I can do it. I will do it NINE times!

Warmed up, stretched and did agilities with the team, then Ally and I ran Dogpound easy. I decided to not stop even if we had to for traffic at lights and such, so I ran circles around Ally while we waited. It was a blast! I love running!

Team warmup and such, then big grass loop before repeats. 6x800m repeats at 3200m pace with 400m jog recoveries between. My goal was around 2:52 for a 11:28 3200m.

1-2:54, I went out a bit too easy on my first lap, but did okay making up for it on my second.

2-2:54, legs just felt odd, didn't have any spring at all, it was hard just keeping it down at this time.

3-2:52, pushed harder on this one, breathing has been hard on all, finally got one on goal pace, though by this point I was just hoping to keep them all faster than the first two.

4-2:53, in my waffles, I felt ok-ish while running this one, though my time wasn't the greatest, also my knee was feeling weird, kind of a burning feeling on the left side under my kneecap and it just felt weak and odd.

5-2:53, I hate my life. Felt totally crappy the whole thing, could hardly breathe, thoughts of 'just one left' didn't help at all, by the time I finished I was about ready to just give up, esp. with knee being lame.

6-coach didn't catch my time, probably 2:53-ish, I worked really hard, so I felt like I was running faster, but 2nd lap was 1:25, so I don't really know. Still felt really crappy and couldn't breathe very well, though finally my legs felt like they were being worked out at the end.

I don't know why these were so hard. Last time we did these I know I did tons better and it was easier, too. Well, I do know that the heat really took it out of me, but that is not enough of an excuse to make for a 4-6 sec slowdown from last time (Apr. 3). Breathing today was al ot harder and my legs didn't get as tired on almost every repeat. While I was running them I felt like I was pushing as hard as I could, but after I was done, my legs weren't all that sore and spent. Overall a pretty frustrating practice.

Warmup, agilities and stretches then I ran Green Springs 4 miler. Started out with Nikki J and stuck with her for the first mile or so, then took off. I've been running pretty slow on all my longer runs lately and I don't think that has helped a lot, so I took it a bit faster today, pushing more on the uphill and letting go on the downhill back. Weather cooled down lots and was perfect today. After, I did 6x100m striders then did hand-offs with Green for our medley on Sat. I don't know what I'm running tomorrow at Kearns, but at BYU I think I'm running the 1600m, 800m and medley. I KNOW that I'm not doing the 3200m there at least! After hand-offs, I ran 2 lap cooldown with Green.

Weather was freezing and rainy at the meet, I was going to run the 800m but we decided to leave early so we could get some sleep for tomorrow, so I ran the 1600m instead. Holt told me to not run it really hard, just use it as a workout to get my legs going for tomorrow. So when the girl who got first started pulling away, I just let her go. I felt really good the whole race, the time was okay and I wasn't even spent at the end, so overall it was a good run.

Cold cold cold! and WINDY! What crap for crap. Warmed up about 3/4 mile for 800m, got all ready, then I ran the race. Went all right, considering wind and getting beat up during the first hundred meters, time was 2:29.53, wanted to qualify for state, but oh well.

Walked back to the bull pen, jogged around about 1/4 mile to get my legs loose from 800m, then checked in to the medley relay, choked down a powergel for some energy for my next 800m. Handoff was great, ran a pretty good leg, but I think I could've pushed harder. Missed qualifying by 3 seconds.

Relaxed a while before the 1600m, warmed up too early a couple of times (3/4 at one point, 1/4 later and another 1/4 even later), just anxious for the race, choked down another powergel, tried to stay warm and ready for the race. Well, the race basically sucked, splits- 1:16, 1:28, 1:29, 1:25 or something similar, total time 5:38.78. After I felt really headachy and crappy, sat around for a while, then was mad about my races, so went running, ran to the BYU bookstore from the track and back - two miles or so. Overall, the meet was really a downer, esp. a few days before region.

Team and grass loop warmups, then 4x300m repeats at crazy fast pace with muchos resting in between.

1- 49s - well this one was almost a 48, but felt really good, just letting my legs run fast!

2- 49s - after the break, legs felt kinda stiff, but still fun to go fast, though a bit more tiring.

3- 48s - really determined to run this fast, overcome the 3rd-lap-downs and such, was pretty hard and my knee felt pretty weak on the turn and last 100, almost done though!

4- 50s - truly tried keeping the time down, I have a little of an excuse since the wind was hard against us on the last straightaway and hadn't been the rest of the workout, but legs were really spent and my knee just about gave out about 20m before finishing. Yuk.

DI loop cooldown, started with Nikki, but she was running so slow, even for a cooldown, so I took off and tried to enjoy it...legs pretty tired out, but felt good overall. At home, iced knee for a while, still a bit stiff.

Team warmup and such, then handoffs with Green (which were GREAT!) for the medley! I'm so excited for tomorrow! (and the next day!) Then ran to Staheli Village (to sign up for the Cotton Days 10k this Saturday) and back, easy with a couple of fartleks to get my legs moving. Felt great, I'm so ready for Region tomorrow! The fire is back folks! Set some goals: 800m - 2:24; 1600m - 5:15; 3200m - 11:40; medley - win! and 2:25 split. We'll see how it goes!!

First day of our Regional Championships today! (Also, I spent the morning taking the AP Calculus Exam!) Warmed up two laps with the team and stretched, then ran a couple more laps with gradual accelerations to get ready for the 1600m. Totally owned the race!!! I ran a PR of 5:16.28 - not quite my goal, but a PR by 5 seconds, YIPPEE! Legs were a little tired during the race, but pushed pretty well considering I had no competition (the next girl was 17 second behind me). Great race, it felt good to do well after the complete crapfulness of BYU.

Then I ran the 800m leg of the medley relay, the other girls set me up so nice, we were in second place, a ways behind Dixie, but the girl running their leg has never beat me in the 800m so I passed her coming around the 100 of the first lap, was totally ready to own the race for the team and DID IT! We got our goal of winning the race, we ran a team PR of 4:17.8 (6 secs better!) and my leg was around 2:20! So that's basically another PR, though I won't count it until I run that fast tomorrow in the open 800m! Bwah ha ha ha ha! It really gave me more confidence in the 800m, since I've been sucking at it this whole season, but now I'm ready to kill ALL those stinking Cedar girls tomorrow in both the 3200m and the 800m! Twenty point day, two victory day, double PR day, GREAT DAY!!!! YEAH!

Did about the same warmup routine for the 3200m as I did yesterday for the 1600m (it seemed to work well enough). Ran pretty strong, but not a stellar race- time of 11:41.81, nobody really was there to challenge me so I just had to push it by myself. PR by 4 sec! After yesterday's awesome times, it was a little disappointing, but it was good for running the 800m later, since I wasn't all that fatigued after the 3200m like I usually am. (I'll get splits later...maybe)

Ran a grass loop warmup, got pumped up and ready to race, really got nervous for this race since it wasn't one I knew I could own. Mostly was aiming for a 2:20 since I got it yesterday in the medley. Got a really good start, but some girl fell, so we had to start again. Second start was really crappy, got way boxed in and clobbered, it took until the 150 or so before I made it out, pulled up to sit in 3rd right behind Maddie and Kristen. Shoelaces of my right shoe came untied! Argh! As I made my move to pass them both at the beginning of the 2nd lap, Kristen did too, so I ended up having to pass Maddie in the 3rd lane on the curve, really kicked it in right there to stay with Kristen, wanted the win so bad but didn't have the spring in my legs on the last 100m. Then freaking Liz Ricks of SC passed my in the last 20 meters and took me completely by surprise. I'm kinda mad about the race, but I still got a PR by 3 seconds with my time of 2:23.14! Kind of a disappointing second day of what could've been a 'perfect meet', but what the heck, PR's in EVERY EVENT! Now on to train for STATE!

Easy recovery run this evening, legs a little tired and stiff, knee a bit sore, but overall felt pretty nice, just relaxing and comfortable. Iced knee afterwards.

Warmed up a bit around, then ran the race - my second 10k ever! Went pretty well, just wanted a PR and did, kind of... I went the wrong way on the way back and ended up running too far. Yup, I'm a dork. My 6.57-mile time was 43:23, but my 6.23-mile time was 41:11, so I count it as a PR... The other 10k I ran my avg min/mile was 6:38, so I tried keeping it around there. 6:45, 6:35, 6:58, 6:45, 6:29, 6:10 and a 6:19 pace for the last .23. The race felt pretty good and wasn't too hard, but sadly, my waffles are getting worn out and gave me a blister. Total my avg min/mile was 6:36, so not bad... I think I won it, too... but I had to leave right after I finished running, so I don't actually know.

Today at the beginning of practice we looked at the 3A rankings for the State Meet this weekend. I'm ranked 5th in the 1600m, 6th in the 3200m and 7th in the 800m! Exciting!

Warmed up and such as usual, then a couple of handoffs with Green for the medley, then did big grass loop and 3x200m repeats. Ran them all in spikes and the last two with the sprinters (which was kind of odd). I don't know my first one's time, but I got 31's on my last two. My calves, esp. my right one, are still really stiff and sore so that wasn't much fun, but the workout was just fast and fun. Then jogged 2 laps cooldown with Judd. And drank a quart of gatorade.

Team warmup, agilities, stretches and handoffs w/Green, then Dogpound AT. Did it a little different today, did about a 2 mile AT run with 1 mile warmup and cooldown (instead of 3 AT between 1/2 mile wu and cd) also, I left my watch at home so I just pushed hard and ran fast, but have no times (though I think I ran at most low 6:00/mi). Was really hot out and that was painful, but I think I pushed it really well in the AT part which felt good. Legs were really tingly at the end and a while after, which was kind of odd.

Ran around to do a couple of errands in my neighborhood as a warmup, then ran this loop around Bloomington hills a couple of times, it was way too hot yet again, I've got that to look forward to this whole summer! Yay. Ran really slow and easy (8:38/mi avg), though I wanted to run fast and angry, since I had a frustrating day. @#$@#%. Getting to be pretty nervous and excited for State!

Went to the Juab HS track to run a bit after riding up to Nephi. 800m warmup, agilities and stretches, some handoffs with Green, then went out on a ten-or-so minute jog around. Ran out in the town a ways, felt pretty good and loose. When I got back, my legs were feeling pretty restless, so I did a couple of fifty meter sprints to get them moving some.

Got up way too early to drive up to Provo from Nephi in time to get warmed up for the 1600m. Warmed up on the track, 3 laps gradually faster, stretched and got ready to race. Race went all right, but not great, no PR, but close and kept my ranking at 5th place. I can't recall much else about the race. Warmed up for the 800m leg of the medley relay too early since they took forever in between the heats of 1A and 2A medleys, but the race went ok-ish. Ran a split of 2:23, got a team PR of 4:16, but we took 4th place after being ranked 3rd. Everybody else on the team really stepped it up and I feel kinda like I let them down (if I had run 2 seconds faster-like the 2:20 I did at Region-we would've gotten 3rd). So that was kind of depressing.

Ran a PR of 11:36 in the 3200m in the morning and kept my ranking of 6th. Felt really good about that race, pushed it really well, I battled this Logan girl most of the race and beat her in the end! Then I sucked in the 800m, well not that bad, but it feels like it, got a 2:23 and placed way crappy. I did pretty well on the first lap, but I just didn't start kicking it in until the 200 and even then I didn't have any heart in it, I felt like I had already given up and that's something I vow to never do again.

Morning 5 miler, out by AP's house, just fun - ran fast sometimes, slow sometimes, got chased by some geese, raced a dog, basically just had a party. I think I'll run some miles this week then start getting into shape for the Wasatch Back.

Late afternoon, ran out on the 6.5 mile trail loop from my house, tried to go a bit faster on a longer run than I have been in the recent past - instead of around 8:30 min/mile like I have been lately, I was aiming for around 7:30 min/mile. It was harder than I thought it would be, my first 3 mile times were 7:51, 7:40, 7:34 and .5 mile at 7:42 pace, then a half-mile break at 8:25 min/mile, then 7:50, 7:38, and another .5 mile at 7:29 pace. I'm way more out of shape than I thought I was, well, at least for running longer distances faster. I'll be working on my endurance more! I think, though, that the fact that I went swimming for a while got a killer sunburn made me a bit tireder for running today.

School is out for the summer! YIPPEE! Ran from the high school today, did my favorite of all 6 milers, the foremaster run! I had a great time, though I took the straight road across the top which isn't as fun as the other road. But overall I liked it lots, and I found out that if you smile while running uphill it is easier and more fun! My sunburn still hurts lots and my little toe is half a blister.

Ran out on River road, then 700 S for a ways, then back again for an easy 7 miler. The first half was way fun, but I got tired and grumpy in the middle. By the end, it was happy again, especially because there's construction on River road and I passed lots and lots of cars that had to wait for abhorrent amounts of traffic! Bwah ha ha ha ha! I like not going to school. :-)

In Provo, ran around BYU and Seven Peaks area for a while. I wanted to run up to the Y, but I thought better of it after seeing how steep the mountain is...saw some cute little kids selling kool-aid and otterpops which was fun. The cooler weather was nice, I'm going to have some fun getting time to run everyday while I'm on vacation to Boise (to visit my sister).

Late morning run in Boise, ran along the canal on a dirt trail for 2.5 or so, then looped around until 3.5 and doubled back the way I came back to my sister's house. At about .5, I saw a guy ahead of me, so I of course sped up to catch him, though it took a while since he was going about the same speed as me. I ran with him a ways and it was fun to run with somebody, while running with him, I was running 7:30 miles and it wasn't even hard! I was having such a good time running a bit faster that I kept it up the whole run, averaging 7:56 min/mile. It felt awesome! 

Out again on the canal trail, I was glad I ran a similar route to Saturday's, since my watch ran out of batteries at 1.42 miles (6.5 miles is a guesstimate). It was kinda chilly out to begin with, which was quite odd for it being summertime and all. There were some people along the trail, so I had a fun time chasing them down and running fast again. My back and arms were pretty sore from repairing and painting my sister's fence all day Saturday, but it felt good to run around before riding home in the car all day.

Warmed up a bit, stretched, then ran up Webb Hill. I haven't done that in a long time, so it basically killed me, but I didn't stop running and it took me 10:26 to run it (it's exactly a mile). There's definitely room for improvement. Then I ran back down and around BH for 3 miles or so. It was really weird, I got this side ache like I get when I haven't eaten enough, except that after a while, my abs would sieze up and I would have a really hard time breathing. I ended up stopping twice because I couldn't breathe, after I'd stop it'd be better for .5 or so then would get gradually worse for .5 until I could hardly breathe again. Also, I decided that I still hate my NB shoes lots.

I ran to Wasatch Back practice, then we ran to the base of Webb Hill (how was I to know that we were going to run the hill today after I ran it yesterday?), then we ran up it (.93) and that took 9:27(10:08 pace - better than yesterday! which was surprising) and back down. Then we ran half of it (.5) and that took 4:52 (9:41 pace). After I attempted to get my legs and breath back (only the latter of which was successful), I ran back down, then around the BH loop and back home (2.5). The downhill running made my left knee ache a bit and my leg muscles are all totally shot, so I'll definitely take it easy tomorrow.

Got up early, ran out onto the industrial road until 3 mi. beeped and ran back. Pretty slow and easy (8:44 avg), tried to hurry on my way back home since I was running late to get to Youth Conference at 7:30. Legs mostly just worn out after the last couple days' hills, not a ton stiff and sore...yet.