the time trial wrote:
I am getting back into shape and have done some great training over the past two months. Would a time trial be beneficial in checking my fitness. So like on a Saturday or Sunday do a hard 3 mile run to check my fitness and treat it like a low key race? Or are doing workouts like 1ks better?
I like to do a 2k trial early in my prep for a goal race and again about 4-6 weeks out. 2k is short enough that you can make it a normal workout and not worry about any extra recovery but also long enough to get a good idea of your fitness. I usually run ~15-20 min warmup and then 1k @ threshold with a few strides and jog ~5 mins to recover completely before starting the trial. The point for me is to get an idea of what my equivalent training paces are on the first one and then get an idea of my race fitness on the second one.
Racing is also a fine idea as long as the recovery from that race isn't going to interfere with your training goals and you don't mind spending some coin for entry fees.
Keep in mind with either choice not to put all your hopes and dreams into the results - they're just to give you an idea of your current fitness. If you feel bad on the day or bomb it, just move on to the next day.