Love2Run

Had a great trip back to the USA and Seattle, but it also feels great to be back in Japan.  It is really cold here though.

Didn't run a single step while in the USA and I think I must have gained a few pounds.  :)

Official training for track begins on Monday.  I am kind of looking forward to that.

I think I must have cought a cold on the plane.  

First day of track practice.  I am on the middle distance team and will be running the 800m and sometimes 1500m.  There are 3 members in our group.  In comparison, there are 18 in the long distance group.  They run the 3000m and 5000m.   There is also about 15 girls in the sprinting group 100m to 400m.  That is an indication of where the Japanese place emphasis I think.

Today we had to weigh in.

I was 177 cm and 51 kg.  I think I might be the tallest on the team.

After weigh ins we ran a warm up, then ran 5K at 10K pace (my time was 19:10).

Ran a cool down.

It was cold, but nice and sunny today.

We did some weight lifting after and some core exercises.

Ran an easy warm up, then ran 10 x 400m steep hill sprints.  Walked down the hill between each.  Ended with an easy cool down run.

Warm up run.

10 x 200m sprints.  We practiced starting from starting blocks.

Cool down run.

We ran a very easy 3 miles today. 

Warm up run.

5 x (50m + 100m + 200m + 400m) sprinting.

Cool down run.

6 miles of easy running.

10 x 50 m sprints all out at the end.

My left achilles is hurting today.  Maybe it is all of the fast sprinting that is getting to it.  It is on the left side, the same side as I had my broken ankle.  Maybe the supporting muscles on that side are still weak so there is too much stress on the achilles.  

I enjoy being on the school team, but the most frustrating thing is not being in charge of my own training.  Sometimes I feel that the workouts are too much, and at other times I don't think they are enough.  I wish I had the option of being able to select my own training to fit how my body is feeling at the time.

6 miles easy.  Achilles still sore on my left leg.

6 miles easy.  Achilles a little better but still feel it.   This weekend is our first track meet.  I am scheduled to run a 800m and 1500m double.  We will be leaving on Thursday to go to the meet.  I am on the traveling team (that is because there are only three of us middle distance runners), but whether I run or not just depends on how my achilles is feeling on the weekend.  Coach says that if my achilles is still hurting on Saturday, this small meet is not worth risking the entire season on it.  It is better to take it easy now. 

3 miles easy.

Coach informed me this morning that I won't be going to the meet this weekend.  Also he doesn't want be doing any running for the rest of the week.  Need to get my achilles better.

No running today.  The team left today to go to this weekends meet. I was kind of looking forward to going but I need to let my achilles recover.  

Going to a hot spring resort with my mother and step father tomorrow.  Maybe the soak in the hot bath will help my achilles.

No running.

My family is at a hot springs resort.  It is great and the baths are wonderful.

I feel very relaxed after soaking in the hot bath.  Maybe a little too relaxed.  When I get out I feel almost like rubber.

This weekend it will be a year since I twisted my ankle and broke my ankle running a 10K race.  It has been a fast year in some respects, and a very long year in other respects.  

I don't know if I will have any kind of an indoor track season with my sore achilles but I am looking forward to the spring track season.  I want to be in top shape by then.

I havent run for a long time now.  I am trying to let my achilles heal.  The doctor gave me some bad news and said that it might take a couple of months before I can run again.  I am really discouraged.  Just recovered from one injury to get another injury.  I am seriously considering giving up on competitive running.  I enjoyed running so much more when it was just me against the clock and running how I feel.  I also liked it much better being in charge of my own training and not having to do keep the coach's schedule.  I am just really down right now.

I hadn't had any severe pain in my achilles tendon for about a week when I walk, so I decided to try and jog today.  That lasted about 5 steps.  As soon as I started to run, there was a sharp pain in the achilles.

I wish it would hurry and heal.  :(

I hadn't felt my achilles pain much until today, but it started hurting today, so I decided I won't try running on it until next monday.

Saw the movie "Crazy Rich Asians" today for the first time.  It was funny, but the best part of the movie were the scenes of Singapore,  It brought back lots of good memories.  What a fun place it is.

I tried running today after taking a few weeks off because of my left achilles tendon.

The first 50 meters I could feel the tendon, and I depated about calling it quits, but instead I decided to change my running form.  Instead of pushing off with the calf muscles, I ran by lifting my knees and driving forward with my knees.  This caused me to have to take short faster strides, but it felt good and there was no pain in my tendon after that.

It is amazing how fast you can get out of shape.  I was really breathing hard after 2 miles.   I will try this distance this week and gradually work up from there.

I may try doing some jump roping this week as well.  Oddly enough, jumping rope doesn't seem to bother my achilles.

Another easy 2 miles.  Had no pain at all today in my achilles.  

Two miles in the rain.  It was warm today, 20C!!  Felt my achilles a little today so I went quite slow.  After it was warmed up the pain went away, so the last mile I picked up the pace a little.  

Ran 2 miles.  Today was the best run so far this week.  No pain at all in the achilles and I pushed it a little today.  I am getting anxious to increase the mileage, but I am not going to make the mistake of increasing too fast, or I will be right back on the injured list again.  I will continue with 2 miles this week and increase the mileage next week.

No running today because of bad weather.  Did some cross training and weights.

Another 2 mile day.  Next week I will increase this to 3 or maybe more depending on how I feel.  I haven't had much pain in my achilles recently.  The worst is when I get up in the morning.

Ran 1 mile for a warm up to make sure my achilles was okay.  Felt no pain, so ran 2 miles in 14:15.  Then finished up with 1 mile very relaxed.  Felt really good running today.  We got our schedule for track today.  I am a little excited.

Also did some skipping rope.  The way we did the skipping rope was like running in place while skipping the rope.  We did it as fast as we could for 1 minute, then 30 seconds rest.  We did that 4 times.  I was surprised how tired I got.

Did pretty much the same workout today as yesterday.

Started off with an easy mile to get my achilles warmed up and ready to go.

Then ran 2 miles in 13:55.  Felt a lot easier and much better than yesterday.  

Finished off with an easy mile.

I think I will continue doing this for the rest of this week and see how things go, an then next week will start adding in some faster stuff.

I am not really sure how to train for the 800m and 1500 m.  There are three of us on the team that are going run those distances.  The distance coaches are working with the long distance people, and we are under the direction of the sprinting coaches, but they have pretty much left us on our own.  

The same workout again.

1 mile slow to warm up.

2 miles in 13:07.  I have been trying to run the two miles a little faster everyday.  I have already come down more than a minute from Monday.  I don't know how much I will be able to bring my time down without having to change gears and speed things up.  Right now I have been staying in a comfort zone.

Finished off with 1 mile slow.

Same workout again.

1 mile warm up.

2 miles in 12:43 (was able to run it a little faster again today).  I think that is going to be the limit without having to change gears.  

1 mile cool down.

Did some rope skipping later.

I have really been thinking about how to train for running the 800m and 1500m.  None of the three of us really knows what to do.  We have not been getting much guidance from our coaches.  We are under the direction of the sprinting coaches, but they just tell us to go for a long run.  It seems to me that since 1500m is the longest we will be running, doing long distance runs is not going to be that helpful.  It seems to me that we need to be doing more fast stuff.  

1 mile warm up.

2 miles in 13:01. ( A little slower than yesterday.  It was raining hard during the run, so that might have been the reason for the slower time, plus I was not too excited to be out running in the rain.  It was warm though, about 14C.)

1 mile cool down.

I have been looking at our track meet schedule.  We have some small meets, then we have some qualifying meets for qualifying in the Prefectural Championship meet.  Those who do well in the Prefectural Championship meet move on to the Regional Championship meet, and those who do well there get to run in the National Championship meet.

In looking at last years time, the top eight times ranged from:

Prefectural Championship Meet (Kanagawa Prefecture)

800m:   2:13.77 to 2:15.71

1500m: 4:26.90 to 4:34.22

Region Championship Meet (Kanto Region)

800m:   2:09.91 to 2:20.09

1500m: 4:24.42 to 4:28.83

National Championship Meet

800m:   2:07.98 to 2:13.11

1500m: 4:17.17 to 4:20.72

Those are the times I have to aim at.  I think I might have a good chance of making it to the Prefecture meet.  After that I am not sure.

The first qualifying meet will be on April 13, and then another meet on April 20, 21.  I need to get ready by then.

Rainy day here today.  Staying home and watching the Tokyo Marathon on TV.  It is cold and wet, I would hate to be running this this weather.

Ran 4 easy miles today.  I haven't been feeling well the last couple of days.  Must have gotten a stomach bug from somewhere.

AM: Ran an easy 7 miles at about 8 min per mile pace. I am just going to do easy running for the next while and try to increase mileage. I will try to run more later.

PM: Ran another easy 6 miles.  It is really hot here now.  It was 92 and very humid when I ran.  Reminded me of Singapore.

A big congrats to Manami chan and Mei chan for going 9:22.28 (average of about 5:00/mile) and 9:33.64 (average of 5:06/mile) in the 3000m at the prefecture championships and getting 1st and 3rd place, and also qualifying for the District Championships.

AM:  Ran 7 miles again this morning.  Ran the first 3 miles at about 8:00 per mile, then ran the next 3 miles at about 7:30 per mile, and finished with a very easy mile for a cool down.   Will do some easy running later today.

PM: 6 miles easy

AM:  Ran 3 miles at about 7:30 per mile, then ran the next 3 miles at about 7:20 per mile.  Ended with an easy one mile cool down.  Will try to do an easy run later today.

PM:  Ran an easy 8 miles.  It was cloudy and cool when I started, but the sun came out from behind the clouds, and I was roasting by the end.

AM: Ran 10 very easy miles through Chinatown, and then through the Englsih Rose Garden.  Took time to look at the flowers.  I needed the easy run today.  The increased mileage has been taking its toll.

I have been getting the same amount of sleep, but I have been so sleepy and tired the last couple of days.  I think it is because of the extra mileage.

PM:  Did some core and stretching.

AM: Ran 10 x 1000m repeats this morning.  They were all run fairly easy.  I don't want to do anything too fast or too hard during my building phase.

I ran the first 1000m as kind of a warm up, and ran  it in 5:15.  The following repeats, I tried to run each one progressively faster up to repeat 5, then run them progressively slower again up to repeat 10.  I tried various stride lengths and cadences to find one that felt the best for me.

I was surprised with repeat No. 9.  I was aiming at 4:50.  The stride length and cadence that I ran this repeat at was very comfortable and easy.  I was so surprised to come in at 4:14.  I think I need to commit that cadence to memory. 

Even though the goal was to come back to 5:00 on the last repeat, I was not comfortable in going that slow.  Ended with a slow cool down.

I love 1000m repeats, and this was a SUPER fun workout.  I will try to run more later in the day.

PM: 8 easy miles with Jun chan.  We talked about boys and things and had a good time.

AM: Very slow and easy 7 miles at about 8:00/mile pace.

PM: Did another 7 miles slow.

Tomorrow I am going to write a summary of my thoughts on this weeks training.  I am just glad that the week is finally finished.  I made my goal of 80 miles, but I don't think I was quite ready for it yet.

Last week I set the goal to run 75 miles, and ended up actually running 80 miles.

At the first part of the week I was feeling a lot of muscles stiffness around Tuesday, but by Thursday most of that began to disappear.  Even though I was able to reach my goal, I have decided that at my current level of fitness, a distance of about 50 miles a week is probably more realistic.

The reason for setting this goal, was just to see if I still had it in me to do that much mileage.  Accomplishing the goal has given me a lot of confidence, however, I am not convinced that putting in so much mileage is actually the best way to train.  I have decided to list what I consider to be some of the advantages and disadvantages.

Advantages:

1. Pace is slower and easy, so there seems to be less impact and shock on the body.  Maybe this helps in less injury.

2. During afternoon runs, my body was tired and forced itself to relax and run in the most economic way.  Learning that relaxed and economic form of running may help even when running faster during shorter distances.

3. Putting in the long distance has given me running confidence and I feel like I can do anything, from short sprints to a marathon.

4. Lost over 1 kg during the week.

Disadvantages:

1. Runs are at a pace slower than race pace, so I don't know whether or not the body is being trained to go faster, or just becoming capable of going a slower pace.  I was afraid of doing anything too fast, because I though it would prevent me from running as long as I wanted. 

2. Running mornings and afternoons takes up a lot of time.  I had to sacrifice spending time with my boyfriend and other friends.  Had a couple of disagreements with my boyfriend about it.

3. The extra distance caused me to be sleepy and tired all the time, even though I was getting the same amount of sleep at night.

There are probably more advantages and disadvantages than these, but these are the ones that came to mind.

In my training, I will go back to maybe 50 miles a week. and gradually increase the mileage from there.  I will do a couple of harder workouts during the week to keep my body accustomed to go at race pace.  I will also add some faster shorter strides and the like to try and develop a faster turn over.  By gradually increasing the distance at no more than 10% each week or every 2 weeks, I think I will be able to train my body to handle faster running even when I begin to do more mileage.  I will also try to listen to my body, so as not to risk getting injured. And most important, I must find a way to be able to make sure I don't neglect my boyfriend, friends and family.

AM: I ran an easy warm up, and then because Eugene mentioned on his blog the other day that he loves Fartlek and finds it one of his favorite training methods, I decided to do some Fartlek today. I did it for about 6 miles or so. Finished off with a mile cool down.

PM: 6 easy miles

Leaving very early this morning for a school trip to Okinawa.  Will be gone for 4 days, so don't know if I will be able to run at all during the trip.  Will take some running clothes just in case.

Returned home from Okinawa last night.  Had a wonderful trip.  It was amazing and so beautiful in Okinawa.  It was very different from this part of Japan where I live.

I was going to run while I was there.  The hotel had a sports gym with a treadmill, but students were not allowed to go to the sports gym or the simming pool. Also I was told I could not go running out on the road.  I kind of understand, because the school doesn't want to be responsible in the case that something happens.

I was going to run this morning, but it was raining so hard, so I haven't run since Monday.  I will have to start at it again on Monday.  It is the rainy season here now, so there is rain in the forecast everyday next week.  I hope I will be able to get some running in.

Very heavy rain today, so no running.  It seems like forever since I ran the last time.

AM:  Had planned a good workout for today but was stopped by the rain again.  There was a slight mist when I started and I thought I would be okay, but after a mile warm up it started raining and then gradually turned into a downpour.  I ended up doing only 3 miles, but was completely soaked when I got home.

PM: 6 easy miles.

AM: Was raining hard again this morning so no running.  I wish I had access to a treadmill.  Will try to do some running later if the rain stops.

PM: 10 easy miles.

AM: I was finally able to do a good workout. this morning.  The goal was to do 3 x 2 miles at about 12 minutes.  I ran this workout with Mai chan.  My times were:

Unfortunately, I was not able to reach my goal time, but I am confident that if I can lose some weight and get down to a good racing weight, and also improve my aerobic fitness, I should be able to greatly improve on these times.

PM: 3 easy miles.

AM: 8 easy miles.

I am feeling a little muscle soreness today.  Mr. Pachev from the blog told me about eccentric contraction exercises so I have started doing them every other day.  I think my muscles are sore from that.  We have our ekiden team physical exams today.  I hope I have no problems.  

PM: 8 easy miles.

It is raining very hard here today.  Probably will rain all day, so no running.

I wish I had access to a treadmill.

We received sad news last night that my grandmother passed away.

My mother and I were planning to go to the USA in July, but we will be leaving tomorrow instead.

Arrived back in Japan.

Did a 1 mile warm up. Then did 6 x 800m @ 2:45 pace with 200m recovery between. Finished off with some easy running.

AM: 1 mile warmup, then 5 miles @ 6:30 pace. Recently this pace feels very comfortable to me, so I think my fitness is starting to return.

PM: Very easy 3 miles

9 easy miles. Didn't wear a watch on this run. I just wanted to run for enjoyment.

AM: Short warm. Then ran 5K @ 18:30. This was at 80%. I know that I can go under 18 minutes, but I am getting a little discouraged because the girl on our ekiden team that graduated last year ran about 19:47 for 6K, and I am still not anywhere near that yet. Easy running after.

PM: 3 miles easy

AM: I guess the jet lag and lack of sleep recently caught up with me today. I was unable to get up this morning.

But I guess that meant I probably needed the sleep more than the run. I don't generally sleep in or have problems getting up early, but today I just couldn't wake up.

PM: 3 easy miles.

AM: 6 miles of fartlek. Felt good!

PM: Easy 3 miles

AM: Did a mile warm up. Then ran 5K at 100%. I gave it everything I had. My time was 17:11 (3:36, 3:24, 3:23, 3:26, 3:22). This was a big PR for me. I am pretty sure the distance is close to being accurate, because where I run it is a running course that is marked every 1K. Anyway I had absolutely nothing left at the end. Ended off with a 1 mile cool down.

PM: Ran an easy 6 miles.

This evening, my hips and back are really hurting. Especially, when I lay down, the ache is so bad I cannot sleep. I hope I didn't hurt myself today. I really gave it everything I had.

I felt good about the time today, but that is still not good enough to make our A team for Ekiden. With one of the members from the Ekiden graduating last year, there is one spot open. She ran the 6K leg of the race. There is a 6K, 4.1K, 3K, 3K, and 5K leg. I don't know if any of the other existing members will move up to fill the 6K spot, or if the 6K spot will be open. It doesn't really matter. I am not fast enough yet to fill any of the spots yet. They are all averaging about 3:20/1K or faster. I still have 1 1/2 month before our official team workouts start for Ekiden.

AM: Was very sore from yesterdays's run, so ran an easy 3 miles.

PM: Felt a little better this afternoon, so ran 6 miles easy.

AM: 6 easy miles. Still feel tired from Monday's run.

PM: 3 miles easy.

AM: 6 miles at 7:00 per mile pace.

PM: 6 miles easy.

AM: 10 miles easy.

PM: 3 miles easy.

AM: Short warm up, then 20 x 300 meters @ 60 seconds, then 10 x 100 meter sprints. Ended with a cool down run.

PM: 5 easy miles

AM: This week is the beginning of Summer Recess from school. Did an easy warm up, then 3 x 2000m @ about 6:50. 1000 m recovery run in between. Ended with a cool run to get 10 miles. Felt really good today.

PM: Ran an easy 5 miles.

AM: 6 easy miles.

PM: 6 easy miles. My left ankle was sore toward the end of the afternoon run. It is the same ankle that I broke. I am a little (actually a lot) worried about it. I think this time it feels more like a tendon and not bone. But I think I will try to take it easy for a few days. I don't know why my left angle and leg are so weak. It is the one I broke. It is also the one that I had achilles problems with.

Tomorrow I start a summer internship working for a company that makes bearings, gears, automobile transmissions etc. I will be working in the Engineering department. My science teacher at school arranged this for me. What I will mainly be doing is to write correspondence in English to overseas customers etc. The pay is not so good, but the learning experience should be great.

I will have to arrange my running schedule to correspond to the work schedule. I will only be working 3 days a week for 4 hours a day, so it is not an awful lot. The transportation time to and from takes time though.

AM: 5 very easy miles. My ankle was still hurting today. I am sure it is tendons just in front of the ankle that are sore. On Monday I wore racing flats during my morning workout and maybe my feet were not ready for it.

Started my internship today. I didn't really have much to do, today mainly had a tour of the office. It is very interesting how all of the departments in the company work in coordination to solve problems. I will be working in the Engineering Division II, which engineers continuously variable transmissions. Even though I didn't have much to do today, I am mentally exhausted.

PM: 5 very very easy miles. I think maybe tomorrow my foot will be bak to where I can run normal again. If not I will take another very easy day.

AM: 6 easy miles

PM: 6 easy miles. I think I will just be doing easy runs this week, to make sure that there is nothing serious with my ankle. Felt very good today. I think I just strained some tendons.

I was very shocked today when I came on the blog and saw that Mr. Murphy has disappeared from the blog.

He meant a lot to me. He was the first to welcome me to the blog and always had very good advice for me. I will really miss him. I hope his knees heal quickly so that he will be able to return to running again.

AM: 6 easy miles before going to my job.

PM: 6 easy miles. Left ankle is feeling better. Today I felt a similar pain in my right ankle, so I think the problem is due to tendons. Maybe running over uneven surfaces is the cause. Maybe I need new shoes.

AM: Short warmup, followed by 10K in 38:20 (best time in long time). I wasn't going to go hard today, but I felt so good during my warmup run, that I changed plans.

PM: 6 miles easy. I have lost 15 pounds since the end of track season. I just wonder how much better I could have done during track if I had been lighter then.

Well, I had a good mileage week this week. I think this is ideal mileage for me.

AM: Slept in so didn't have time to run before going to work. Made some mistakes at work and my supervisor had to talk with me. I felt really bad. I am still learning so many things and it is hard to learn it all so quickly. PM: Ran 6 miles easy. It was good for relieving some stress. Didn't realize working could be so stressfull.

AM: Ran an easy warmup, then ran 5K in 17:24 (not a PR, but felt fast). Easy cool down. I think the extra rest the last couple of days did a lot for me. I will try again for a PR in a couple of weeks. I have one month to get my 5K time as low as I can if I hope to have a chance to get on the A team.

PM: 6 miles very easy

AM: 6 easy miles with some striders at the end.

PM: 6 easy miles

AM: Ran about 10 miles with Jun chan. It was supposed to be an easy run, but Jun chan kept pushing the pace. I love running with her. She is my favorite teammate. She is the nicest person, and I think she is probably the hardest working member on the team. She always arrives early and warms up with stretching, plyometrics etc. I keep telling myself that I also need to do that, but I am too lazy. We will both be competing for the empty spot on the Ekiden A team. I think Jun chan is ahead of me right now. I think her 5K PB is somewhere around 16:58 or so. Mine is 17:11. Jun is such a nice person that i would not feel bad if I lost out to her. With all of her hard work, she deserves it. PM: 6 miles easy.

AM: 10 easy miles. Started off at 8:00/mile pace and worked down to 7:20. Felt very easy.

PM: 6 miles

Now that it is summer vacation from school, I have been getting to bed too late at night. It is starting to show. I need to start getting to bed earlier.

AM:  6 miles easy.   My mother had a talk with me today about losing weight.  She is afraid that I have been losing too much weight.  I am not partlicularly trying to lose weight, but I think the mileage I have been running recently just results in it.  I am still eating a lot.  My mother is afraid I might develop an eating disorder.  She says it happens to lots of runners.  I am sure I am fine.  Like I said I have not been dieting or doing anything special to lose weight, it is just happening due to the extra running.

AM: Did an easy warmup, then ran a very hard 10K in 38:16. I didn't go 100% on this but I did push it. It really felt good. I am starting to enjoy going hard and fast again. Ended with an easy cool down run.

PM: Ran 12 x 400 m @ about 85 sec. with slow 400m run in recovery.

Recently, I have been doing my hardest workouts of the week on Monday. I like doing them on Monday because I take Sunday off and am well rested, so I am able to push myself hard. I will now take it easy until later in the week, Hopefully I will do another good workout around Thursday or Friday.

AM: 8 easy miles at 8:00/mile pace.

PM: 6 easy miles

AM: 10 miles (averaged 7:48 per mile)

PM: 6 miles easy

AM: 10 miles. Started at 8:00/mile pace and gradually increased speed down to 7:00/mile.

PM: 6 miles easy.

This week has been the National High School Track and Field Championships.

Manami is the only girl from our team that made it to the National Championship.

She ran the 3000m. In her preliminary heat, she ran 9:38.45 to make it into the finals. But because of the heat she got dehydrated and did not feel well during the final and was only able to run 10:03.32 for 17th place. Even though the race did not go as she planned, I am proud of her. By the way the winner of the race won in 9:11.15.

AM: Ran an easy 10 miles.

PM: Was going to do a hard workout today, but I had a stomachache so I did a very very easy 6 miles instead.

AM: 6 miles easy.

PM: 10 miles easy. This was a mistake todo the 10 mile run in the afternoon. It was so hot and humid.

Next year the Olympic will be held here at this time of year. I hope it is not as hot next year as this year.

I have chaffing and also blisters on my toes from running in the heat.

Glad the week has come to an end.

AM: Did a warm up run.

Ran a 5k time trial with Jun chan. We started out trading off the lead, then at about 3000 meters I pulled away in front and was feeling comfortable, but then all of a sudden at about 4000 m, Jun chan passed me. I should have gone with her, but I lost my concentration and then things kind of just shut down. I finished in 17:07, which is a PR for me, but I know I could have gone with her. She ran under 17. I was also aiming at under 17 today. It makes me mad that I lost it mentally.

Two weeks to go until official team practice begins. I am really doubting that I will make the A team. It is kind of sad that after three years I will probably never run on the A team. I think I could have done it if it hadn't been for injuries. Oh well, if I end up on the B team or the C team, hopefully we can make that team competitive with the A team.

PM: 6 easy miles

AM: 10 miles easy.

PM: 6 miles easy.

AM: 10 easy miles (felt a little twinge in my left achilles)

PM: 6 miles easy

AM: 10 easy miles

PM: 6 miles easy.

I have had a lot going through my mind recently related to training, but have had no time to write it down. This week is my last week working at my summer internship before school starts again. Maybe after school starts I will have more time.

AM: 10 miles easy.

PM: 6 miles easy.

AM: 10 easy miles.

PM: 6 miles with 100 meter striders mixed in. End of another good week of mileage. I hope all of this mileage is building a good base.

AM: 10 miles at about 6:50/mile pace.

PM: 6 miles easy.

This is the last week of summer vacation from school. Have to try and enjoy it.

AM: 10 miles easy

PM: 6 miles easy

I think I start cutting back on the mileage starting from tomorrow. On Monday next week we have a time trial to see who will fill the vacant spot on the Ekiden A team. I will taper off this week and hope to be in the best condition by Monday.

AM: warm up run. 12 x 400m @ 85 sec, cool down run.

PM: 6 miles easy

AM: 6 miles easy (legs felt heavy this morning. Not used to the speed work I did yesterday.)

PM: 3 miles easy

AM: Warm up run. 10 x 200 m, cool down run.

PM: 3 miles easy

AM: 6 easy miles

I will rest tomorrow and should be ready to give 100% on Monday.

PM: Did a good warm up. Today was the 5K time trial to see who fills the spot on the Ekiden A team. I was feeling really rested and very good today.

The temperature at race time was 27C (80F) and 61% humidity. The sun was out, which made it feel hot, especially in the track. I was hoping for clouds. It was cloudy all morning, but the sun came out just before we ran.

Everyone ran the time trial today except two of the girls who are already on the A team. They are preparing for a big road race this weekend.

My strategy was just to try and stay with the top runners as long as I could. I felt really good in the race. In the last two laps I started dropping back, it was me and jun chan together. We both crossed the finish in 16:56, but Jun chan edged me out by a nose at the end. It was a big PR for me. First time under 17 minutes for 5K. But it will not be enough to make the A team. There is a 1st year student (equivalent to a sophmore in the US) who was faster than both Jun chan and me. Tomorrow will be the announcement of the teams.

Did a cool down run after the race.

I am really tired.

This evening, my parents took me out to dinner. They know how hard I have been working for this and even though it didn't exactly work out as I had hoped, I got a PR and they said that all of my hard work deserved a celebration.

Tomorrow, official team practice begins.

Today was the beginning of team practice. We ran 21K. We ran out past Nissan stadium. It was the first time going past Nissan stadium since I volunteered at the IAAF World Relays.

Coach said to run at a good quick pace, but everyone's legs were heavy from yesterday.

Coach announced the teams today.

I will be on the B team and as second alternate for the A team.

The B team will be

Aki (She will run the 6K leg.)

Yuri (She will run the 4K leg.)

Me ( I will run the first 3K leg)

Jun (She will run the second 3K leg.)

Mari (She will run the 5K leg)

We have one race that we will run.

I will write more about Ekiden later.

AM: 6 miles easy.

PM: Warm up run. 3 x 3200 m @ 10K pace with 1.5 min recovery in between. Cool down jog.

AM: 6 easy miles. Coach has asked us to do an easy run in the morning on days that we don't do a long run.

PM: Warm up run. 8 x 400m @ 1500m pace, one minute recovery. Cool down run.

AM: 6 miles

PM: Warm up run. 6 x 1000 m @ 5K pace with one minute recovery. Cool down run.

13 mile long run today. This has seemed like a long week. I am looking forward to resting tomorrow. My body needs it.

AM: 6 miles easy.

PM: 10K hard.

Thought I would have a nice relaxing weekend, but ended up getting some kind of stomach bug. I still have it. It doesn't seem to get better. If it is not better soon I will have to go to the doctor. :(

AM: 6 miles easy. Still having stomach problems.

PM: Warm up run, 10 x 200 m @ 800m pace, one minute recovery. Cool down run. It was all I could do to finish this workout with the team today. My stomach is really bothering me. Went to the doctor this morning, and had some tests, and I have an appointment for an Endoscope tomorrow. Having to have an Endoscope makes me a little worried.

AM: 13 miles at a good pace. It was raining when we started, but stopped about half way.

It is good to be running again, after a short break. Hopefully, my stomach problems are a thing of that past.

Today is grandparents day here in Japan and is a National Holiday, so no school.

AM: 6 miles easy

PM: Fast 10K.

AM: 6 miles easy. (I really am not positive on the distance. I think it is actually more than 6 miles. Coach told us to run 1 hour easy every morning to loosen up. Coach says the distance is not important, and said just to run for an hour.)

PM: Short easy warm up run. 10 x 800m at 5K race pace 200m recovery. Short cool down run.

AM: 6 miles easy.

PM: Fast 10K.

AM: 6 easy miles.

PM: warmup run, 20 x 200m , cool down run.

Recently, I have been faced with a difficult decision.

I have been very busy lately with my studies at my high school here in Japan. Also I have been continuing with my home schooling. I have also started studying for the SAT and ACT exams. All that together with my running and training, I just haven't had time to do everything I want to do.

I have decided that something has to go.

Even though lately I haven't been spending much time in writing here on my blog, I have decided that I just don't have time to make entries here every day.

I have really enjoyed it here on the blog, and have appreciated all of the advice and encouragement I have received, but I have decided to take a rest from the blog for right now. Maybe someday when I have more time I will be back.

I want to wish everyone here the best.

Thanks.

AM: 13 miles. We as a team ran the entire Ekiden course, which is equal to a half marathon.

This coming weekend is the city Ekiden race. It will probably be my last high school race. This race is not really a qualifying race, but is a chance for all of the city high school teams to run. I would love it if our B team runs faster than the A team. The first qualifying race for our school's A team is Nov. 2. I was hoping to be finished with practices after the race this weekend, but because I am an alternate on the A team, I still have to train just in case someone on the A team becomes sick or injured, which is not likely.

Congrats to our Ekiden team. We took first place in the prefectural championship for the 12th time. In doing so we will go to the National championship in December.

Shout out to our school's Ekiden team. At the National Championships over the weekend, we placed 21st out of 47 teams.

I really wish I could have run in the race, but it was fun to watch anyway.

A link to the race on youtube is below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nGYblulIvA

With this race, the Ekiden season has finished and my high school running career has come to an end.

I wish I wouldn't have been injured for most of time, but it was my own fault for trying to push things too hard and too fast.

I am looking forward now to just running on my own again while I decide whether I want to pursue more competitive running in the future.

Hopefully next year, I will have more time to write on my blog here.

AM: Ran 10 miles with 500 to 1000 meter bursts mixed in.

PM: Ran an easy 3 miles

Watched the university women's Ekiden on TV today. All of the runners were amazing.

AM: Ran 5 miles easy. Then ran 10 x 400 meter hill sprints (jogged down). Ran a cool down.