Unplanned Tempo Run

The plan after work tonight was to get in an easy peasy 3 mile loop, just to get in some easy miles after Saturday's 5 miler and to start the week off right. Unfortunately, I'm on call but that didn't stop me from attempting a run. I got to the park, got dressed, got stretched and headed out without being bothered. With pager in hand, I kept a nice, comfortable pace through 1 mile.

Then, I heard that NIGHTMARISH sound. BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! I really didn't have time to think about how irritated I was. I just turned around and headed back, knowing that I at least had a chance of making it back to the car before the issue was escalated to my boss. Once an issue is created, it pages the on call person. I then have 15 minutes to change the status of the ticket to "Work In Progress" (we say WIP it) or it gets escalated. And it usually takes a minute or two from the time it's created to the time I receive the page. So, I figured I had between 14 and 13 minutes to get back.

Being the experienced runner that I am (wink, wink), I remembered from back in the day what tempo pace felt like. Like coach Steeeve says, it's the effort where your not gasping for air but if you ran any faster, you would be. I was able to hold that pace all the way to the car. No letting up. I felt strong all the way through. I just relaxed my shoulders and focused and just thought about NOT STOPPING!!! It brought back some non-so-pleasant yet welcome memories of when I was fit and strong and had stamina. It was a great feeling and motivates me now to get back to that place and even surpass it.

So, I made it to the car. I got my cell phone and, breathing pretty hard, called the support center and asked them to WIP the ticket for me. I asked if it had been escalated and Stephanie said no, it had not been escalated. Mission accomplished. I walked a lap around the track which served as a mini-cool down and headed for the house. Well, first I called the customer and resolved her issue. So, my 3 mile easy peasy turned into a little tempo run and my career as an Clinical Application Analyst is safe.