wow, this sounds intense!!

Hey that's good - working past your body's tolerable limit, knowing what it feels like, is a great thing. For one, you can now push yourself all the way up to that point, knowing that until you get there, everything else is ALL MENTAL, no matter how hard it feels. Or, looking at it from the reverse angle, you have a good grasp on when to quit so you don't really f yourself over.

I'm proud of you Deb! Great work - not like you should do it all teh time, but exercising hard is one of the greatest things in life. No need to feel embarrassed!