Key Run #1: Kick butt speed work

Time: 7:15 - 8:00 PM
Weather: 90°, Sunny, little wind, 55% humidity
Course: Rubberized track, Cain Middle School
Workout: 4X800 with 2 minute recovery intervals; warm-up with slow run and strides
Goal Pace: 7:12/mile

This run was the closest I have ever come to passing out during a workout. The warm-ups were great; this was the first time to try doing strides before a workout (walking, then speeding up to race pace, then ending with knee-highs and butt-kicks) and I felt so much looser afterward. The 800's were a different story. The first two weren't that bad, although I did feel as though my lungs were about to collapse. It was the third one that got me, and I felt very dizzy and nauseated, so we decided that 3 was enough for today. After all, this is the second workout listed when we start the actual FIRST program in a few weeks, so I'm pretty impressed with how we're doing. I feel much stronger having pushed myself that hard. It's good to know that I can run that fast for a half mile if I put my mind to it.