Rate: Hey Giiiirl

There's nothing like a couple adolescent, wannabe gangsters politely hollering, chasing and rapping behind me as I run to really improve my pace.  What's more inspiring than "Hey giiiiirrrrl, you need me to run with you?" What I'm trying to say is I picked up the pace today, because I had to. Surprisingly it wasn't that difficult. I ended up really focusing on my stride and the ways in which I can move that produce a faster pace with little effort.


 I ended the work out with drills and strength training. Since I started running, I have based a lot of my training and work outs on the Runner's World Complete Book of Women's Running. It's a great book for novice runners who want an overview of everything. The strength training work out that I did today was taken directly out of this (I added some resistance band work outs and abdominal exercises).  The drills and strength combined have defiantly made my legs increasingly more sore as the day progresses, but they felt really good. I've heard that both drills and strength training can really improve ones speed and power.


By the way, drills are embarrassing. Seriously, do people really do lunges, sidewinders, butt-kicks, and high-knees alone anywhere but on a soccer/baseball/football field? I run in my neighborhood and nearby paths and trails, so I did them in my back yard, and yet I still felt like a lunatic.


Work Out Summary:
Run: 30 minutes, moderate pace
Drills: ten minutes
Strength: 30 minutes