Trying to keep this post short as I can, but here's some background:
I'm a sophomore boy running distance. I came into this season not expecting much, as I had a 5-week injury in the pre-season that kept me completely side-lined and didn't go away until 3-ish weeks before season started. I didn't have much base building, but I still got back into shape way faster than I expected, though.
Season started and I was running mid-low 4:50s consistently (think my PR was a 4:52, set two weeks ago), which is still a pretty nice improvement from my previous season so I was happy, all things considered. Ran a 10:18ish then too, a PR.
I had a season goal of 4:45 by now, and I didn't think I was too far off. Here's a workout outline from last week:
5x600 @ 4:45 (goal) pace (1:46s) - 2 minute rest between each.
1x400 @ 4:45 (71)
For some context, it wasn't one of those workouts where you absolutely collapse at the end, but *definitely* not a comfortable one either. Probably a 7.5/10 on a scale of 'hardness'. So with that considered, a quick guesstimate would probably put me somewhere between 4:45-4:48ish, in a real good race.
Then yesterday I ran a 4:37, a ~15 second PR.
The weirdest part of it all was that it didn't even feel like the hardest thing ever. My 4:52 felt harder - I was completely dead at the finish line then.
Splits were something like: 68, 70, 70, 69.
So, my question then is: where do I go from here? What do I change, if anything at all? Should I make my workouts even harder to accommodate for my larger goals - even if they're already pushing a few limits? I'm running 28-33mpw, should I bring that up? I still have another 6 or so weeks before my season is over, what should I expect (or strive for) goal-wise?
Another semi-related thing: my 400 PR (relay split, ran it once recently) is only a 59... Which is pretty slow. Is that a concern? Should I be working on my speed more?
Sorry for so many questions. Any pieces of advice (or stories if you've been in a similar situation) are appreciated - thanks in advance.