Interesting Training Methods

I was working recently and it was during one of those slow periods when nobody comes in and the only sound is of the heating system roaring in our poorly insulated shop.  I was alone and tired of organizing thousands of pairs of shoes in the back room.  As you may know, there are thousands of running magazines, books, and articles in the Prairie Striders library.  I picked up an issue of Running Times from last year sometime and was paging through it.  There were a few interesting articles but there was one that really caught my eye.  I don't remember the exact title or really any of the reasoning behind it but I do remember the key point.  The key point was that running a second run on the same day as your long run can help you recover faster from the abuse that long runs can take.  A few weeks ago I had run long in the morning and either of boredom or some other crazy reason I decided to run again.  Most of the time, after long runs, my legs feel slightly achy and I am generally tired.  Going into this run I was mentally ready to call it quits after a mile if I wasn't feeling it.  But I kept going, and before I knew it I had gone 5 miles.  I had only jogged along at 8 minutes per mile but oh did it feel good.

Today, I again tested the theory.  Except, this time, I ran another awesome workout at 1 in the afternoon and proceeded to go home, eat a whole pizza, browse the internet for running news for awhile, and go to class for a few hours.  I threw my shoes, shorts, and a t-shirt into my backpack just in case I got that urge to run again.  I had a little bit of an urge but, like the first time, I was tired and didn't think it would amount to much.  Well I started up, again around 8 minutes a mile, and felt better and better.  By the end of my 40 minutes jog I was elated.  My legs felt great and I didn't want to stop.  I am pretty sure I was experiencing the fabled "Runner's High".  Usually I only feel something of that magnitude while running in a scenic area like the Black Hills, or the Seattle area or if I am running fast and feeling comfortable.  But today I was running slow, on a D shaped indoor track, and I still felt the sensation!

Anyway, I'm not sure what to make of these two cases of anecdotal evidence but I really like doubling on a long day or a workout day.  To me it simply feels awesome.  I will stress again, and again, that running is a very individualized sport.  What works for me might work for you, and it might not.  I would recommend trying this but you're going to have to see for yourself the effect that it will have on you.

Thanks for reading and supporting!  Enjoy!