Track Thursday: squinty

The sun was shining bright when I went out for my Track Thursday workout this afternoon!
I stuck with the same plan I've been using from No Meat Athlete's "3 Track Workouts Guaranteed to Kick Your A$$": 3 x 1 mile with 200 m rest intervals

Last time I aimed for 8:35 miles and afterward decided I could push it. So this time I went for 8:25s.
For some reason, I've been really nervous about the 10-second jump. But I shouldn't have worried :)

I've felt a little "off" today. Many people around me have been sick, and I fear I may be getting it. I'm sort of low-energy and head-achy. BUT, I've almost reached 500 miles for the year, so I couldn't skip my workout.
I dragged myself to the track and started with a warm-up lap. Then I sped up and ended up running much faster than I planned. (And I timed each lap again instead of each mile so I could watch my pace a bit closer)

Mile 1 splits:
8:16
8:18
8:04
7:58

Mile 2 splits:
8:06
8:07
8:10
8:05

As I was pushing through mile 2, I promised myself I'd rest for a full lap instead of a half lap. So I did.

My final mile slowed a bit, and I was losing gas quickly. So I took a very short walk between lap 3 and lap 4 (less than 200 feet). Then I finished strong:

Mile 3 splits:
8:21
8:18
8:20
8:02
With warm up, cool down and recoveries, I ran 4.09 in 38:38. A 9:27 average overall.
That was a lot harder! But it felt good.

Now I'm pooped. Taking it easy this evening, hoping to avoid that cold bug :)