2 in 1

Sorry folks,
I can say that I've been busy with classes ending and studying for finals - which is true - but it is no excuse for not having spent a couple of minutes to blog about the great workouts we've been having. I apologize. But let me catch you up...

On Tuesday evening (April 28th), we alternated between forward motion drills on the track and a couple of strength drills on the bleachers. I set up a series of cones on the track, such that for each exercise, we can do a drill cone-to-cone at high intensity, then easy to the next cone (recovery), then high intensity again to the next cone, then recovery again, and so on for a total of 4 intervals of high intensity. The exercises themselves were a combination of old (previously done) drills such as skips, lateral gallop, and toe-up/calf-raises combos, and new variations like cross-over skips and leg scissors. The cross-over skips are actually new to my repertoire, and I really liked them. In addition to working everything the regular skips do, the cross-over skips really incorporate the midsection (the core, the imfamous abs) into the motion, while still being relatively easy and pretty fun to do. On the bleachers, we did pulsating supported squats and one legged (Bulgarian?) squats to get us started, and then went up and down the bleachers several times via two-leg explosive jumps on the way up and jump-down-into-a-squat on the way down. Great set of that!

Thursday (April 30) - the most challenging workout yet, or so it seemed to me based on the tired expressions I saw at the end!!! Everything was done in the privacy and comfort of our little area by the scoreboard. But we don't need much room to work ourselves into a great shape. The session consisted of pure interval training. We started off with four exercises (arm swings, clap-hops, CC-skiers, and Russian twists) that we did 4 x 40 seconds with 40 second recovery. The next two drills (bicylces and squat thrusts) we did for 20 seconds at a time, 6 times, with a 20 second recovery. The last set of drills (mountain climbers, squat hops, and Superman holds) we did for 10 seconds at a time, 8 times, with 10 second recovery. Talk about a solid workout! Despite some pessimistic/negative talk, which I tried to discourage, everyone had a great session.

**** Me - for anyone interested in what your humble (?) coach is doing nowadays, read on through this section of the blog. With school ending and finals approaching, I've been very selective with my training, choosing to do only quality workouts while taking more days off than usual to rest and recover. Tuesday I rested. Still recovering from the 10 miler on Saturday and a barefoot 2 miler on Sunday (painful blisters from that). Wednesday I actually shouldn't have run, but my friend talked me into doing a moderate 8 miler, which felt much more exhausting than it should have and I know why - it's starting to heat up outside and we did this run early in the afternoon. That means it's time to start getting acclimated to the heat. That brings me to Thursday... one of the most challenging workouts in a while. The plan called for 20-30 quarters. I ended up doing 24 of them. The fastest at 77, slowest at 84. Half a lap recovery jog between the first ten, jog/walk recovery for the next five, walking only for the next five, and holding-my-knees-til-I-can-pull-myself-together-for-the-next-one recovery for the last four. Had to stop because my feet were killing me. Time for new shoes, I think, and an x-ray ****

Hope everyone is at least aware of the challenges for the week. If not, SEE THE PREVIOUS BLOG entry. Got an AB challenge coming up on Saturday, and since everyone (myself included) secretly wants great abs, don't pass this one up. Do your crunches, sit-ups and such. Challenge yourself, challenge your friends, challenge your neighbors. It might sounds a little crazy, but being great in anything, including being in great shape, takes a little (just a little) craziness :)

Happy training, and I hope to see you all (and your friends and family...bring 'em all out) on Sunday.

~P.G.