Track Interval Session at West Suffolk Athletics Arena Bury St Edmunds Suffolk

Tonight my running schedule called for an 8 mile tempo session. I decided to vary it a bit and do an interval session at the West Suffolk Athletics Arena in Bury St Edmunds instead.

This was my first visit to the track this year as I have focused entirely on my half marathon training schedule. This has meant road training and road training and more road training and I haven't been to the track or ventured off road as much as I would normally do. This has been a deliberate plan to see if a focus on a schedule would put me back on the straight and narrow as regards to my stamina to run longer distance and most importantly my confidence. I haven't raced for so long it is now a scary prospective.

So it was with great pleasure that I jogged a mile to the track with a drink in hand wearing tracksters and a thermal top. It was positively balmy this evening and I wasn't in two minds about removing the layers and a short sleeved technical t- shirt and shorts was all I needed along with my Ascics Gel Stratus 2's. These shoes will have to be retired in probably a month or so as I see I have recorded 375 miles in them.

The coach and many of the rest of the Saint Edmunds Pacers club were doing some sets of 4 minute runs but I wasn't tempted to join in as my plan was 6 x one mile intervals .

I felt strong as I set off on the first mile. The main thing was I felt I could keep up a decent pace throughout and my legs and breathing were not acting as a brake as they quite often do. I wasn't sure what time to expect for a mile but I stopped the Garmin Forerunner 205 at 7.32.

Not bad my fastest mile of the year but only because I havent't been to the track. Normally runs at th track are over a shorter distance with intervals of between 1 min and 5 mins so running several mile intervals isn't usually done. Looking back my diary indicates that last year for pace on the track over 3 minutes I would often run around 6.50 - 7 mile pace. 

I tired after 4 intervals but managed to complete the set of 6 to give times as follows

7.32,7.32,7.27,7.22,7.39, and 7.40

In between efforts I had my Asda Isotonic Mixed Berry Flavour Sports Drink

I really like this flavour , very good design of bottles with a good closure cap and cheap  in comapison with the competitors £1.46 for 4. Nice one Asda.





My times were pretty consistent with just 13 seconds between fastest and slowest. I was tired after this and jogged home the mile to give me a warm down and 8 miles in the bag.

Felt good tonight will have a break Thursday before reurning to the road on Friday lunch time.