Running From Finals

Not too hard a little difficult after the race

Did an awesome trail run.

AM: This morning run went very well. It was difficult getting up at first, but when I got up I stared to wake up and felt fairly well. We ran from the high school through the parkway loop out and Washington. From there we went through the loop into green springs then reran the same loop through green springs. That part felt somewhat difficult. My form was a little off this morning. I think this was partly because I did power cleans Saturday so my shoulders and arms ached. My back was also a little strange because of this. Nonetheless it felt good to get up early again and get back into things. It was also nice having everyone back from the break. I'm definitely going to ice tonight. 

PM: We got everyone together and ran a different route today from the high school out onto telegraph into Washington and back through Sandburgs. I did not feel as worn at as usual which was nice.

PM: Iced and stretched for 10 minutes 

AM: This morning I got up at 5:30 and just chilled for a bit got some food then took off to practice. When I got there, I started by doing some squats. I did 4 sets of 3 and maintained a heavier weight than usual. My form was a little rough at firs, but it got better as I went. The. We went on our 15 minute loop. It felt easier then usual. 

PM: Well, this was definitely one of the most difficult workouts that I'd ever done. I started the first 1200 and was already worn out by the time I got through with the second. I think I may have still been worn out from yesterday's run. My first 3 were slightly quicker then they should've been which was not smart of me. I need to learn to relax on longer reps. When I got to the lest rep we made it about half way through and I began hyperventilating and my legs seized up on me. Instead of pushing my strides longer I let them shorten which was also a mistake. I lost the pack on the last rep and barely caught up to a point where I was about 50 meters behind on the last rep. I was very frustrated with myself for having let myself die off on the last rep. That was totally on me, but as coach says it's better to learn from our failures then dwell on them. So even though this work out was not what I wanted, I can still take away some thing from it. First off, I need to do more stretching. I stretched and iced the night before, but it still wasn't enough. Secondly, I need to relax and clear my mind better during my reps so I don't panic when things start to go wrong. It's all about how you respond to the difficulties you face during the workout. I also relearned to stick to my pace throughout the whole workout to accord burning out. This afternoons run was a learning experience. 

AM: This morning I got up and made my way over to the high school. It felt good to stretch my legs out for a little while and run, although I was still fairly wiped out from the past couple of days.

PM: This afternoon run felt good. We went out towards the square d' sac and back further into Washington out towards the turf farms. I think my colds finally going away thankfully. We got about 7 miles in. 

AM: This morning I got to the high school and began benching. I think I was still worn out from power cleans because I was feeling really sore and couldn't do near as much as usual. After lifting, we took off on the run. Right as we began we found a water bottle and kicked it for about half way through the loop. Sadly we couldn't make it all the way around and it ran out of water.

PM: This afternoon we ran from the highschool down through mosquito, into Sullivan, up through the neighborhood, and then finished off from telegraph throug the loop. It was a good run we started a little fast. When we went through Washington we found a ton of goats which was pretty epic, and we also brought up the question of wether or not changing the color of a stop sign every few years would throw people off. 

AM: This morning I got ate breakfast and left for our run. It felt pretty good getting up early, although my calfs are feeling kind of thighs. I had a really bad cramp the other day and need to keep stretching and rolling. Yoga helped tons.

AM: I ran 10 minutes to my house to grab a coat and some warmer clothes before the race. Then to warm up we went on a 15 minute loop. It was crazy. Traffic was terrible. Next I had my race. I got up to the starting line. I was nervous but felt confident. We took off fast. My first thought was that our whole heat was going to burn out. We kept pushing and made it to the 400 mark. Our first lap was a minute 3 seconds. It was insane. Our second lap was much slower and the race really started to hurt around the 200 mark, but I kept pushing. I kicked way too late, somewhere around the 100 mark. I need to get used to picking up the speed even more at the end. I came in towards the back of my heat and still PRd with a time of 2:12. It was a good race. Next time I would like to push my kick a little harder and earlier.

AM: This morning felt good. Long runs don't feel as difficult anymore, but recovering is still difficult. We ran 85 minutes. We began our run by going up east ridge and went over the plateau. Afterwards we came down the side by the hospital and went back down onto the trail. Then took the trail back over to mosquito and back around for a big loop. The pickups were not too bad. 

PM: This afternoon was good we did an easy 25 on the usual route.

AM: 2 mile loop.

PM: Today we had a Jv race. My legs were dead from the day before and the race last weekend. I got ready for my 400, got to the starting line, and began the race. I started in lane six and quickly started to pass the majority of my heat. My legs started to feel it around the 200 mark, but I kept going. I gained more ground than I was expecting. My chest began to tighten as the race got harder. I got to the end and barely lost my heat, but took 3rd overall. That is the first time I'd placed in the top 3 for a meet. My time was close to a 58. 20 minutes later I had my 800. I read an article on drafting this last weekend and decided to try it considering this race was a smaller meet and I thought I might be able to use it to shave off some time. Unfortunately, it did not go as I'd wanted it to. I stayed in second trying to draft for the first lap. The guy at the front was going nowhere near my usual pace though so unfortunately all I was doing was slowing myself down. We got through with our first lap it was a minute ten. Wayyyy slower than usual. I heard the time and decided to take off. My second lap was much faster, although I got to the 600 m mark and didn't even feel tired. This was a problem, so I decided to sprint. Corbin followed me and passed me the last 50m, but I barely passed him with about 20m to go. I placed first overall, but my time was bad for usual, a 2:18. Six seconds off of my PR. I had a lot of fun placing for my first time and improving my my 400, but next time I definitely won't hold back at all on my 8. I can't wait for next meet, hopefully I'll PR again. It was a fun meet. 

AM: This morning we got our longer run for the day out of the way by going on a huge loop through the industrial park and boulevard. My legs are feeling really rogh. I need to get a new roller since I lost mine at the meet. My legs definitely need some stretching.

PM: We went on a quick 25 out through Washington and back through sandebergs. This week has been a good one. I've been reaching a lot of my goals. I improved my 400, got a 29 on my act, and did well on my youth city council interview.

AM: we lifted and did the regular loop. 

PM: We ran from the high school up through tip to green springs and back. Midway through the run my foot started feeling weird towards my toe, so I had to run weird for a little while luckily it went away after a bit. 

AM: We did the regular 25 minutes. Yoga felt amazing and helped me recover.

PM: dillan and I ran a big loop for 25 minutes for our warm up and then we raced. I ran a 5:09 mile, slightly slower than I'd hoped. Still, it was my first race and I feel like I did well and pushed myself. I probably went a little quick on my first 800. My first lap was a 1:13. My third lap I slowed a little too much and fell off a big pack in front of me. Towards the last 300 meters I almost caught the pack again. The race went pretty well, but I definitely could use some work on the mile. 

Today I found a new route. I went up to the turkey farm road and started at the t-bone trail. I'd never ran the route before and planned on flipping midway through. I began running. The trail was somewhat hilly. About 17 minutes in, the trail lead into pioneer park, so I decided to just do a big loop from pioneer park up to where I parked. I realized I might go over my time if I did the loop so I really pushed my pace. I ran down pioneer park and up through the industrial park to the turkey road and back to the car. I pushed the pace pretty hard and it felt good. I definately need to roll out my legs though. 

AM: First half marathon today. I've never gone so far. The pick ups were difficult and my legs are paying for not being able to roll out, but I'm still doing well. We went to mosquito to Sullivan to hell hole to the fuelds to lins to the high school. We did two 15 minute tempos at 6;30 pace. There was a ten minute recovery in between. Our over all pace was 6:49 and we did 13.2 miles in 90 minutes. I was pumped.

PM: coach gave a great talk on randy paushc, and holt talked about stepping up for next year. I was shocked how good our team is even excluding the seniors that will be gone. I hope I'll be able to contribute to the team as much as possible next year. We did 25 minutes inside because it was storming so badly. It was a blast.

AM: 15 minute loop

PM: We went 8 miles for our afternoon run. I did most of my running between my races. I ran a 4x4 a 4x8 and a distance medley. My first 400 was definitely sub-minute. Then later I had my 4 by 8 and my team was just barely in last as I got the hand off a second or two after Logan and Colton. I really didn't want our team to pay for doughnuts so I tried hard to stick with Logan and pass him. I did well and stuck with him and Colton. They finished just a couple seconds before me. I was excited that I stayed with them during the 800 even if they were going a little bit slower than their usual pace. It had to have been one of my better times in the 8. Then I had my last 400. I started our 4 by 4. I managed to keep up with Xander for most of the race. He started to pull ahead of me with about 150 meters left. I started to realize I was slowing and pushed a little harder. I just barely finished behind Xander. I was excited that I'd kept up with him fairly well. 

AM: We did our usual 25. My legs are soooo sore. I finally got a roller yesterday and rolled for about half an hour. I definitely had some bad knots forming. Also, I forgot an ice pack for my lunch so I had to grab one from my house and carry it back to the school. 

PM: I had a band performance so I had to do my run on my own which was a real bummer. I was still happy to get it done though. I started at the bottom of hell hole and went all the way up to where the trail meets telegraph. The last time I'd ran it I'd just arely began running with the XC team. It made me think of how much I'd improved since then and also of some of the future goals that I've set. The trail was neat. It was very green today and there were a lot of people out. My pace was slightly slow, probably due to being worn out and the trail having a lot of hills. I maintained about a 7:35 pace. My legs are sore, but hey feel so good after rolling. I'm definitely going home and icing. I also did about 10 minutes of stretching. 

AM: 15 minute loop. I did a ton of pull ups and abs this morning. It was so nice. Lately I've been hurting a little bit more at the start of our runs. 

PM: We ran a 45 minute loop up into green springs and back down. My legs are feeling rough, but I'm pumped for tomorrow. Lately my 400 has been looking better and better. I've stopped slowing down and am maintaining pace. Now I just need to kick tomorrow and there's a possibility of a big pr. I can't wait to see. 

AM: Did the 25 minute morning run. No yoga sadly cause the internet broke. 

PM: went on an epic 45 minute run on a new trail behind d-hills. I ran through the back hills and further out towards the free way. The hills were insane. Probably one of my favorite trails I've done in a long time. Then an hour later I raced. My right leg has been giving me troubles for the past few days which has not been good. Every time my foot strikes the ground the outside of my leg aches bad. My race did not go well. I pushed hard coming out of the blocks, but then slowed a little too much on the first straight away. I had. A hard time maintaining pace until I hit the last stretch and then I accelerated and pulled ahead. The last straight away was good but the rest was pretty rough. 

Today I went out to mustang pass in green springs. I'd been there once before with the team but never ran it all the way through. I was moving pretty quickly which was good cause my legs have been having a little trouble lately. It was really green and there was a nice breeze which was very nice. It was a very solid trail run.

Today was extremely frustrating. I ran the parkway loop and we only had 70 minutes sue to tomorrow's race. We ran for a while, but the group stopped to use the restroom. I saw the level 3s in by as the rest of the group was stopped and because i didn't need to use the bathroom I decided to go with them. I ran after them not realizing they were in the middle of a tempo. I figured I could stick with Colton because I thought he was racing the next day. It turned out I was wrong. I stuck with them up until we hit the hill in green springs. When everyone else began doing the hills I realized Colton was running a different workout and flipped going back to the school. I was stuck at a stoplight for a while till the other 2s who had stopped caught up. We ran together till we came around by sand stone. As I ran down the road my leg which had been tense for the past few weeks kept increasingly hurting till it came to a point where the side of my calf was bulging in a funny way like it was enflamed. At that point I stopped. It took me another 5 minutes to make it back to school. I was barely moving and very frustrated. I talked to coach and he said to rest.

Well, my leg feels the exact same today after rolling and icing. I can't put any pressure on my foot and it's been very frustrating. To at least get some movement and exercise I did 45 minutes on a stationary bike and did some weights. I also rolled some more and iced.

AM It was my first time running in quite a while. My leg is still hurting pretty bad when I run, but it feels fine when I'm walking. Also, I am super out of shape which is frusturating, but I'm hoping to make some progress soon. 

AM: This morning I ran two miles. I ran once last week. Last week I was huring much more than this week. I still feel incredibly out of shape and am a little frusturated with that, but I'm still hoping that once I get back into it, I will get back into shape quicly. My leg still has a dull pain after running. 

35 minutes into Washington and back I did some strikers at the end. 

58 minutes trail running and to Dixie red cliffs. I was a little slow today.

35 minutes to river trail and back. I felt quicker today and honk I'm starting to get faster again.

One of the coolest but weirdest runs ever. I had to leave for engineering camp by 5:30 so I got up at 3:45 and started my run. I ran a big loop down riverside over foremaster then past the temple and back. I saw maybe 10 or so cars and ran the roads it was weird being out so early but also really cool

I ran up In Logan today. I ran from the engineering dorms and ran down to first dam by the river trail. It was cold but felt really good. I was feeling somewhat slow though. 

Today was epic. I ran down from old Maine and took the street down past a ton of very cool houses. I was moving pretty quick and made it a long ways into the valley and back.

Today was great. I am back in St.George and ran the river trail. I did 75 minutes and was booking it on the pickups. I made it all the way to Dixie crossfire and back. The trail was super crowded with people looking for the summit rock. 

I did 42 minutes today with the team. I was so excited I finally got to go to practice. It was tough though. We were moving super quick up the plateau over by Sullivan. Then we were going super fast afterwards. My legs were way sore but it was a good run.

Today was epic. I went on a night run with Colton corbin logan and Parker. We started on a trail run and then realized we were dumb and the sun was serting so we flipped and ran green springs. We had a few really fast splits our quickest mile being 6:39. It felt good to move so quick. It's good to be back running with the team.

Sadly still out of town. I was up at boys state today and they wouldn't let us leave campus. That was really frustrating. Their campus is barely over a mile long so I just had to run a ton of laps. A total of 38 minutes of running.

I ran 6.8 in 50 minutes today. It was super frustrating cause I still couldn't leave campus or use the track for my tempo. The campus I also really hilly so I just ran as fast as I could for 25 minutes on be campus. Fortunately I was able to get it in.

Today I went on a long run cause I wasn't able to run the past few days. We were getting to bed every night at one because we had to write essays and then getting up at 6, and sadly we had no downtime over the past few days either. I'm glad to be back though. I ran the river trail and made it way further than usual. I ran all the way past Dixie cross fit and back pretty quick. It felt good to run again. I also saw 3 bobcats on the trail while I was running. I had no clue what they were till I got home and looked them up so that was pretty crazy.

Today was my first long run with the team. It was a ton of fun. We ran into hell hole back to the field up the river trail and then through Washington. It was tough but good. Also shout out to Nathan who threw up and then kept running. Definitely a rough a run. 

Unfortunately I was out of town again to help with a carnival up north. So I ran in Robert on. I ran through the city down to the Jordan river and back to the house. Bummer I didn't get to run with the team today. 45 minute run.

Back with the team again. Today was a great run. We went up turtle trail through the desert up to green springs then ran down green springs in just a couple of minutes. We were booking it today. 

Today has been my best run of the season so far. We were doing hills today, and I was slightly nervous because the last time we had done the grapevine hill I was struggling a little bit compared to the other guys. Coach robs had us run through a visualization excersise before we left. I think that helped me stay a lot more calm during the run. I am going to start using that even more for sure. I got to the hill and we did 5 reps of 1 minute hills and 1 rep of 85 seconds. We also had an extra minute between rep 3 and 4. We started off on the first hill from a point farther back than where we usually start. I finished the first rep with our top guys and started thinking how easy that felt. After that I made sure not to slow down at all. I stayed towards the front of the pack the rest of the workout. Around the third rep I remember thinking back to a lesson coach had given about working on your weaknesses and turning them into strengths as well as another lesson about breaking down the mental barriers that hold you back. Both lessons helped push me through the workout and reminded me about how important the harder workouts are to improving. This definitely was one of the workouts that helped me strengthen my weaknesses and get past those mental barriers. On the last rep of 85 seconds I made it further than I ever had gone up the hill and finished fairly strong. This run was definitely rewarding.

We met at confluence park this morning and ran into green valley and up to the top of Bloomington. I felt really sore today from squatting. It was still a solid run and we ran throug the golf course.

I ran 65 minutes today. I ran on my own from my house out to staheli farms and back. Still feeling really sore from squats.

Today was nuts. I can officially say I'm sick of running on my own. We left for Vegas Regis morning at 5 in the morning. We got there at 7 and then I ran the lake mead trail for an hour and 25 minutes. The night before I did 20 minutes of yoga it felt Incredible but I still felt extremely sore this morning. For the first quarter of the run I kept my pace below 7 and was moving really quick, but when I flipped, my legs began cramping and my pace died down a ton. The second half of he run was very difficult. It was all uphill. Eventually I finished the run. My pace was very bad the very last two miles. I was barely moving up the hills. I checked my garment and it turned out me chancge in elevation had been 1400 feet and it was a 100 degrees out for the majority of the run. When I finished I was exhausted. I could feel the salt on my face and I was super dehydrated. I downed a ton of water afterwards. I can't wait to get back to st.george to tun with the team.

I ran 38 minutes and accidentally had a negative split. My legs are feeling pretty rough, and I made he mistake of eating dinner about an hour before hand, but I'm glad I got the run in today. I'm feeling just a little weak and am somewhat nervous for tomorrow's run. I'm going to make sure to take some time to ice.

I went 65 minutes today with the 3s. I came out feeling really really sore, but as we kept running my legs stretched out more and more which was nice. We went under the freeway tunnel from the dirt mile to the hills across the freeway. I dropped my shirt as we crossed and sadly we did not go back that way so I had to go back for it afterwards. We ended up going from Dino tracks to grapevine then back to Washington elementary. On the way back I totally tripped and got myself covered in dirt that was entertaining. After the run I'm feeling pretty worn down, but ready for tomorrow.

Today was awesome! This was probably one of my best workouts I've ever had. I'm starting to see a lot of training pay off. Today we had a 60 minute run with 25 minutes of tempos in between our warm up and cool down. When we started running I was feeling really nervous about the workout. My legs have been really sore from the past few weeks, but things ended up going very well. I stayed with the top guys for four miles. They finished about 400 meters after I stopped. I think a few things helped a lot with keeping this pace. One thing I focused on was my breathing. I was able to keep my breath under control by staying calm and not thinking too much while I was running. Often times I'll try and talk myself through a workout but this time I avoided it. I tried to shut my brain off and focus only on running with the pack. This seemed to help me not worry so much about hyperventilating allowing me to focus on keeping a strong stride so my legs wouldn't die out on me. Maintaining my form also really helped with my strides. Also I think my dieting has helped a lot as well. For the first time ever I'm completely off of soda and all carbonated drinks. Also Ive only been allowing myself one food item a week with added sugars in it. I think both things have helped a ton with running. One thing that frustrates me about my run though was that I didn't finish the last 400 meters with the guys. The whole run I was determined to get all four laps in with the 3s and by the last stretch I was having a difficult time hanging on but managed to do it. Once we finished the lap I stopped. Logan, Carson, and Alex finished out the last stretch left. It made me think of how close i was and how big of a difference hanging on a little longer can make.  Thankfully I was still able to stay with them right up until the last minute, but next time I'd like to finish right wth them. I went home after and checked out my splits. My last 3 miles alone were only 24 seconds of my 5k pr. I'm pumped knowing that I can do even more now. I hope to keep working and improving. It's been a lot of fun.

15 minute run. It was burning outside but it felt good to stretch my legs after this morning. Can't wait for tomorrow.

We went 60 minutes today. We ran from coral canyon park over the subdivisions being developed onto the road behind the industrial park on the way to sand hallow and back. I was feeling pretty worn out and my legs are the sorest they've been so far, but I still felt pretty strong running.

I ran for an hour today. I got up at 8 to run but then had an appointment so had to go later at 12. It was really hot out and my legs were pretty tight so I was moving a little slower. The run was still good though. I ran from my house down river road and across the river trail back home. I'm excited for next week.

We ran for 85 minutes today. My legs are feeling really rough. I have a few really tender spots so I'll need to ice. We ran telegraph then last chick fil a to the hospital on the east ridge plateau and back to Washington elementary then ran a loop. I'm definitely going to get some rest. Still a solid run though we kept a 7:11 pace. Also today was Mitch's last run so that was sad.

Am: 40 minute run today. I totally failed and misread he minutes looking at last week so I ran the wrong minutes today but I'm hoping to make the next few days just slightly longer to keep my total up. Today was tough I ran to mosquito and looped. My first half the run was super fast and my second half was pretty slow. When I got back I felt exhausted. As soon as I stopped I felt somewhat sick and really achey. I'm going to try and be a little careful the next few days.

Pm: 15 minutes. I'm starting to feel pretty good again I ran a lot quicker for the afternoon run.

50 minutes today went out to grapevine and back 

We had the hill workout today. I stuck with the level 3s the whole time. We did 15 minutes then did the footlocker hill. The workout was difficult but rewarding. Lately my workouts have been going far better than they normally do. Today I made sure I was up in the front on each repeat with Julian and Carson. I think the thing that helped me get through the workout the most was relaxing and letting myself breath calmly. We finally got to the last rep and my legs were burning really bad, but I kept pushing. Logan held out his arm about 3/4 of the way up the hill and said varsity is right here. That got me to keep pushing even harder. By the end of it we'd almost made it to the neighborhoods and I started to gag, but luckily did not puke. It was a good workout everyone seemed to push themselves. I've been feeling really good lately. I've been really excited I've been able to keep up with the level threes each day too, even during the tempo workouts. Lately I've been thinking about some of the reasons I've been able to meet my goals and where I'd like to be. One thing that I think has been huge for me has been believing in my own abilities. Before this season I somewhat doubted that I could ever keep up with our fastest groups when we do tempos and other speed work, but this season my attitude has changed a little bit. Just before the season started I watched a TED talk on how impactful believing in yourself can be. It also talked a lot about the growth mindset. So I decided that to stop doubting myself and just try my hardest to stay with them. It has helped me do way more than I thought I could. I'm definitely excited for this season. 

We ran 50 minutes today to sandbergs and around the area. A lot of the guys stopped to swim for a while, but I didn't feel like getting so I went with Julian Alex and Jose to finish the run. We ran through Washington for a bit then headed back and did strikers. Everyone's pace was pretty  slow today.

Today Carson Dylan Jose Julian Colton Alex and I went and ran the hurricane rim trail. We went for 65 minutes. I did a lot better than I did last time on the trail. I'd forgotten how tough some of the hills are on that run. It was a cool run. I always really enjoy running that trail. It's one of my favorites. I'm also excited I've been pulling off running the level three minutes and feeling good.

Today I went 95 minutes. The run was actually super cool. Sadly I wasn't with the team because we had to drop my dad off in Vegas for his trip, but I ended up actually having someone to run with. I was running a trail that went from Henderson down in green valley to the M hotel. About .6 of a mile in I ran into a college guy who was out running. He asked if he could run with me and we did the next 3 or 4 miles together. It was nice having someone to run with. He was a super cool dude. He ran he 800 and had a pr of 1:52. He went to University of Virginia, but grew up in Vegas and took state in the 800 there. He said he wrestled did track and XC in high school. It was fun running with him for a while and he told me good luck with my season and to be a leader. It was really cool. After that I kept going and tried to keep my pace quick. I ended up making it to the M and flipping. I totaled 12.8 miles on the run and kept a 7:25 pace. It was difficult, but I felt good when I finished. I'm excited I've been able to keep up with the 3s and hope that might be able to get me into a varsity spot. Whatever happens I'm going to keep running with them and trying my best. I can't wait to see what the season has in store for me. I'm looking for some really big PRs and bringing my intensity with running up a little bit while avoiding injury. I read up on shoes a little more and am honking I might get an alternate pair to try and prevent injury. Not quite sure what to do yet, but icing and stretching will also be a big focus. Yoga has been helping a lot too. 

We went 54 minutes today accidentally going over on striders. The run felt good, but I'm feeling pretty tight from yesterday. I'm still trying to keep running the level 3 workouts. Kids club was awesome. Unfortunately I've been gone almost every Tuesday so this was my first time but it was tons of fun.

I went 20 minutes with the team my shins and calfs are feeling pretty tight. My strides are good though. I'm finally back to lifting and I'm hoping to work on getting my weights up even more without sacrificing form or how fast I move during my runs. Also Addi gave a talk on how important the little things are and how small victories are important. That was cool. Coach also mentioned how fear can hinder us. Lately I think I've been doing better than normal because I've let go of my fear of failing. I am going to work my hardest to keep that attitude. While coach was talking about it I was thinking about how difficult the beginning of a race can be sometimes. There's so much nervousness built up around it. Im trying to visualize more to prepare myself for that this year. I was also thinking about how I want to react when I start a race. I think the best approach for me is to stay calm and just think about running with my teammates. Just focusing on being part of that pack. We've got another tempo coming up this Thursday. I'd like to keep this same attitude for that workout. I can't wait go out and try my best on it.

Today was awesome. We went and ran the tortoise trail to sand hill. I'd heard of the trail befor, but had no idea what I was in for. We got to the sand hill trail and began working our way up. It felt never ending, but I didn't feel exhausted. I just felt as though I was unable to move fast enough. I'd forgotten how much I struggle running on sand so today was a good learning experience that fave me an opportunity to better a weakness. I figured out that keeping light strides that don't take too much energy seems to work the best, and that running on compact sand where others have not already ran helps a lot too. Sadly I figured that out about 3/4 way up the hill. By the time I got to the top I couldn't see coach or the others. I was still happy I didn't stop on the way up though. It was hard but a lot of fun. I really enjoyed the trail. The view from the top was really rewarding. You could see from snow canyon to sand hollow. I also checked my watch and we had a total of 1000 feet in elevation gain so that was pretty cool. Eventually I caught up with the team and we finished with a total of about 80 minutes. Afterwards I went home and took an ice bath. That was really nice. This has been the most minutes I've ever done in a week so I figured hard be smart. Also I read a little bit of my new book while icing called running and philosophy. It had a lot of familiar messages. One talks about amor Dari which is a term coach robs brought up a while back. It's one of my favorites. It is the love of fate. In philosophy it talks about one not wanting anything to be different, but accepting their fate and facing the music. I think this is useful in not necessarily progress because one always wants to improve, but the process. It deals with accepting that running will be hard, races will hurt, and it will take effort, but one has to accept that and move on. You should learn to love the process. It helps work be more rewarding. I like this a lot and have felt like I've been doing this lately, and that has been helping me reach goals I didn't think I could while enjoying it even more. I've been really nervous for Thursday's workout because I did really well last time and don't want to fail the next time I try. I don't want last time to be a fluke. So I think this was good for me to rea. It downed my worries and has me excited to give it my all tomorrow. Can't wait for the workout. I'm planning on running all 28 with the top guys.

Well I wrote a really long description of this run so I could refer to it later in order to know what worked and what didn't, but it didnt save so I'm going to try and keep it brief and sort of outlined. 60 minutes overall 

POSITIVE: 

My 3 quickest miles added up to a 17:59 ( 8 seconds from last week and 16 seconds off my PR )

I ran all of the minutes for the tempo today ( about 4 more than last week )

I fought through when things seemed to fall apart

I ended about 200 meters away from Carson logan and alex ( that's 200 closer than last week) 

I stuck with the top guys up until the last .65 miles where I went just a  little bit slower than Carson logan and Alex 

My average split was the exact same as last time.

THE NOT SO POSITIVE: 

Things seemed to fall apart just a little bit earlier than last time

I was a little more panicked this time

My back kick could've used some more work while running

My breathing fell apart just a little sooner.

GOALS FOR NEXT TEMPO:

Finish right with the top guys

Keep calm and relaxed. 

Encourage others to stick with us

Focus just a little more on form

Conclusion: Although there wasn't tons of improvement I still stuck with the top guys up until the last little bit and managed to improve ,altogether, just a little more in comparison to last time. This reminds me of Addi's talk she gave. The little victories count and in the end have profound affects on what we do. I think this workout was one of those kinds of victories for me. This run was fun but difficult, and I'm glad I took that ice bath last night.  I'm pumped to keep working and enjoying the process. 

20 minuter with the team felt good after weights

This mornings run was good. It had been so long since I'd been to the park i got a little lost on the way there but luckily made it just a minute after 7. I felt pretty tight today cause of yesterday's workout. I had a few areas that were really tender. My right foot and hip have been this way, but luckily I'll have time to ice and stretch tonight. Hopefully some yoga will help.

Today we ran at north Bloomington hills park. We started the run by running the usual racing course. While we were running it I tried to visualize running the upcoming time trial. I think that helped me focus on how I want perform a little more. I'm really nervous for it because I'd like to do really well but at the same time I'm really excited to get to run it. My goal is to run it with our top guys for as long as I can. I know Carson Julian Alex and all of them have a really quick two mile time so hopefully staying with them will help me a lot. I am going to keep working hard these next few weeks so I can run my best at the time trial. After running the course, we got onto the river trail. I'd never done it before but it was a lot of fun. Miley almost lost his shirt, we kicked a ball for about a mile, and had some quality golf water. It was nice to have a more loose run after yesterday being so intense.

After I ran, i read some more from running and philosophy. It talked about happiness and defined it as becoming fulfilled through striving for good. It then explained that running does this by helping us strive for improvement, developing good relationships with our teammates, and helping others through charity events and other similar activities. I can say that I've found a lot of fulfillment with my team over the past year of running with them through each of these things. I'm sure this year is going to bring several similar and great experiences helping myself and others reach for that fulfillment. I can't wait to see how this season goes.

Today's run was really tough. It probably felt the hardest one we'd done this week. I got up at 7 and met Julian, Carson, Jose, and Mikey for our run. We did the chuckwalla trail. After about 20 minutes in everyone was starting to get a little wiped out. Most of the run was uphill so that might have been part of it. Still, the run was really fun. We saw a lot of great views of icons and found a cool cave called scouts cave. After that we flipped cause we ran out of trail so we had to extend a little bit at the end of the run to make up for it. On the way back we were at least a little more consistent in pace, and we got our pickups in which was good. On the third pickup we were running past some dogs towards the top of a rocky slope and Julian slipped and fell down the slope. We didn't realize we'd lost him till Carson looked back. Luckily it wasn't too bad of a slope so we ended up meeting up with him at the end of the run and he was good. At the end we extended our time on to the paved trail to finish our minutes. It was a super hard run, but well worth it. It gave me a chance to work on my form while trail running as well as work on running hills after a long week. After the run we also went to orange peel it was nice getting to hangout with the guys for a bit especially before I head out next week. Although I'm thinking we will luckily leave after the long run Monday. Also, I'm pretty bummed I won't be running with the team the next few weeks but I'm going to try and keep pushing myself and maybe keep an eye out for some other runners to keep pace. Overall this week was fantastic. I'm pretty sure this is the longest I've ever gone minute wise in one week, and I met all my goals which was great. 

I read another chapter from my book and it talked about 7 things that bring success. 

They go as follows: 

1) setting a goal

2) knowing what it takes to obtain that goal

3) persistence 

4) passion 

5) A good character 

6) enjoying the process 

7) confidence in your ability to achieve that goal

I thought about my own running experience as I reflected on each of these things. I thought about my goal to grow to a point where I'm able to run at a varsity level. I also thought about how running with the higher level runners during workouts especially the speed workouts would help me reach that goal. As for persistence, enjoying the process, and being passionate, I've found that just having fun while your out spending time with your team is one of he best ways for all of these three things to come together. They also seem to fuel each other in different ways. I then thought about having a good character. The book talked about a large part of this dealing with you holding yourself accountable and being self aware. This helps you keep your goals in perspective and recognize what you're doing well and what you could work on. I think this would definitely be a good one to keep focused on this season so I'm able to perform my best. The last one I thought about was confidence. This is the one I often struggle with the most because I can sometimes be a little self skeptical. Although it's good to know ones limits, being skeptical of your ability can be a hindrance when trying to improve because it can put limits on your abilities even before you try to achieve your goal. This can cause a huge problem mentally when it comes to the harder workouts and races. Lately, I feel like I've done a lot better at this by just being willing to try something that I normally would find myself thinking is out of reach for me rather than not letting myself try it in the first place. This is definitely something I'd like to keep focusing on throughout the season.

Sadly I fell asleep during the car ride and forgot to blog till we got to our site so I'm getting it I'm kind of late, but I'm still glad I at least get some time to do it. Today's run was so much fun. We did 97 minutes which was insane. When we got to practice the sky was really red and blue and we saw a couple rainbows that almost looked orange. It was very scenic and cool to see with the clouds. We ran tortoise to sand hill. Then we pretty much did a time trail sort of workout for sand hill. I started right behind coach when we began the hill. The very first part of the hill seems to be the hardest. The sand is so deep it goes up to your ankles and it feels like you make almost no progress at first. Eventually we got about 2/3 of the way up. This time I was doing a better job of moving quick even though my legs were burning pretty bad and I kept my breath under control which was good. By the time we hit the first peak I wasn't very far off the front guys. Unfortunately they really took off from there and I wasn't able to maintain pace with them. Eventually I got to the very top just behind Dylan. I'd been focused on trying to catch him a long ways up the hill, but the group he was with was a good ways a ahead. I got to the top in 12 minutes. From there I booked it down the hill. I really enjoy the downhill portion of sand hill. It's a lot of fun and you can move quick although it's a little tough considering how much you slide. About halfway down, I really picked up the pace and caught up to Dylan who was a little bit ahead of me. I was excited cause I was really focused on catching the group ahead of me. I think focusing on that helped me pick up the pace a bit. Next time I'd like to finish right with coach. I always struggle on sand, but I think I'm starting to get better after having done it a few eeeks In a row. I was Also excited I didn't stop at all. I saw a lot of improvement from last time. I think taking lighter steps up the hill helped as well as letting myself take advantage of the down hill really helped. My time on sand hill was 20 minutes. It was exciting doing something that was for time. I'm hoping it'll get me in the right mindset for the time trial. The rest of the run was fairly easy from there. We ran grapevine to Washington drive and looped around Washington a bit. It was a really good run. I felt like I pushed myself quite a bit.

I read the 4th chapter of my book today! It was interesting. The author talked about how he became a runner  and how it changed him. When he first started he wanted to test how it changed his perspective. He noticed that at first he was focused on running itself and worried about how long he was out and how difficult it was. He soon realized over time that he stopped focusing on that and began to wonder while his body went into autopilot. He also reported that the more he ran the more it became a part of him and the happier it made him. When he first started he felt that becoming a runner was like receiving a diplom. You do a lot of work and eventually you receive the title, but he soon decided he was wrong and that it was more like a skill set. The more you practiced it, the more joy that came from it, and the easier he found it. I remember experiencing this coming back from both of my injuries. It was very difficult coming back from them because I could barely last 15 minutes at my normal pace and was exhausted by the end of the run. It made it hard to focus on just enjoying the process and to be in the moment with my team. As time went on though, I found myself getting quicker and quicker and eventually after a few weeks I was able to last through long runs and really let myself enjoy it. Although I still enjoyed runs when i was just starting, I get a lot more from them now than I was getting in the beginning. This just goes to show the more you run the better the process becomes and the more rewarding the experience becomes. I've definitely seen it become even more enjoyable to me over time, even just over this summer, and I hope this will continue to happen for me throughout my life so I can continue to set and reach for new goals as a runner and never give up the sport. 

This morning was beautiful out. I started my run up at our camp and ran down the valley into town. As soon as I left i was surprised by a huge peacock sitting right outside our camp. That was really cool. There was also a thick layer of fog out this morning. It felt good being out running, but I missed being with the team. Still I got time to reflect on running a bit while I was out. I thought a lot about Thursday's workout. That'll be tough on my own, but I'd really like to push myself each repeat. I'm excited for that. 

I read another chapter of my book. This time the author talked about to types of runners: the runner and the jogger. The runner runs competitively and the jogger runs to be fit. He claimed there are those in running who run for the joy of winning races, this being a select few, while many others are challenge runners, runners who live to challenge themselves. He then talked about the downside to both the prize motivated runner which is that there is always a limit to the number of races you can dominate, and then he talked about the downside to being a challenge runner which was that failing to accomplish your goals can break you if you let it and that running can sometimes overtake your life if you let it. I reflected on this a bit and thought about dean carnases' book ultra marathon man. In he book he begins running for ultra marathons and other intensely long races through the night while working through the day. He had only 2 or so hours of sleep and spent minimal amounts of time with his family due to his intense training schedule. He claimed it enhanced his experiences with family and work even though it reduced he amount of time he spent doing either. Focusing on this, I believe that running does enhance your day to day experience by changing the way you view things, but also can be a hinderence to the rest of your life if you let it such as it did with dean carneses. Although this is true, it's very hard for me at least at this point in my life to delegate too much time to running considering what I'm training for. I think due to the additional responsibilities gained after high school it can be tough to delegate time to work a family school and running, but it's well worth it when done correctly, even if that means waking up at 5 to get your run in which can often time be even more enjoyable and rewarding. I think for most people it's very doable but always takes time and sacrifices. I'd like to keep this in mind after I finish up high school so I'm able to always enjoy the sport and let it enhance my life while still allowing myself to progress in other areas as well. One thing i somewhat disagreed with the author about was runners motivations. I think that most runners are motivated by both the challenge and prize aspects of the sport as well as becoming fit. I think becoming fit is almost part of the challenge portion of being motivated. Each of these things are part of almost all runners experiences although people tend to put more weight on one more than the others. For me I would claim to be mostly a challenge runner who obtains a new level of  fitness through each goal I am able to obtain. I feel like putting an emphasis on this will be able to help me run over the course of my life and not just throughout high school. To keep running throughout my life is a major goal of mine and one that I will continue to try and reflect on over this season. 

Total of 60 minutes today

I'm finally catching up on blogging sadly we've been pretty busy so I haven't read much from my book but I've been pushing myself mileage wise still. I ran 75 minutes today. We're in santa Paula so I ran down the canyon and into town. It was pretty far and I kept about 7:30 pace. Everyone was pretty friendly. My feet were killing me today and when we got back we went to magic mountain so I ended up walking another 10 miles after about ten miles of running. I was trashed by the end of the day but still enjoyed myself. The valley I ran down was beautiful and fairly green. There were a lot of vineyards and oranges where I was running so that was pretty cool. It's been hard not running with the team though. I've been running with earbuds and it's a lot less fun. 

Today was so cool. I did my workout in Malibu. I started my workout on the beach. It was really scenic out. After about ten minutes of running on sand I moved up off of the beach and onto the shoulder of he road. The road went along rolling hills and I had about 675 feet of elevation gain and still managed to move super quick for the intervals. Being at sea level helped though. I was moving pretty good for my first set I was a little slower than I wanted to be but then picked up the pace a lot. My tempo pace was around 5:40, my threshold was about 5:20 for most the run, and my cv pace was usually just under 5 minute pace which felt really good. I didn't feel very out of breath because of the low sea level but my legs were tight. I'm not sure how quick I was moving compared to everyone else back home, but I think I maintained pretty good speed for the intervals. I also kept about 7:10 pace when I wasn't doing my intervals and had about 4 miles that were under 7 minutes. I think the most positive thing about this workout was my form. It didn't break when I was going uphill, my back kick was good, I was driving my legs, and my arms were relaxed and moving good. My form felt really good. I also was happy I kept my regular pace pretty low between intervals. There were a few parts where I wished I had controles my breathing better. Next time I'll work on that. Afterwards I went and swam in the ocean. That felt amazing after running. Sadly I did my afternoon run Friday because we stayed up till almost one at magic mountain the night before so we woke up late. That meant I had to do my run in the afternoon which turned out better because I got to run at the beach. 

I got up early and did my twenty minutes in Santa Paula. It was my last run here and I felt a little slow at first. I kept about 7:30 pace. 

This afternoon was one of the coolest runs ever. My form felt fantastic and I was feeling so good I decided to push my pace a little more than usual. I did 8.3 miles in an hour and averaged 7:20 pace. I started up the road on a trail behind our hotel in Monterey. It was really cool there. It kind of looks like Seattle and parts of Oregon and is a fishing town. The trail ended pretty fast so I went on up the road off the side of it. I tried keeping up with a biker who was going kind of slow for a bit just to keep pace that was kind of fun. Then I went up a really big hill in a neighborhood and got a super cool view at the top. From there I flipped and extended a little at the end. I ended up finding another trail that went over some sand dunes and I got the coolest view of the ocean. I then went back to the hotel. Afterwards we went and had dinner on cannery row at a cool restaurant it was really cool there so I've decided to run over there tomorrow. My pain in my foot has stopped, and I'm feeling pretty good after this run. My form was really solid again today.

Today was the coolest run by far his trip. I ran the trail to cannery row. I was shocked by how many runners were out. Many of them were keeping close to my pace as well. I started down the trail and passed the naval academy which then led me to cannary row. That was about 3 miles out. I kept going and moved out onto an epic trail on the cliffs just above the ocean. I got some good photos. Today I kept really good pace as well. And my form felt very good again. I was moving my legs pretty well and kept long strides. About 3/4ths the way through my run I heard footsteps behind me and realized someone was passing me. It turned out to be one of the navy guys so I decided to stay right behind him and run with him for a while. It turned out he was doing some intervals or something similar for a speed workout so about a mile later he stopped, but it kept me maintAiming my pace in the sixes for about a mile so that felt good. I pushed myself pretty good this run and maintained 7:19 average pace. It was definitely the most scenic run yet and I felt pretty good about it. I kind of felt like I was moving in autopilot and just wasn't worried a whole lot about the run. I was still moving really good though and felt like I pushed myself. I'm trying to pick up my pace a bit for my longer runs as well to get ready for the time trial in a week. I'm feeling pretty prepared but am going to keep working my best so I can perform well for it. I feel like this week has been another good week for me to progress towards my goals I've set for the time trial. I've got one more week away from the team and can't wait to get back. I've been working on reading the scarlet letter for AP lit so I'm still a little behind on running and philosophy but will likely catch up tomorrow.

Today was probably my most frustrating run so far this season. I got up early and went to go do my tempo run at a pond before we left to San Francisco. The loop around the pond was just a little longer than two miles long. I was feeling great to start. The warm up felt good and I was moving quick. After my warm up, I started my tempo minutes. I quickly got my pace down to a 6 minute pace and kept it there for about two miles. I was feeling great and barely hurting. I felt very focused as well. Unfortunately, when I came around the last stretch which was probably close to a quarter to a third mile long, I ran into a problem. As I was running, I started hitting walls of nats. So many that I was accidentally inhaling tons of them and couldn't see from how many were getting in my eyes. Everytime I breathed inhaled tons of them. It was terrible, but I figured I could tough it for a few seconds and get back on track. Sadly, they didn't stop. The whol last stretch, they just kept coming. This led to my pace slowing down dramatically and me losing focus. By the time I was finished with just the first lap, it had gotten so bad I kept getting them in my eye. Consequently, I had to stop at the end of the first loop to clear my eyes. I was totally covered, but luckily took only a few seconds to start again. From there I began pushing agains, but was having a way more frustrating time than earlier because I think I got thrown out of rhythm mentally a little bit and became nervous that I'd run into another stretch of them. My second lap I made sure not to run the last stretch but just keep flipping back and forth avoiding that stretch. Eventually I got my pave back to what it was, but by then my average had slowed due to the slow stretch with the mats and getting back into the tempo. I felt good about the portions of my run that were fluent though. My form felt good and above all I was relaxed. I ended with a 6:20 average for my tempo compared to our usual which is around 6:00. Although today was frustrating I still feel like I got a lot of take away from it. For one it showed me how important it is to have someone or a goal to go after when you're running for time. I noticed this because of how much harder it was to keep pace without being able to run with the other guys. It helps a lot when you're with a group. Also I think this helped me realize the importance of mental focus a little more. After I lost my focus today things started to fall apart a little bit. Next time I have an issue come up in a race or workout, I'm going to try my best to keep focused and not let it throw me off mentally. Although today was not perfect, I still felt pretty good about how things went especially with the setbacks and doing the workout by myself. Today was somewhat of a learning experience, and I hope it will help me keep a little more focused for workouts and races in the future. 

Today was fun I ran through Petaluma. The town is not great for running but it was still good. I ran to he outlets and back. I started out really quick and it felt so good I decided to push myself for a while. I got a 6:10 split my second mile. From there I chilled out a little bit. Sadly there weren't many trails. After I went back to the campground I ran into the fields which was a cool run for sure. I didn't feel horribly sore after yesterday. Tomorrow and Friday I hope to get some fantastic workouts in. I'd like to drop my pace for tomorrow even below what it is when we usually run different pacings due to being at a slightly lower elevation and just for the sake of pushing my pace a little harder than usual. I'm going to try my best to stay relaxed and focus on my form tomorrow during the workout. It should be a good one. Also I can't wait for our 100 minuter. It's not going to be as fun doing it alone, but it'll be the longest run I've ever done. I'm excited to extend my times a little bit and really see how long I can go for. 

This is the longest run I've done since I've been back. I went 52 minutes. It felt good moving, but my leg still dosent feel the same. It's been really frustrating and I've been really worried about hurting it even worse. Hopefully slowly ramping up the minutes well get me back up to speed and keep me from getting hurt. Still debating whether or not I should try racing tomorrow, I think it would make for a great way to jump back into things even though I'm not even near to where I was. Luckily all the fun is in working towards improving not necessarily the result so I still have a lot to gain from this season. Although I've been injured, my circumstances have made me want to work even harder towards reaching my gosls in track. I would love to state qualify in any event I can, and while I know it'll be a huge jump and won't be easy, it'll be worth it. One thing I've learned from this season is that setting high goals that force you out of your comfort zone is very important in improving. Such high goals take personal commitment and a belief that it's attainable and that's something I'm going to try my best to keep in my mind throughout the season. I've got some serious work to do for track, but first I need to focus on completely getting better. Keeping both of these goals in perspective will hopefully keep me healthy and improving.

30 Minutes:

Now that we've finished racing and things have settled down I'm coming back and finishing up blogging for the past few days. First off, I've got to say I'm overly excited to be back for good this time. The last month has been the hardest one yet. I'd finally given up on trying to stay in shape whatsoever through running ,so I'd done some biking and other work to at least do something. I still haven't had soda since April which is awesome cause I want to keep that going for track, and my cut down on sugar has still been working, so I'm glad I've kept that up. Still, I'm out of shape, but it'll be good for getting back into things.

When we got to the hotel I was feeling pretty rough. My fever and cough has still been going, but I came so I wanted to run. 

The city was pretty fun to run around. It reminded me a lot of last year because of all of the trains and the route we ran. I was not feeling to great on the run. I almost fell behind for a minute after flipping but then reminded myself that I would feel just as bad in the race and would have just as much trouble keeping up then if I let myself slack at all now. I was able to hang on and make it back to the hotel. By then I was burning up pretty bad, but above all I was really happy to just finally be with my team again out having fun. Also, I've been really happy considering my leg did not hurt once while out on the run. This run was a definite success.

20 minutes: 

This morning was awesome. I went and tried to stay up front whil we ran down the road from our hotel. We didn't go too far this morning, but it felt good to be up early again and going at it. I am definitely sore, but it's a good feeling. I've been rediculously happy being able to once again push myself and continue my journey running. Getting back into things is always hard but worth it every time. One of the things I've always loved about coming back from each of my injuries is how difficult it is to run again. It's always a good experience for getting mentally ready for races in the future and the difficult portions of he season that are ahead. 

25 minutes:

Alright, earlier this afternoon, I ate Panda Express and was stuffed from it. While we were running I was still feeling kind of rough from it, so I probably won't be eating panda again anytime soon. 

Despite the stomach ache, I was feeling pretty good. My legs have tightened a ton and same with my back, but it's made me happy to feel sore again from running. It makes me feel like I'm doing what I enjoy most once again. My fever was still acting up a bit and same with the cough, but I'm feeling better than I have been.

Running the course was good. It was how I remembered it with its rolling hills and crazy dip at the beginning. As we ran I tried my typical racing techniques out visualizing while I went. I imagined myself caught up in the race trying to push through the pain, and tried to my breathing techniques I'll use in races. I also tried to keep imagining myself catching the guy ahead of me while repeating a few different montras. It was a good pre race run to start practicing a few techniques again. I also tried my best to pay attention to the course. Coaches comments always help with that.

Race: 

Today was my last cross country race. It's been hard accepting that, but I k ow I'm no where near being done; I still have track season just a little ways ahead of me, and I have big goals for that, hopefully no injuries prevent me from doing what I know I can do this time around. I'm hoping to state qualify for the 32. I can't wait for the opportunity. Today was a big step in that direction considering it was my first opportunity to race again, and reflect on what I need to do to reach my goals. 

The race itself,  in reference to the results, was bad which is ok because there was a lack of training leading up to the race, and honestly the experiences brought by training and the difficult moments in running are what make it so valuable, not the results. 

Today was certainly one of the difficult moments in running which made me happy. I felt pretty rough having only ran the past few days and having been so sick. I was burning up today as well, but those conditions were kind of fun to deal with because they gave me another opportunity to gain experience and once again deal with he hard moments in running.

My first mile was really fast especially when considering my conditions. Coach said this would happen. I came in at a 5:30. I was happy with this part of the race. I cut into our top guys right from the start and stuck with them till the mile point. I tried my best to pass people.

Going into my second mile things didn't look as good. I started breathing very shallowly and found my legs slowing down on me. I felt like I could've pushed some more but might've payed for it in the third mile by doing so. I fell behind quite a few spots coming in at a 12 on the dot.

Mile three was tough. I kept looking at the guys just ahead of me for some inspiration to keep moving fast enough to pass him. Eventually, I pulled it off, but my victory did not last long as he passed me a few minutes later. By the end I was feeling really rough which was good. I pushed through to the finish and actually gained some ground at the end. I came in at a 19:30.

After the race I was kind of freaking out. I was overheating pretty badly ,so I went and found some shade and just sat for a while. A few minutes later I went over to the team, and coach found me and said a few words I greatly appreciated. 

Looking back, this year has been tough. Things were looking up for me big time. I made some wonderful advancements in my journey as a runner and learned plenty about dealing with life, manipulating my perspective and how I think in order to improve, and  how to tear down the limits placed on me. This is something I won't let go of. I am extremely grateful to my team and every last person who has believed in my abilities, gone out of their way to watch out for me, and pushed me throughout this experience. I've found success isn't always controlable and sometimes may not come no matter what you do, but surrounding yourself with people who will harbor beneficial attributes and experiences will make the journey far better than the result may ever have been. The coaches have been crucial to this experience as well. I have learned countless lessons, that I truly did not understand before taking up running, from coach Robs and Holt. They've both given me tons and are two people who I will always look up to. Thanks again to everyone who have made the past to years of cross country so awesome. It's been the highlight of high school for me, and I know I would not be where I am now if it were not for the people who are a part of our team. 

It's been hard not being able to run and reach my goals, but I could not have been happier watching the varsity guys race today. I can't wait to be running with those guys in the workouts again. Still, I wish I could've contributed more to this awesome team. Cross country was great, but I'm ready to push forward in order to reach my goals for track. I know I'll get there somehow. It'll be worth it. 

30 minutes:

Well, I blogged earlier, but it didn't save so I'm retyping this from memory.

Today was awesome. While I was on my run, I heard coach talking about doing better at being on top of things and being better team members. This brought me to do a self evaluation, and as I ran, I came to the decision that I need to be more deliberate and thoughtful in my actions. Coach gave a talk on mindfulness back in the summer and that's something I need to improve on. I often find myself getting distracted easily and not getting everything done that I would like to. I also find that sometimes I don't think through my actions and how to align them more with what my goals are, so I'm setting a goal to practice focus. I hope to start trying to do tasks longer without breaking focus and thinking about every last thing I do and questioning wether or not they line up with what I'd like to do long term. One thing I know I'd like to cut out of my day to day schedule is the episode of tv I'll sometimes watch after school. I k is being more mindful will cut out the unnecessary activities of my day. 

As for my run, it was awesome. I found myself speeding up big time as I evaluated myself. I dropped from a 7:15 pace to 6:30 very quickly. I ended up 2 miles in succession at a 6:40 pace. It felt incredible to push. I know I need to be careful coming back into it too, so I'll continue to find a balance. I'm excited for tomorrow. I'm hoping to stick with the top jv guys the best I can. Hopefully I'll be back to running with the varsity guys soon .

15 minute warm up then race:

The race was pretty good today. I am still frustrated being so behind everyone else, but it's ok I'm just getting started. The race was solid though. I ran my first two laps both under 1:10 splits which was epic. Then my thrid lap I was pushing through and as I came around the corner I saw my time wa at 3:30. I was on pace to go sub 5, but sadly slowed my last lap without realizing it. I ended up coming in at a 5:30 not a bad start. Some  things I was happy about with this race was that I had moments where I was hurting really bad and forced myself to push harder bringing me to gain on those ahead of me and that I had moments where I felt some excitement when I was hurting. I also was happy because I did a decent job at calming myself and focusing in on the race. One thing I'd like to improve on is 

After the race, I had my interview with Dartmouth. I was extremely excited and nervous at the same time, but racing helped calm me down quite a bit and get me focused. Despite this, I was breathing pretty hard on the way home and ended up throwing up which wasnt fun right beforehand. I ended up being alright though and the interview went well. 

30 minutes:

It felt good to get out today. I had a very quick 15 minutes below 7 and then my pace died down a little bit. It felt good to get out. Late fall is always one of my favorite times to run because the first time I ever really started to go out and train by running was during the late fall of my freshman year. It always reminds me of my first time training and how far I've come since. 

35 minutes: 

I pushed the minutes up a little more today. It felt good to keep going.& kept a good pace going through the whole run and went out to Washington and back. It was nice to get out before settling in for the evening and hanging out with the family. My legs are feeling good but fairly sore, but that's just getting back into things.

35 minute run today felt good to get out. I played an hour of basketball before hand so I was thinking about cutting down the minutes just by about 5 minutes, but when I got out I felt good so I just kept going. 

I did 53ish minutes today at an average of 7:15 pace. It was a killer run. I didn't run yesterday because I was having some major leg pain and am trying to be reserved about jumping back into things. It was a bummer, but other than that I've done every run so far. today I did my workout in place of the recovery run. It was awesome. I went a low 7 pace till I hit the river trail , and then from there, I picked it up big time. As soon as I hit the trail, I kicked my pace into high gear trying to go as fast as I could go. At first I was running at a 6:30 pace and then I got excited and dropped it even further after a couple of minutes. Soon I was sub 6 pace. I maintained that for about half a mile and then rose back up to a 6:10ish pace and kept that going the rest of the time. My tempo portion of this workout was an average of 6:15 pace! It was absolutely awesome. I always get nervous that my pace won't be as good when I'm not with the team, but today was a good reminder that I am able to go just as fast individually as with the team. 

Today also reminded me of something coach robs said about alli during the dream mile. He said that when she ran she seemed " not to know any better. " What he meant by this is she seemed to forget about her limits and just run the very best she could despite all the other factors that could be used as reasons why she shouldn't be able to outrun the senior, varsity girls. Today I felt like I tapped into that a little bit. When I ran my tempo, it felt like I was running just for the heck of pushing myself rather than a pace or some goal. It helped me forget about whatever limits I may have and just enjoy what I'm doing. Very rarely did I check my watch for pace or time left. It was a good moment and tactic for me something I hope to carry on as the season progresses. 

During the tempo portion I also made sure I never thought it was ok if I ALMOST reached my goal of running the full 15 minutes at an average of low 6 pave. Often times I feel like I die off right at the end, so I think this helped me avoid that a little bit. As I finished the tempo poriton of my run I was very close to throwing up, yet luckily held it in. I was pretty spent and pulling off the last half of my run was pretty rough. I followed some guys on scooters for a while to keep pace and by the end, I'd cramped up hard in my stomacht. It was good though it let me know I pushed myself beyond my typical limtis. Overall, todays run was really solid. It was one of those runs where you get caught up in the moment, pushing yourself harder and harder as you go. I'm really feeling like I'm getting back into things again and getting a good flow with my runs. 

Iced for 30 minutes And Stretched

60 Minutes:

Today was difficult for sure. I ran down the main road outside of the lake house that were staying at till I hit the base of the mountains ,and then I flipped. My legs have been hurting quite a bit the past couple of days, so I've tried to continue stretching. It makes me a little nervous especially because everyone was doing much more than me before we stopped running for the break, but I'm hoping to keep up with the rapid pace at which we are increasing our minutes by. My legs were feeling pretty decent and had loosened up a lot by the time I made it back. 

When I got back, I sat down and read some more of Running & Philosophy. It's been a while since I've gotten the chance to read the book because I've been so busy trying knock out other books for AP Lit. I'm glad to habe finally picked it up again. 

I read two chapters today. The first talked about running and the significance of running outdoors as well as what it has to offer over running on a treadmill. One of my favorite points the book discussed was thinking while running. The author spoke about how people on treadmills often try to entertain themselves ,while excersising, with media such as music, TV, and magazines, but they seem to be missing one of the most incredible parts of getting to run- having the time to reflect as well as be in the moment. The book proposed the question " Why would you distract yourself from something you voluntariy chosen to do?" This resonated with me quite a bit. I always enjoy getting the time to reflect on what I've been learning in class while running as well as getting to try and think about the information in new ways. Getting to experience the run itself is also a very unique experience that I feel gives me the opportunitty to grow. Throughout the run I always enjoy experiencing the sheer challenge of pushing myself as well as the runners high that comes with it. I also enjoy how distinct each run is. I feel I find something new to enjoy every time I go out. The chapter expounds upon these concepts pointing out the fun in running in a spontaneous manner and the adventerous possibilities that are assosiated with each run while relating both ideas to the writings of Henry David Thoreau and William James. 

The second chapter deals more with a theological perspective of philosophy and relates a few bible texts into philosophical ideas. At first, the chapter talks about three societal perspectives on life: postmodernism, monotheism, and scientific naturalism. It then brings up the concept on the empty self which is the feeling of disconnect with a communitty bringing an individual to a state of strong individualism where the person often is cinical towards society and unhappy. It then related different approaches to happiness to the typical unhappy American making an argument against Hedonistic approaches to happiness by stating that being happy also takes an element of self elevation through work and perosonal development. It then related running to different spirtual disiplinces which I found very interesting because I've often heard of people relating running to religous experience. The chapter brought up concepts of engagment and disengagment in religion and how they can be used in running, i.e. a runner may disengage from eating sugar or drinking soda and engage in stretching, cross-training, blogging, and racing. The conclusion was that running is a process of finding meaning and happiness in life through disiplined practice. I enjoyed this chapter as it pointed out that happiness often comes as a biproduct of ambitions and attempting to do the best you can in life, not necessarily your direct attempts to be happy. Additionally, I thought the empty-self was very intriguing as I feel as though I've encountered this with myself sometimes. Running has certainly been a good way of dealing with it. 

Also Just realized I've been blogging on the wrong days of the week haha. I would go change it but I wrote a lot and am really not feeling up to chaning it all.