took the first interval for about 30 seconds at my max pace and tried to lower my time on each subsequent interval.

• Workout comments: A new PR for the deadlift. I wouldn't say my form was great on the last two repetitions, but I tried to keep my back as flat as possible. I realize this will become the major limiting factor as the weights increase, so I'll try and work on keeping myself as "in-line" as possible. I can feel my form start to fail as soon as I move through the first few inches of the move, probably a sign that I need to strengthen my legs a whole lot more before I can expect any significant gains.
• My workout was going to be 30 seconds on, 20 seconds off using the treadmill, but who wants to rot away on one of those things when the sun is out and the trails are begging to be traversed. I made my way out to a monster hill at the intersection of Bells Mill Road and Forbidden Drive. I took the first interval for about 30 seconds at my max pace and tried to lower my time on each subsequent interval. Rest time was between 60 and 90 seconds, closer to the latter just before the last interval.
• Gear: iPhone, Vibrams, tech shirt/short
  Body: I felt some slight soreness in my lower back this morning but defintely better than I have most of this week.


• Nutrition: Good

Hill Repeats

Morning

WU: 1 mile


Workout: 3 X 0.20 mile hill repeats (avg. 7.1% grade)

1.13, 1.20, 1.18, 1.18

3.5 miles total

• Workout comments: Felt pretty decent during this workout. I wasn't sure what to expect from the pace. The only time I've ever attemped a workout similar to this one was a few months ago when attempted several different hills in Conshohocken, including the one done with repeats today. This hill was my first attempt during that workout, and I was slower on that first repeat than on any of the repeats done today? Have I somehow gained running fitness over the past month without running at all, and with a slightly injured ankle? I'm not sure. I think the combination of strength and metcon work focused on my lower body has added an unexpected amount of endurance, particularly over short, fast distances. I hope it translates well to distance running.
• General comments: It was raining, windy, and overall miserable today. I had to wear a cap to keep the rain out of my eyes, and a jacket. I got some pretty weird looks from drivers when the wind almost knocked me down a few times. I felt bad for the people that I saw moving today.