Jordan's Club XC Workout for Meagan

3+ Mile Warmup
Goal:
Set 1: 3x6 min w/ 1st 90 sec hard (3 min jog rest) from Club XC Start Line to past the mile mark
Set 2: 4x McAlpine hill loop (500m) (1 min jog rest)
Actual:
Set 1: 3x6 min w/ mile splits of 5:42, 5:34, 5:32
Set 2: 3x McAlpine hill loop @ ave 1:53
1.8 Mile Cool Down

Meagan asked me to do parts of this workout that Jordan had crafted specifically for her upcoming race at Club XC in just 10 days. I blindly gave in to Meagan's pleas for company, knowing nothing except for the fact that Jordan was creating a workout that would (hopefully) make Meagan puke. Since I am coming off a sickness, I figured I could jump in for parts of it, and once Jordan sent me the workout, I was pleased to find that it was similar to what I had on schedule originally (5x5 min) and to find that I could jump out 2/3 the way through without feeling like I had let Meagan down too much.

As you can read in Meagan's post, she was a little worried about it, and I was too. After all, I hadn't worked out in 8 days and was still feeling congested and tired. Regardless, I made the drive out to McAlpine, arrived a little early, and began the warmup early. Eventually Meagan and Jordan arrived, and we enjoyed a nice warmup on the first miles of the course. After that, I did a couple of drills, 1 stride before we headed to the USATF Club XC Start Line. Jordan wanted to simulate the start of the race with the first 90 seconds hard, and that's exactly what we did. I tried to tuck in behind Jordan, expecting me to feel terrible, but I soon realized that I actually felt pretty good so I ran alongside him. After the first 90 seconds, Jordan always said "Settle" which at first I thought it meant slow down, but I soon used that phrase as a mental note for me to just relax, but maintain a pace fairly similar to the quick 90 second pace. It worked quite well. I felt much stronger on this section that I was expecting. Meagan tucked in behind us and her presence was reassuring. I envisioned it to be like this at the actual race - side by side! To be quite honest, I was guessing that I would have had a hard time hitting 6 min pace.

Then we went straight to the hill. This is the part where I went from having a great workout to a mediocre one as it was fairly difficult for me to keep my breath even with the symptoms from my cold and sore throat. I felt pretty good on the 1st one, but the 1 minute rest was too short for me given the circumstances. I felt lightheaded on the third one, and cut the workout short. I guess I could have given myself an extra minute and gutted out the fourth one, but it didn't seem worth it. Meagan continued on to dominate the third part and I was definitely amazed. I cooled down a short bit and drove back to get to work on time.

On my drive home, I reflected on the fact that the Charlotte Running Club team could have a strong appearance next weekend at McAlpine. While we are missing the speedy legs of Megan Hovis, I am confident we can represent our city! Be on the lookout for the CRC Jerseys on both men and women!