Blake Bennions running

Am- I made another route, well it still had part of the old one in it. It would be easier if I had a garmin but I know it was about 4. I felt pretty good, I was tired at the beginning but I woke up on the run.

Pm- Gully longer run, it was easy and felt good. I felt some power today, I really need to concentrate more in races, concentrate on the pace and push it, I need to be more aggressive with the pace and run my hardest. The friday I'm going to push myself and I will sustain that pace until the end, I'm not going to let myself slow down unless I am phisically unable to keep going.

We did a 2 mile warm up and then an 800m at max effort, I ran a 2:08 which is not bad. I ran a 2:12 last year and that was pr from freshman year track and I ran a 2:08 for my pr in track sophomore year so that was interesting. I'm happy with that time, I probably could have gotten an even faster time with spikes. Then we ran a 400 30 mins later, I ran a 56 second 400 which ties my best times for the 400m, I ran 56 second 400s a few times during freshman tracks and I never got to race a 400 during track this past spring so I don't know what I could have gotten, I'm sure faster than 56 but I want to find out. I'm going to race some 400s this track season if I can. The we had a 5 minute rest before another 400, I hit 59 seconds, coming in the final stretch I had goal of keeping under 60 seconds and I did that so that felt good. We were doing a lot of laps inbetween these of course, I did about 2400 meters inbetween these and then I did a little over a mile for the cooldown. I feel good about this workout, I'm ready for park city.

I will do 20 mins more and some striders later tonight. I ran with my team this morning, it was easy and felt really good. I am ready for tomorrow, I'm more determined to do good tomorrow than I ever have been about a race. I'm going to keep pushing and fighting through the pain, I'm going to pass people continously and I won't give in to the discomfort and pain. Tomorrow is my breakout, I'm not going to let myself give in to discomfort, I'm going to fight it every step until I'm done.

I thought I gave it my all, I really thought I was trying hard, I mean I think is started to sort of get down mentally during mile 2 onward but really I didnt think I was doing that bad mentally. I'm wheezing worse right now than I have for many years, which is weird. I really tried hard but I just didnt where I wanted to be. I'm going to get where I want to be, I will. I don't care how much work it takes, I just want to get to where I want to be. I don't know what I'm doing wrong but I'm just going to keep trying and one day I'm sure I get where I want to be, and then I will target another goal. I'm not going to give up or let my team down, im going to get faster and if I'm one of the top 5 I at state or region I'm going to make sure there isn't one more person I could have beat by the end of the race. i don't know if I will score but if I do I'm going to make sure I do good for the team, if I get a scholarship for running, it won't be for cross country. I'm not running as fast as I need to run for that, for the 800 when I get to race it as my main event for a meet I might be able to run times that could interest school, or my mile could be good enough if I work at it. The thing about those events is that it's just easier to understand the race and analyze and stratagize the race and I enjoy it a lot more than anything else. I really want to run a sub 2 minute 800 this track season, and I want to do really well for the mile as well, maybe a 4:25 or better. I haven't given up on the cross country season just yet, and I will not give up until it's over, I'm still going to give it my all. I just don't know if my all makes the cut of success anymore, I don't know if the team has a run tomorrow, if I don't hear anything else I think I will just do the gully long run once or twice maybe.

We went to Liberty park and I couldnt find anyone so I ran around, a little over 2/3rds of the way around I found my coach and we ran back the other way to the water fountain and found Kramer and Ashton. Then we ran 4 laps really easy, it felt great. Then we did 2 tempo pace laps, I felt good and they were pretty fast. I think I ran like a 17:03 or something, maybe that was Kramer, I really don't know haha. We did a 1.5 or so cooldown and looked at all the cool stuff in the park and then we had some yummy trumoo and doughnuts from Coach Murphy, thanks Coach! It was an awesome run, Liberty park is awesome and I got a PR from before sophemore year and I wasnt even in a race so that was great.

We ran at the Cottonwood complex today, we warmed up about 2.5 miles, I felt really good. Then we did 4x400s on 2 different places on the region course. My times were 64, 63, 64, 64, I feel pretty good about these times, I worked hard and the cooldown actually felt really good, although I wasnt sure if I was going to be able to run it at all for a while after I finished the last 400 haha. We did about a mile cooldown, avoiding hills, after that I went home and did another 2.5-3 miles but I put it as 2.5.  I did more just because I was feeling good and wanted more of a cooldown, and I felt bad about not doing a morning run. I feel good phisically going into the day before region premeet, I'm confident of my ability and I want to show that I'm better than my races this year have shown. I know I'm better than I've looked in races this year, I want to burn some of those guys scoring from bingham at region.

Easy run, it felt good and I enjoyed it. We did the top half of the best buy loop and a half mile on the track, then we did 6 striders. Everything felt good, the distance run and the striders. I need to get into the mindset that I can keep with those bingham top 3 and 4 guys and then I need to control my breathing and help my lungs out during the race. I know if I can control my breathing and my lungs don't go bad during the race I can pull it all together and have a great race. I have all the tools, I have my speed as good as its ever been I would say, I have the aerobic fitness from doing an average of 47 or 48 miles a week this season with multiple 50+ weeks which is more than I've ever done, I've been able to work as hard as I need to during races in workouts. I just need to have a better race mentality, I need to enjoy the race more and push myself harder. All there is to do now is prepare by eating well, getting enough sleep, drinking plenty of water, and having a good premeet day. I plan to put everything I have into region, I'm going to try hanging with binghams number 4 guy as long as I can, maybe 5 but I believe I can run with number 4. I just need to keep going with them as long as I can, i'm not going to even think about the future of the race during it, just the present and what I can do every moment to run faster.

We did 4 easy miles and 4 start of race 200s. It was all easy and I felt pretty good, I need to get a good sleep tonight and race harder than I ever have tomorrow. I'm going to give it my all for as long as I can, I'm going to keep with Binghams number 3 and 4 guys until either I die off or its time to kick them out. I'm only going to concentrate on defeating Binghams number 3 and 4 guys, I'm going to get right behind them and pass them in the final 800, I know have the ability to do this.

I can definintely say I'm happier about this years region than last years, this year I didnt run the time I wanted to last year but I could have. My arms were the only thing hurting today, I really need to figure that out. My lungs and legs felt great today, I could have gone faster but my arms were hurting bad. If my arms don't hurt at state and I can be positive, confident, and aggressive in the first 2.5 miles then I know I can have a breakout race. My kick today was good, which is something I haven't been able to say all year until now. I outkicked Binghams number 7 by a lot and also got a guy from copper hills who had had a big lead on me before I started my kick, I noticed how tired some of the guys I was passing in the last 600-700 and I realized how fast I could have run today if my arms hadnt been hurting. Austin is the guy from Bingham that I was running with for a while today and ended up beating by plenty, he is their number 7ish guy, their team is a little shifty after number 4. Looking through their past results I notice that their 5, 6, and 7 runner switch around quite a bit. I'm excited for state, if I can pull it all together and run hard I really think I can have an amazing race. My goal is to defeat Adam from bingham, his last name is haysen I think. He is their number 4 runner, he ran a lot faster than I did today. But Bingham hasn't gotten any better since the start of the season, and I could have run a lot faster today. We will see when we clash at state, but I'm going to work to my limit these next 2 weeks and do everything I can to beat him on the 23rd. I'm going to train as smart, well, and hard as I can and hopefully we will be able to defeat Bingham and make Nike Cross Nationals in Portland. For now I'm just concentrating on helping Alta finish 2nd at the state championship at Sugarhouse park in 13 days, really it just comes down to what I can do in the race, I need to start preparing mentally now so that when the race comes I will know what I'm going to do and where I need to be and so that I can make myself push myself to a fast pace the entire race and the blow out some guys with my kick.

I felt really good today, it was a nice pace and just and enjoyable run. The big hill on the gully run didn't even hurt today, it was sort of weird but really good. I know I am in good shape, and I'm going to get in a lot better shape by the time state comes around. I think the weakest point is racing, I really need to be confident and determined at the state meet. I know I would do amazing if I could have the mentality in a meet that I do most other days, but for some reason something just gets to me and I just can't push it during races. I really need to break through that problem, I know I will have everything I need to beat Adam by the time State comes around if I work my hardest. I just need to have the determination going into state.

We warmed up 2 miles and then we did 4x400s with 7 mins rest in between each. My splits were 58 seconds, 61, 61, 62. So an average of like 60.5 or so, under 61 but not under 60 which would have been nice. I went out to fast on the first one, but it was a good hard workout. I had a good time and then we did a cooldown, we did a lap in between each of the 400s and striders beforehand, we pretty much had done 2.25 before the first 400 and then with a lap in between each we got up to 4 miles by the end of the workot. Then we did a cooldown, I did a little extra but it was only 1.7, maybe a little more but I just put it as 1.7. I want to do another mile or so just to get up above 40 for the week, I will be looking for excuses to get that in.

AM: We did 4 miles in the morning, then we did 6 striders. It was a nice run and felt good.

PM: We did the gully longer run, it was an easy run. I guess I will look forward to the max effort 400 tomorrow. I'd really like to get in a 20 mile day sometime but I would probably get a stress fracture, state meet next week. Running has been feeling good lately, I don't really even want to take a break from running after state but I probably will once it gets colder. I really need to get a break through at state, I need to change everything about my race.

We warmed up 2 miles and then did some striders before the workout. The workout was 2000 meters at race pace which I hit at 6:33, then 1200 meters at race pace which I hit at 4:00 or maybe a little under. Then we did an 800 which I hit at 2:32, and a 400 which I hit at 1:06 for. Then we cooled down 5 laps. It wasn't a great workout for me but I guess it wasn't too bad. Tomorrow I have to miss the team run at 9 am for a PSAT, it makes me feel bad. I don't want to miss any of the workout. I'm just happy school is over after tomorrow, well sort of. I think I will spend the long weekend doing some productive things rather than just goofing off.

We ran an easy run in the gully today, it felt really good, it was the best weather its been for a while. I'm starting to be confident in my legs and lungs, the only thing I feel is really holding me back is that my arms keep hurting in long VO2 max workouts, especially races. I'm going to hope and pray they don't hurt at state because I really think I can run the race on the faster half of the 16 minute range. I'm really excited for what our team can do, and I want to make sure I do everything I can to help us make it to Portland. I played tennis with my brother and he wanted to run home afterwards so I ran with him, he did track for a season back in high school which is 50% of the reason I tried out for indoor track 2 years ago, it's crazy how fast the past 23 months have gone by, but at the same time I feel like I've been running for a long time. High school is a pretty short part of life, but its definintely a very important part.

I went with the team up to Jeremy Ranch, it was good weather although a little windy. I'm pretty tired, I guess thats what 4 hours in a car and an hour and a half of running does to you... I feel terrible about my ability today, I know I should be thinking positive but I just feel like I could never run a 16:30 even, I just can't race that long and a 5k isn't even that long of a race. I guess I will just stick to the plan and run behind whoever is in 6th for our team and then run my hardest the last mile and do my best not to let anyone pass me, I guess we will see how I do. I hope my team can get us that runner up trophy.

Nice easy run around the neighborhood and I stopped by the library, I felt really good today. Its really nice to run on my own every once in a while, I felt like going some more miles but I was only supposed to run for 45 mins. This probably the nicest weather for the rest of the year so I've been outside for a lot of the day. I am excited to see what speed workout we are doing tomorrow, last one before state!

3 mile warm up, then an 800, then we did about a mile in  between that 800 and the first 400, then we just jogged a little before another 400, then we cooled down a good for a mile. My splits were 2:20 for the 800, it was horrible! It definintely didn't help that I almost got tripped on the way back and then 20 meters later some lady walked her dog straight through our 800 and I had to jump out of the way so that I didn't knee her dog in the face, I don't like that lady very much to say the least. Then my first 400 wasn't very good at 58 seconds and my final 400 was decent at 56 seconds.

I ran 4 easy miles with my team, I felt good running today. After we ran we went to Coach Muphy's room and he talked to us about State and gave us some tips, some that I will definintely try to implement are to go steady on the hills and then surge at the top, he also said to get out in a good position because you will be running the same pace as the guy in front of you for the first mile, I'm supposed to keep in 7th for the first mile or two so I hope the everyone on the team starts well. No one can pass me the last mile so my kick will have to start at the 800 a little bit and then I really need to kill it the last 300-400. More of a race strategy than I've had all year by a ton, hopefully I will break 16:30.

We ran a little to get ready for state, about 1.25 miles I'd guess, then we did a 400 at race pace and then another easy 400. Tomorrows the big day, I just need to remember to pass people at the top of every hill and give a hard effort throughout the race. I am going to do my best and try to pass as many people as I can in the last mile. I really want to run faster than 16:30 tomorrow, I can do it. I just need to race well. I feel ready for the race.

It was an decent race for me, I beat some big rivals in Stockton Smith of Davis and Tayte Polleman of Brighton. Some rivals I will be looking to beat in the next race are: Ethan Stuart of Davis, Trevor Gibby of Westlake, Brayden Walkley of Westlake, and Daneil Bentley of American Fork, I don't know if Daneil will still be running varsity at their next race, so if not my target will be his replacement. Tayte has been a big rival ever since I moved to Utah, my record against him is about even. This is my first victory over Stockton, it's a big deal, I've been trying to beat him for over a year and I did it today. My race started well, I almost got boxed in from the top 50 at the beginning but I escaped through a hole. The first part of the race I was just keeping in range of Conner and Chase, I just kept within 10-20 meters of them. About a mile and a half into the race I realized I needed to start going faster and so I passed Chase before the first trip around the lake, then I cought Conner right before the end of the 2nd mile. I hadn't been expecting to score so I started passing people a little more, I was a little panicked that I was in a bad position for the 5th guy on our team. The last mile was sort of crazy, the weak part of me hoped Chase or Conner would pass me and it kind of prohibited me from using my full 800 meter kick, but I forced myself to stay with Stockton. I had been running with him the entire race and so I just stayed right behind him until I passed him with about 300 to go, I started running faster at that point and I looked  behind and saw someone coming up behind me and then I looked to my right where my coach was yelling for me to pass 8 more guys, so I looked ahead and I saw a big group of guys right there and I started my kick and caught them all. The last 20 meters felt great, I was just striding my way in, I couldn't see anyone ahead of me and I had just passed a large group and lost us some points. I raced better than I have been all year, but there were some things that I will improve on by the next meet. Next time I will make sure to be prepared to run a much better race for a score. I hadn't really been expecting to run as the 5th guy, but next time I will run harder the entire race. I didn't run a bad race at all today, but I think I could have run harder in the first two miles. And I also think I need to push myself to my full kick. I have a month to train for Nike SouthWest, I really need to get a lot better if I'm going to run as our 5th guy and we get 2nd there. This next month is really important to my running, I am going to train really hard.

We ran an easy 7.5 miles, the best buy loop and then a mile on the track. I've been feeling sick ever since the day after state, but I started feeling better close to the end of work. It was windy, and my lungs hurt during the run but that was just because I'm sick. Besides that the run was ok, the pace was a little slow for an easy long run but it wasn't too bad. I'm ready for the very tough month of training that I am about to begin, I'm willing to go through any training and do my best, whatever will get me what I need for nationals. I figured that to compete with lone peak all of our top 5 guys would need to be under 16:00 or close to it at Nike Southwest. Its a fast course but I still need to train a lot and improve a lot before I can talk about breaking 16:00 on that course myself.

Today we ran to the gully and did an workout of 8 hills at a hard effort, at the top of each hill we would alternate between 25 push ups and 25 sit ups. It was a really good workout for me, I'm still a little sick and my lungs are feeling bad, I've been wheezing a lot this week. But I pushed through and had a good workout, then we ran back to alta and did 8 laps on the track, 200 of each lap was hard and 200 was easy. This was also tough but we pushed through and I felt good about them, it was a good workout today.

Am: 6.25 around the school and on the track. It was easy but I also was a little tired.

Pm: We ran the best buy loop, it was sort of annoying because we started out really slow and I kept on saying stuff like "so we're supposed to be doing this in about 45 minutes right" and everyone would sort of be like yeah. And I was a little annoyed at how slow we were going, so when we hit mile 3 at 24 minutes I started picking up the pace down the hill, we ended up finishing the best buy loop with a 6 minute mile which in my opinion was really stupid because we didn't run a single mile of the workout like we were supposed to. The top group finished in 46 something. My lungs are still hurting, and I'm still wheezing a lot. This kind of workout makes me really just want to go back to playing soccer or something, also I'm a lot better at soccer and it's a whole lot easier. I am very frustrated.

Am- We ran 6.5 around the school and on the track, it was easy and I was less tired than yesterday during the run.

Pm- 2 mile warm up followed by 2x1600 with 1 lap/5 minutes rest. My 1600s were horrible, 5:12 and 5:29. I felt very bad, overall I've been feeling less sick but my lungs are still feeling bad. I can't breathe deeply, I don't know if it's just that my asthma is getting worse or if I got some weird sickness. My lungs haven't felt like this since I was much younger, like over 10 years. My wheezing is still bad, it makes a weird noise when I breathe deeply. But I'm sure it will go away soon. My arms also hurt a lot on these. I'm getting more and more frustrated with this. I think I need to concentrate and be more positive, but its tough because I don't know what to be positive and confident about.