I arrived at the track early. The sun was just baking. No worries, another hard day of workout.
After managing to get up on my toes a few times, it just felt good. The body is starting to accept the workouts. Certainly no more happy about them, but when muscles are being somewhat cooperative - this is not a small victory. These days every victory is important.
It was a good solid workout, and I knew I was going to be sore. But this has never been about the easy path. There is no pampering on the track. You push hard, until you can't push anymore. Then you push a little bit more and turn the volume down a notch or two. Once the reserve is back, you turn the volume back up.
A three hour workout, you can't go full speed for the entire duration. As much as these are about the workouts, they are also about the building up the stamina. The darker side is the realization that there needs to be more mental focus, more grit, more determination. It is a practical restoration of many things lost or shattered.
This also means that I must fight through the hot spots, blisters, aches, and sore muscles. They are all required. Pain is not some cliche, it reminds you of the simple fact you are alive. It also happens to be a barometer of measurement - measuring progress.
Of course even with good (dark Mediterranean) blood, it has been many years since my skin has been exposed to summer sun for hours. The result a nice sunburn. It turned to a very deep tan for about a week before peeling. Par for the course. Due to that I took the weekend of the Fourth off. My body probably needed the rest anyway.
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