Everyday is a Good Day When...

Yesterday evening I met Mac at the track to do the Yasso 800s again.  We did this workout about a month ago and will do it again in about another month, 2 weeks before the Chicago Marathon.

The regular track we go to was closed for the evening now that school is back in session and they need it for real team practices.  But luckily Mac knew of another track that we could go to instead. This track was a little less than desirable though because it was more square-shaped so it had really sharp turns. (A good photo opportunity that I missed...)

My workout did not go as planned. It was supposed to be 10 x 800 meter repeats with an equal time recovery. Last time I did them all around 3:17 pace, so my goal was to go for that again. Here's what I ended up doing:
2 x 800 meters - 3:14, 3:22 
8 x 400 meters - all were between 1:33 and 1:38, last one was 1:28

Even before we started my legs felt really tight, but I was pumped up to do this workout again because it went so well last time and I had someone else to run with. During the first repeat I could tell that my legs weren't having this speed workout. I was hoping I would loosen up as we got further into the workout, but the 2nd and 3rd still didn't feel right, so I stopped after 400m in my 3rd repeat. Instead of just being upset that I couldn't do the workout and stopping, I did 400 meter repeats instead each time Mac started an 800. Even on these, my legs didn't want to go fast. I was a little frustrated because I felt completely fine mentally and cardiovascularly (which apparently is not a word, but I say it is), felt surprisingly OK in the heat, and I know I could do the workout.  I'm not sure why they were so tight - but I'm blaming the shoes I've been wearing to work recently.

On the other side of the spectrum, Mac had an awesome workout, doing all 10 800s in under 3 minutes!!  I think we were both glad to have each other there to help push through this hard workout.

I was looking at some quotes on the Columbus Marathon's Inspiration board on Pinterest and found some really good stuff, but here's one that I think is appropriate for how I feel about last night's workout:

"Everyday is a good day when you run."

One thing I learned recently is that "good" and "bad" are such subjective words that I am basically trying to eliminate from my life (there are so many better adjectives out there).  In almost every situation or every day, there are surely both good and bad parts.  For me, in last night's workout, I'd say it was bad (frustrating, tiring) in the sense that I didn't get in the workout that I planned and I really don't like that my legs felt the way they did.  What if they feel like this on the day of the marathon?  But there was still a lot of good in it too, like that I still got in speedwork, I had someone else there to run and socialize with, and this track had a water fountain.  At least I ran and did something, even if not what was planned.

I left my foam roller at my parent's house (and that's what my legs need right now).  So that and the fact that my mom texted me this picture of what is being saved for the next time I come home, I think I'll plan a little visit there soon.

Do you classify your workouts or your days as "good" and "bad"?

What is your favorite type of ice cream? - I only eat mint chocolate chip.