The "Ironman Legs" Feeling

I've put in a solid week of running, and backed it up yesterday with 3 1/2 hours on the bike.  My legs weren't sore today (can't say the same for my butt!), but they were on the dead side.  It's what I call the Ironman Legs feeling.  I can't believe how much I've missed that feeling.  The last several days have been a revelation to me.  I really do enjoy the feeling of running on tired legs.  I'm not sure why, except that it's always a bit surprising to see how the body adapts and manages to perform despite some level of fatigue.  Of course, there's always a balance, but today was just fine.  In fact, I ran at a comfortable, but solid, effort.  Not too easy, and not too hard.  For me, that has me breathing every 4th step.  In heart rate vernacular, that usually puts me in Zone 2.  That's where most of my training should probably be.

Surprisingly, my pace today was as good as it's been on the hilly 6 mile route I take from my house.  After a very short downhill, I get going on a long one mile climb that is especially a challenge at the top, where the incline gets up to 9%.  As of late, I've not needed to walk that section, and today was no exception.  My heart rate also didn't shoot up, hence, no reason to walk.  Once at the top, I was able to settle into a comfortable pace for the remainder of the run, before getting to the same hill on the way back, which is my downhill mile.  Running downhill has it's own challenges, and today my focus was on running fast, but not pushing too hard.  Running fast downhill on tired legs is a bit of a challenge, but I maintained my breathing at every 4th step, albeit the breathing effort was increased from the rest of my run.  I managed to run the steeper portion of the descent at close to 7 minute pace, and as the mile flattened out, my pace for the mile ended up closer to 7:30 pace.  Mission accomplished.  That provided my legs with several minutes of solid downhill leg training, which is ultimately critical for getting stronger, especially when there are hills involved.

I finished up the week with just over 30 miles of running.  I haven't done that since my Ironman training last year.  In fact, over the years, 30 miles has generally been my target for a week of running.  I really like the way this week panned out, with three 6 mile runs and a longer run to boot.  My legs feel fine, albeit a little tired, but fine nevertheless.  More important, I feel like I'm back home, as I alluded to yesterday.  I really do like running (and swimming and biking). For too long I've come up with health related excuses for the time I spend in this endeavor.  No more.  I'm going to embrace the feeling of Ironman Legs, and embrace the lifestyle that seems to fit my mind and body so well. It feels right.