Training day 46: 10K with pickups. I love Pickups!

I forgot my garmin in the office yesterday.
It made me realize that I am a garminholic. Without the garmin now I am lost and rudderless. I cant freakin function without the damn thing.
So I decided to run easy for 50 minutes and bag it.
I started running slowly. I watched other runners zip past. Today was an easy day, I told myself firmly.
After about 40 minutes, I decided to do some pickups or strides. Whats the difference? Strides are distance and posture specific. Pickups are just varied speed plays like fartleks.
At any rate, I randomly sped up for distances between 30m-100m at speeds that I felt like.
I LOVED IT!
It was great because when I felt tired, I was free to slow down. And when I felt strong, I could speed up how I wanted and whatever distance I wanted. How cute!
Lydiard says this about Strides:

On alternate days, it is wise to concentrate upon developing your speed to near it's maximum by
carrying out sprint training workouts of suppling and loosening exercises, sprint starts and sprint races,
and leg speed running.
A typical workout could be: Warm-up by running easily for about 15 minutes, doing exercises for 10 to
15 minutes, running easily for 5 more minutes. Follow by runs over 70 to 100 meters, concentrating
upon the following elements; with a jog between each run of 3 minutes:
(A) The runs to develop stride length by exaggerating the length of the strides and pushing off hard with the back leg.
(B) another by running tall, bring your knees high and getting up high on your toes.
(C) and another by moving the legs as fast as possible to develop a quick leg turn-over.
Then the last set of runs covering all of these things These runs can be done two or three times with each
exercise. Also some sprint starts can be used and a sprint race or two competed in for training.
All middle distance and distance runners should races in sprints and train to develop their leg speed as
this increases their economy of action and reserves energy for the latter stage of competition.
When doing sprint training, be sure that you do not try to rush through it like when doing repetition training; give yourself sufficient recovery after each run.

Unlike Strides, Pickups are more like fartleks. Just playing with speed depending on how fatigued you feel.
After learning from yesterday, My weekly training schedule will be as follows henceforth:
M - Off or XT
T - 10-15K - Intervals with at least 3K warm up and 1K warm down.
W - Easy Run home 7-11K
T - 10-15K -Pickups/Strides with at least 3K warm up and 1K warm down.
F - Off or XT
S - 21K Moderate effort
S - 17-20K Easy
This week I did: 21+14+12+7+10=64Kms! Yipeeee!
My weight has dropped. I want to keep it this way for a month then I jack it up once I can do 44mins 10K which should be by mid March.
Cheers.