Running is a means and never merely an end

40 minutes recovery out and back from campus + weight lifting.

1.75 mile warm up, 5 mile tempo, 1 mile cool down. Tempo was supposed to be 7:30/7:30/7:00/7:00/7:30. I didn't do a very good job with the splits, for a number of reasons I won't get into. I hit 7:18/7:38/7:13/7:11/7:32. Those arent even very good splits, yet I was absolutely beat. My legs felt like iron and I was breathing so hard. I asked coach Harris if we could maybe try to move our weight lifting to workout days instead of lifting on easy days, so my legs wouldn't be so heavy and tired from squatting on the days we are supposed to be recovering. He's gonna work on it. It's just hard with our M/W/F class schedules. 

5.2 miles easy. Lots of good conversation and fun on this run with Halee, Breck, and Anya. 7x100m hill sprints afterwards, weight training. I'm pretty sore from all of our weight training...I'm excited to back off on that over Christmas break.

AM- 30min easy exploring around downtown! Super fun run.

PM- 40min at Milliken with Breck. 

Pre-meet with the crew as usual! First indoor meet is tomorrow, at App State. I'm not sure how I feel about it! I haven't really thought about it at all honestly, finals are next week and I've just been studying a lot and tying up loose ends for my classes this week. Not exactly a convenient time to have a meet, the weekend of finals, but I'm only running three thousand meters so how bad can that be. I'll just bring my books with me.

First indoor meet of the season!! I only ran the 3k today. I actually really enjoyed it! I've never ran a 3000m before, but I guestimated what my time would be had that been a full 3200m, that probably would have been a PR! Plus since it was in Boone (elevation 3,333), we get an elevation conversion so my time will be like 5-10 seconds less or something.

We got out comfortably fast the first 400, I think like 80 flat or so. First mile was 6:01. So that is close to an even split for the mile pace of the last 1400m. I was in 6th for most of the first mile, and then Breck surged for a straightaway and passed me. That pushed me a little bit and I started steady gaining on her. While I was gaining on her, she was gaining on Katarina (WCU girl) in front of her. By the time I passed her back with 200m or so to go, they were both together, so I passed both of them and finished 5th. I was tired but I think I had a weeee wee bit more gas in the tank, like I could gave kicked 20 meters earlier and cut 2-3 seconds. But other than that I was pretty happy with my time honestly, but my coaches didn't seem too pleased. Not sure why. Essentially a PR didn't seem too bad to me for our first meet of the season.

I've had a stuffy nose the past week or so but I didn't think anything of it, I mean it's winter. After the meet yesterday my throat was killing me, didn't think anything of it because the air at indoor tracks often have that effect. But this morning I woke up and realized I am straight up sick at this point. My body is terribly achey, throat is killer, coughing and runny nose, freezing while wearing like 3 jackets indoors...the whole 9 yards. This week is finals, so we aren't allowed to have organized, mandatory practices. So even though it sucks that I am sick during finals, at least from a running standpoint it is good timing - early december right before and into christmas break, with no meets till January. I'd rather be safe and sit out a week or however long of practice than sorry and turn what could be a yucky week into a yucky month or 2 by running on it. So no running for me for right now.

Finally feeling better!! I've slept through the night (albeit with the help of NyQuil) for 3 nights straight now, and am currently only sustaining a runny nose and a minor cough, no fever and no sore throat, so I figured I was finally good to run without the risk of getting worse. I'm kind of angry or at least frustrated that I had to take a week and a half off because of this...but I'm trying to just remind myself to keep a big picture attitude about it and know that over the course of the rest of the year (till May), let alone my progress in the next 3 and a half years at Wofford, this probably is not exactly detrimental. Its behind me now though and I just need to get back into the swing of things. 

5 miles relaxed at a 8:07 avg pace. Felt alright except that I could tell I haven't been hydrating lately. Sticky mouth and a side stitch, easy fix though.

6.5 at a 7:53 avg pace around the rec center & Cullowhee Valley, then to Western, around, and back. Felt better about the hydration thing. No complaints! Core sesh later.

AM- weights and core.

PM- Good workout today! I picked my little sister up from school (still in school, HA. perks of college...long Christmas breaks!) with her bike in the trunk and a change of clothes and told her we're going on an adventure. Drove all the way to Maggie Valley to Lake Junaleska for a little fartlek fun. Abby rode her bike next to me while I ran, which was a lot more fun than solo, even though I wasn't talking for most of it. So the workout was 15 minute WU, & 12 minute CD, and 10x[2 min hard, 1 min easy] in between. Hard sections were supposed to be 6:40-6:45 pace, easy sections "relaxed" but not a walk in the park, so maybe 8min pace. I think I did well with those paces for the most part, varying with hills. Mile splits, not that it matters, were 7:06/7:12/7:24/7:16. Had fun with it and took some fun pictures at the big lit-up cross afterwards.

40 minute run...but I got like nothing done because I made the decision to run with my dog. It just looks so nice when casual joggers and people in movies do it...but it is absolutely terrible if you are actually trying to maintain a decent pace and not stop for sniffing & peeing breaks every half mile. At least my big buddy Banjo enjoyed it.

Nice easy night run! Felt great the entire time. Ready for a nice progressive long run tomorrow.

95 minute long run at 8:15 avg pace including a 15 minute just-slower-than-tempo pace at the end. Felt great and relaxed during this except for the fact that I had to stop to go to the bathroom twice, which always makes me mad because I feel like I'm defeating the aerobic purpose of the workout when I have to stop like that. Oh well. Good to finally get another long run in. Core afterwards.

45 minute run + 9x10sec hill sprints. Went all throughout downtown and around the courthouse loop. Not sure of the pace because my GPS watch memory was full so I just had to do the stopwatch. Oh well. Felt great and had a lot of fun with it. Good quality prayer time :) core afterwards!

55 minute progression run. Coach Harris wanted us to do 15 minutes easy warm up into it, then gain into the last 35 minutes being from 7:35 to 6:55. Mile splits went 8:40/8:34/7:55/7:54/7:28/7:30/6:51. Kinda weird splits cause of certain places with hills I think, but overall felt progressive effort-wise.

Weight lifting, core, & stretching afterwards.

Decided to do today's run around Smoky Mountain/Fairview/Ashe Loop area today. It was 60 minutes. Kind of felt like it was taking forever but I felt fine physically. Mentally, I'm kind of missing having my team to run with! But I'm just so happy to be with my family that it cancels out and then some. Christmas traditions begin tonight!!

45 minutes easy in the early morning so I could get it done with before my sisters woke up to open presents. 8:14 avg pace. It was BEAUTIFUL out this morning. Not exactly a white Christmas, it was so mild, but a gorgeous sunrise. Just so thankful for this Christmas and for the love that God poured out on us when he sent Jesus into this world knowing full well that he'd slay him on that cross one day so that messed-up, sinful people like me could have a chance to spend forever with him one day despite how unworthy I am to do so. Pretty radical, a love like that. Praise God and his goodness and love, and Merry Christmas y'all!!

p.s. Santa brought me a brand new GPS watch (TomTom Runner...SO dope, love it way more than the Nike+) and store credit for new trainers I just gotta go get fitted!! Hopefully some fresh cushioning will solve the issue of the post-run pain in my arches every day!

AM- 15 minute warm up, then a 5 mile tempo. I was supposed to split 7:15's; splits were 6:59/7:07/7:09/7:26/7:09 with a 211ft elevation gain. Averaged out to 7:11 per mile. Coach Harris specifically said not to go faster than our assigned pace but I really didn't mean to. This was my first run with my new watch, and honestly I didn't really trust the pace it was giving me for the first mile. You know how when you first start a run, you could be jogging and your GPS watch will still say its like 6:45 pace or something for a minute until it gauges it accurately. I kind of thought it was doing that for the first three fourths of the first mile or so, which is why that split was so fast. Maybe it was actually accurate from the get-go and I was running like 6:45, it just felt slow. Oops. Anyways, after that I did a 20 minute cool down followed by some weight lifting and core.

PM- ran back home after babysitting for my easy PM run. Added a bit to get to 30 minutes. Note to self...stop forgetting gloves at night! Sincerely, perpetually frozen fingers.

95 minutes relaxed with a fast last 15 minutes. Averaged out to 8:07 pace. My feet are absolutely killing me, like I all but limp for the rest of the night after my long runs. I have GOT to go get my new trainers asap. Except I am leaving for Florida in the morning untill New Years for my campus outreach conference. So I guess I'll get them when my dad picks me up on our way back. I hope I'll be able to make time for runs like usual while I'm at the conference.

After like 12 hours in the car yesterday, we made it to Jacksonville Florida for an awesome opening night of the Jax 2014 Campus Outreach conference!!! Woke up this morning dark & early with Ciara and Kiersten and did 10 x (2 min hard + 1 min easy) with a 10 minute warm up and cool down throughout the city. This is my first time staying in a big city, and I am honestly just in awe! There are lights everywhere and it is so beautiful in a different way that I am so not used to. But I loved it. Awesome run

Day 3 of Jax! Man, I am absolutely in love with this conference. It is beyond amazing to be surrounded by like 600 other believers and to just be getting fed the gospel in every way possible in every moment. God is so at work in this city. 

45 minutes easy with Ciara. Took a few pitstops to take pictures of the lights and skyscrapers because I still am lowkey in awe of how cool it is to be running in a big city! Haha

Honestly the last thing I wanted to do this morning was get up and run. There was a big concert last night, with it being the last night of Jax 2014, and between the lack of sleep from that and just the (awesomely) exhausting nature of the conference in general I am just so worn out. But I'm so glad I did. Ciara and I had really awesome discussion about Jesus and sharing her faith with her family, it was really cool how God used that time that I thought I would hate for his glory. Ended up being a great run. Heading home in the afternoon :/