There
are so many reasons why Piedmont Park is a great place to train in
Atlanta! I won't bore you with all the
crazy workouts I’ve done at the park and just highlight one location in
particular: The Gravel Track surrounding The Active Oval!
The
Active Oval is host to lots of activities for those who live in Atlanta
including softball and kickball, however I prefer to stick to the track. It’s not that I’m not a team player, I just
lean toward individual sports.
The surface
of the track is packed gravel which gives your legs a break from the pounding
of concrete and asphalt. The distance
around the track is .52 miles which is marked by the marble obelisque, donated
by The Atlanta Track Club in 2006. Each
200 meters is marked with a marble plate on the ground. It’s always nice to find a place to run that
is measured.
Over
the past few years, I’ve been diligent about adding interval workouts to my training
routine. Also, these types of workouts
are often prescribed to the athletes I coach.
The gravel track is a great place to knock out this type of
training. The track is twice the size of
a regulation track of 400 meters and I believe it is less intimidating than a
regulation track. As a Coach, it is fun
to practice and share different workouts that aren’t as strict with the
intervals. For example, here is one of
my favorite workouts:
Warm-Up:
2 Loops at a Comfortable Pace
Set: 6
x 1 Loop Builds with 2 minute and 30 second recovery jog between each Loop
Build.
Loop Builds: For each loop, start off easy
and progressively get faster at each of the quarter loop marks around the track
where the last quarter loop is a sprint.
Cool-Down:
1 Loop at a Comfortable Pace
The
gravel track is an excellent location for beginners to run, not to mention
those who are coming back from an injury or illness.
All levels of runners and walkers can be found on the track on any given
day.
Another
fantastic reason to visit the track is the scenery! Right now, the fall leaves are
beautiful! It is so picturesque to see
the backdrop of Midtown and Downtown against the bright blue sky!
Check
out the gravel track at Piedmont Park for you next workout! You will enjoy the forgiving surface, the
scenery and the variety athletes around you!
If you
enjoy Piedmont Park, consider joining the Piedmont Park Conservancy. They are the nonprofit organization, working
with the City of Atlanta for the preservation of historic Piedmont Park. Over the past 20 years, the Conservancy has
successfully transformed the once dilapidated Park into the most visited in
green space in Atlanta.
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