Fartlek and Trails

Fartlek, which means "speed play" in Swedish, is a form of conditioning which puts stress mainly on the aerobic energy system due to the continuous nature of this exercise. The difference between this type of training and continuous training is that the intensity or speed of the exercise varies, meaning that aerobic and anaerobic systems can be put under stress (Courtesy of Wikipedia)

Ok...that being said, today called for some speedwork, and since i abhore the track and was not in the mood for a tempo run since i had the dog with me, some fartlek was the easiest thing to do. While Nemo ran hopefully envisioning finally capturing that elusive squirrel, i ran glancing slightly at my heart rate to see what it would go up to with an effort.

Run #1 for the day: 5.17 miles in 48:18/21:29 or 44% spent in the Zone 3 (Aerobic Zone) and 15:15 or 31% in Zone 4 (Hard Effort): Max Heart Rate 163

I had planned to do another short run after school today, when the wife said she was picking up the children, so with the temp hovering in the mid sixties, sunny skies and a cool breeze, i headed out to Stony Creek for a 4 miler which seemed to just fly by.

Outside of hanging with the family, i must admit that there is nothing better than getting out and running some trails. Speed is never important, but today the legs felt like they weren't even touching the ground :)