Yasso 800s, Part 1

So I feel like my training is starting to yield some tangible results. I'm at least 10 pounds lighter than I was at the start of this journey (all lost in the last month, surprisingly), and my times are lowering quickly. Last week I thought I was flying during my tempo run around the Irving Nature Park. On Monday, I went to the Nature Park for a fun run and easily knocked 30 seconds off my tempo run time. Considering I was running at least three minutes slower a month ago, I can't complain.

But, as Joe Walsh says, sometimes I still do. Today was a speed day, but I didn't feel like running. I didn't bother taking the car in the morning, effectively eliminating going a track workout, yet I didn't travel to any of my local haunts because they were unmeasured. Eventually, after several false starts, I ended up about a kilometer away from my house, attempting a workout called Yasso 800s.

What are Yasso 800s, you ask? Well, it's a workout designed by Runner's World employee Bart Yasso that is designed with the marathoner in mind (for full details, click here). Basically, the runner starts out with four 800 meter repeats, with a 400 meter recovery jog in between each repeat. Each week the number of repeats increases until the runner can complete ten. The runner completes each repeat with their marathon time in mind; for example, if they are aiming for a four hour marathon, they would run reach repeat in four minutes. I would ideally like to qualify for Boston (3:10 qualifying time), so I aimed to run four sub 3:10 repeats.

Without any distance markers to guide my speed, I ran on instinct and hoped I was close to my goal. I completed the first 800 in 3:03, and thought I could hold that pace for the rest of the workout without much trouble. I exceeded my expectations, running 2:57, 2:59, and 2:56 on the final three repeats. I'm not sure if a 3:10 marathon is in reach, but if I keep running this fast I might have a chance. Hopefully I can maintain my speed as I increase the number of repeats.

Before I go, I would again like to urge you to sign up for the KV Challenge as soon as possible. Registration is currently $45.00, but jumps to $60.00 September 2. Get signed up before they bump up the price! Also, if anyone is looking for 4 person marathon relay members, drop me a line. I have a few people interested in joining a team!