The Need For Speed

My daughter had track at the high school tonight so it was a perfect opportunity to get my speed work in.  My schedule had me running 7 x 400s, meaning seven laps around the quarter mile track at a 5k pace.  I did a recovery lap in between each of them, a total of three and a half miles.  Even though the mileage in speed work is pretty low, the effort tires me out quickly.  The little kids on the track team were leaving me in their dust (I'm talking 7-11 year olds.  I might "accidentally" trip them the next time they try to pass me.).  By the end of the workout, I had accumulated a good amount of gnat corpses on my face (Yeah, I'm that fast...).  As hard as it is, I think this is the best way to increase speed.  In the past, I tried doing just tempo runs with no improvement.  It's only when I add speed work at the track do I start PRing.  This may not apply to everyone.  I know people who don't do any speed training, yet their times improve just by the large number of weekly miles they put in.  To each her own.