A list of intervals I do in my running

I am not a professional athlete but have taken my passion for running to a much higher level than I could ever imagine. I think I can run a sub 2.40 marathon in the next year or two.

I mentioned this many times in my notes — if I were to single out one aspect of my running, it’d be intervals. Many people jog and run, but very few do intervals. It’s a totally different effort — strenuous of course. It requires a different mindset. I love intervals because of their huge impact on my running (and maintaining my weight) but I also fear them. I don’t hate them, because I can’t hate what I love — running. But on the days when I am doing my intervals, usually Tuesdays, I walk up to the track with fear, anxiety, and heaviness, knowing how painful the next hour will feel. And what a joy it is to be finishing the very last interval — pain no longer!

I started doing intervals a little less than two years ago. I had a vague idea then that it’s good for weight loss and for the actual running that I wanted to improve. The initial tips came from my son who runs track and cross country. Later I introduced my own sessions, especially when I set my sights on long-distance running events.

I strongly prefer doing my intervals on a proper athletic track so it’s flat and accurate. These days I travel quite a lot and even when I visit new places, I try finding a track at some local school or college.

• 8 x or 10x one-kilometer repeats, 200m jog. This has been my main interval in many recent…