Hugh M. Ray III is an established presence in oil and gas law in Texas. Outside of heading the insolvency and restructuring practice of the international law firm Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, Hugh Ray III is an avid runner who has competed in a number of events, including the Houston Marathon and the Half Ironman.

1. VaryingWorkouts
within a Running
Routine
Hugh Ray III

2. Introduction
• Hugh M. Ray III is an established presence in oil and gas law inTexas. Outside of
heading the insolvency and restructuring practice of the international law firm
PillsburyWinthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, Hugh Ray III is an avid runner who has
competed in a number of events, including the Houston Marathon and the Half
Ironman.
Building endurance and strength as a runner should center on a varied training
plan in order to avoid the pitfalls of single-speed running. Each running workout
should be designed to start where the last one left off and target different skills,
from lightning-bolt sprinting to slow uphill runs.
Start training with easy runs, which encourage proper form, while increasing
endurance. Maintain a steady pace that places the heart rate in the aerobic range
at which sufficient oxygen is taken in to comfortably complete six miles or
longer.

3. Running Routine
• Vary easy runs with tempo runs in the “comfortably hard”
range, which push the limits of what is possible during longer
runs. Maintaining a steady pace at elevated speed helps
increase the lactate threshold, at which the anaerobic system
kicks in and fatigue rapidly becomes an issue. Building a higher
threshold over a period of months at a specific pace boosts
speed, strength, and endurance.
Other types of workouts worth integrating into the overall
routine include progression workouts, which begin slow and
end at a rapid pace, and hill workouts, which provide the same
benefits as speed workouts, without needing to run as fast.