Today's workout was among the most challenging I have ever done. Fortunately it was sunny but fairly cool when I got started around 4pm.
The workout was a lengthy hill threshold run of 3.7 miles up Lakemont Blvd in Bellevue. I started at the I-90 underpass and went to the entry gate of Cougar Mountain Wildlife Reserve...some 962 feet above the starting point. There are two downhill stretches of about 1/4 mile each but other than that, it's a pretty brutal climb especially the first mile which at 7% grade feels straight uphill. Just as a comparison, the Veyo hill which is almost exactly a mile from bottom to top is a 3.99% grade.
My coach wanted this to be a threshold run. So he did some fancy calculations based on my flat terrain threshold of 5:10 or so and he came up with 5:56. The only problem is he based it on a 4% grade it's simply not. It's 5% and I am a witness that every 1% totally matters.
To minimize both the downhill trauma and to shorten the rest interval, I stashed my bike at the top so I could ride it down after the first rep.
I felt mostly recovered from my bout with dehydration. I had spent the last 48 hours drinking like a fish and by this afternoon, my joints felt less achy and more oiled.
So after a two-mile warmup, I set off on my "adventure." I had stashed water in a couple of spots but ended up only taking it once on the way up. When I got to the top the first time, I had to take care of some bowel issues. Then I grabbed my bike at the top and started the trek down. After one more trip to the potty, I finished my trip down hitting 45mph without event pedaling. Freaky.
When I got off the bike, my legs were mush. A really weird sensation. So needless to say, the first mile was a wreck. But I managed to recover and be within a few seconds of my first rep times despite being pretty gassed.
Below are my times for each rep for each mile. Prety happy especially since I thought i was going to die after Wednesday's debacle.
Grade of first mile is 7% = 6:11/6:39 (ugh)
Grade of second mile is 5.3% = 6:14/6:16 (nice)
Grade of third mile is 2.8% = 5:54/5:51 (nice)
Grade of last .70 miles is 4.4% 4:25/4:35 (I'll take it)
Overall grade: 4.92% = 22:44/22:55
To get my 90 miles for the week I ran down the other side of Cougar Mountain and into Issaquah. It was beautiful. 90.75 for the week. Next week will be lighter as I gear up for the SJJ Half marathon on Labor Day. | 