Midnight 10 K Hill Tempo Run

Feb. 16, 2021

0.5 K: 2:59.47

10 K: 46:15.79 (Target=45:50.00)

1.9 K: 15:08.67

Total 12.4 K: 1:04:23

After four days of full rest, I gave a go at a 10 K hill tempo run with the target time of 45:50.00. It's the pace required for a sub-3:25 marathon.  

I started off at a brisk pace. Legs felt light thanks to a good rest. Breathing was easy thanks to interval training a week before.  I picked up the pace on the first long downhill. Heart rates shot up. I slowed down when it leveled off to let the heart rates come down. 

Then came a long upward incline. I tried not to increase the pace too much in order to save energy in the tank for an increase in pace in the latter half. I began to feel stress slowly building both in the legs and breathing as well. 

When it leveled off, I took shorter strides for running economy to bring the heart rates down that were elevated throughout the hill climb. 

But within 500 meters of reaching the top of the hill, another long descent began. I took wider strides and increased the pace, because downhills are the only places where I can get a significant time gain.    

Increase the pace I did throughout the long downhill. But the after running about 300 meters on a flat area, the longest uphill began. This is the most challenging section of the course. If I use my legs too much here, I could run out of gas, and the latter half could be a total mess. If I slow down too much, it can lead to an irrecoverable time loss. I focus on my form and rhythm, and stop thinking about anything else, trying to save energy for everything after the hill.

Ordinarily, I can easily shift my gears after reaching the top of the hill, and when a decent begins. But today breathing wasn't right. I had to a little longer to get back my steady breathing on a flat section. And that remained for another couple of kilometers. 

With only less than 2 K remaining, I finally regained steady breathing and good cadence. I gave everything I had to making up for the slow-down resulting from the difficult breathing. I surged significantly in the last 500 meters, picturing myself running the last stretch leading to the finish line in the Ohme 30 K Road Race, which is always so dramatic!     

I fell short of the target by a little less than 16 seconds. But I can tap myself on the shoulder, considering how tough the course is. 

I look forward to doing a tempo run on a flat 10 K course soon. Hopefully, I can see the benefit of training on a challenging course like the one I ran tonight.