You've got to want it to win it

Today the other girls had a workout so I ended up running by myself.  I went out on Foothill to 1300s, then ran down to 1300e and back to campus returning on 500s.  When I got back to the locker room I needed about 3/4 of a mile so I went out and back by the track.  I am still very sore, mostly in my left calf which every day when I'm running decides to be very tight and not want to stretch very much :P  When I got home I took an ice bath for 15 minutes.

This morning my hamstrings were really sore and I wanted to do yoga so I took advantage of the free on demand fitness channels and found some yoga shows!  There was even one specifically for runners!  At noon I went running with Lauren, Nikki, and Andrea.  We all needed 6 miles so we went out on 11th Avenue with the intent of running down to Trax.  We were running right into the wind and decided to just turn around at 3, which was right before we went into City Creek Canyon where the wind might have been worse, and ran back so that the wind would be to our backs.  

This morning I went for a run at Liberty Park.  I grabbed my iPod and had decided I'd just do laps.  Rather than stay on the wood chips the whole time, I ran the outer perimeter of the park so that each lap would be a bit longer.  I didn't keep tracks but I think it took 5 plus part of a 6th to reach 9.  On my 3rd lap when I was almost to 900s my left calf starting getting tight again (surprisingly it didn't get tight yesterday) so I stopped to stretch for a minute, and got my hamstrings too.  After that the run felt great and I finished with a 7:30 average :)

Our first workout of the week got moved to today since its nice and sunny, and its supposed to get windy tomorrow.  We started with the usual warmup past the track and across North Campus and back.  We did our strides and drills on the turf since its dry now!  Then we changed shoes.  The workout was fartlek, we did three sets of 3 minute, 2 minute, 1 minute, each with 2 minutes recovery (even between the sets).  I set my Garmin to beep every minute on this one (kind of annoying but for ladder type workouts you can't enter the times for all of them... but still its better than having to keep looking down at my watch!).  I was with AuraLea, and we hit a little over 800 for the 3 minutes, just under 600 for the 2 minutes, and about 300 for the minute.  I'm glad I had the Garmin to measure distance since there is no way I would have been able to count laps during all of this!  Afterwards for cooldown I went out and back with AuraLea like we had on the warmup and then I added some on the track to bring my miles up to 9 for the day.  My legs hurt everywhere afterwards, so I took a 15 minute ice bath with Nikki.  Fortunately because of the warm weather, it didn't take so long to warm back up afterwards!  Unfortunately, I got sunburned on my collar and shoulders... time to bring sunscreen to keep in my locker :P

Today I went running with Nikki, Andrea, Lauren, and AuraLea.  We ran up to 11th Avenue and down into City Creek.  We turned down Memory Grove but Lauren kept going since she needed a little more mileage.  About halfway down, AuraLea and Nikki took a trail that I think goes on the other side of the river (I've never run it) but I kept going with Andrea.  At South Temple I turned and ran back to campus, going back to the locker room via the road up above the track, then I needed about another quarter mile to hit 9 before going inside.  Before we decided where we were going to run I was thinking of just doing 6 or 7 because of how bad my legs hurt yesterday, but I'm glad I did more because my legs feel great afterwards.

We did our second workout this week today.  After waiting forever for trax to take us down to 900e, we were able to get going on our usual warmup (there had been an accident so trains were delayed).  After our strides and drills I changed into my flats.  The workout was 4 mile threshold which I thought wasn't even going to be that bad since sometimes I think its more difficult to do multiple repeats and have to hit the same pace.  I was with AuraLea and Andrea, and we were supposed to hit around 6:20 pace.  The first mile we hit in about 6:18-19, and the second mile was 6:23.  Andrea was doing a different workout so was only with us through mile 2, but AuraLea and I finished the last 2 miles with a 6:23 and a 6:18.  I remember during the first 2 miles my left calf was being dumb again and decided to be sore like it was all last week.  I was finally able to get it to relax and it didn't bother me much for the rest of the time.  After we finished, we ran backwards of the way we had been going to join Nikki and Andrea for the four 30 second strides back to change shoes.  My legs just felt dead at this point, Monday and today got to my quads :P  Afterwards we ran back to the trax station for cooldown, but we saw it go by from about 2 blocks away so I ran up to the 900e station since I knew I had time and I felt I should do a little bit more cooldown...  When I got to the station I stretched until the train came, and as it stopped I was right by the window where my teammates were sitting so I got on and sat with them :)

Today I went running with Macee and Nikki.  We went out on Foothill.  Macee turned around at 12 minutes, and Nikki and I kept going and went up to Wasatch.  She turned around at 2 and a half, and I turned around at Thunderbird.  I took off my longsleeve since it was a little too warm for it, but because of the wind it was a little chilly for short sleeves.  I put my long sleeve back on as I got closer to campus because I think the wind was stronger there.  I finished my mileage (I had to end with .75 because I miscalculated my miles yesterday...) around Huntsman and then went to the training room and foam rolled for a few minutes.

Today I took advantage of the good weather and the instruction to do hills to go run on Shoreline Trail :)  I ran up to the trail by Red Butte with Nikki and Andrea, and we headed south.  It was the first time I've been on it since the museum has been finished, so we didn't have to take the detour down the road at Red Butte and back up a separate trail!  We ran all the way to Sunnyside, and then they decided to run back on Foothill but I wanted to stick with trails so I went back the same way.  Then to add mileage, when I got back to where we got on the trail I kept heading north towards DryCreek.  I turned when I had a little under 6.5 on my Garmin, hoping to finish the day with 8, which I hit at Legacy Bridge.  Not wanting to walk back to the locker room (even though its not that far) I decided to just do 9 miles, so I went out on the road above the track about to the new molecular biology building and then ran back to the lockerroom and finished at 9.  I enjoyed getting to run on the trails again and to see the valley in the sunshine :)  Hopefully the weather keeps getting better during spring break :)

This morning I woke up 1 minute before my alarm went off, which I guess made getting up easier since I knew I'd be awake anyway rather than be interrupted by my alarm.  I got out of bed and got going on my last 7 miles I needed this week to finish at 50.  I ran to Sugarhouse, then did part of a counterclockwise lap until I reached 1700e, then left and ran out to 2700s, then cut down to Imperial Street.  I kept going until I was at 3.5 which was a little bit before 33rd, and then I turned around and went back the same way.  

This morning I met with the other distance girls for a workout.  It was very nice out, I didn't even need long sleeves!  We did the usual warmup out onto Federal Heights Drive and back to the track, followed by drills and strides.  I put on my spikes and then Kep told us what splits we were to hit for this workout.  The workout was three 1200s with 4 minutes rest, then three 800s with 2 minutes rest.  He told me to hit low 80s pace, and Bekah was able to workout with us today so she did the first and 3rd laps of each with me :)  Before we started we did two 200s with equal recovery just as strides, also to feel the pace; we hit 36 and 39.  Then we started the 1200s.  The first one was 4:12, but with all lap splits at 84.  The second one I hit 82, 84, 84 to finish with 4:10, and on the third I got 82, 83, 83 for a 4:08.  I did a lap recovery after each, plus an extra 200 meters for the first 1200 and an extra 100 meters for the other 2.  Bekah did the first 800 with me, and we hit 2:46 with even splits.  I did 200 meters recovery and then did the others by myself.  The second one I ran even splits for a nice 2:40, then the last one I ran a 77 first lap and finished in 2:39 (the wind was bad on the second lap...) and was happy to be done!  Kep said I might get to do the 1500 at ASU just for turnover, and then I'll have some other good turnover workouts for the 5k at Stanford.  After we changed shoes we cooled down by running to the turnaround point for warmup and then back to the track.  I did a half lap to help set up the metal liner around the track (I thought having to set it up each season in high school was enough :P) and then when we had finished putting the bars around the whole track, I did another lap cooldown (to bring my total mileage on the track to 9600 meters) and back to the lockerroom.  

This morning we had our last lift as a team for the week before being turned loose to enjoy spring break.  A few hours after lifting, I went for my run.  I started by going north on 1300e to 900s, then down to 900e and back south.  At 1700s I hit a red light so I went up to 1000e and over to 2100s.  Then when I got to Sugarhouse Park I did part of a counter-clockwise lap and then went up to 1900e, which I took all the way to Sunnyside.  Realizing I'd be short of my intended mileage if I went home then, I ran down to Guardsman along Sunnyside and did a lap around the fields up to the road that goes in the middle of the park and then I headed back out and went home along 1500e.  It was a bit windy today but not too bad, it was enough to keep me from getting too hot.  Hopefully the weather stays warm the rest of the week!

This morning I went for a nice mile run up Emigration Canyon.  I ran up 1300s then across Wasatch Drive to get there, and then needed 2 more miles to get to 4.5 so I could turn and go back the same way.  I made it just past Ruth's Diner when I hit 4.5, and I was surprised when I turned around that it was windy!  I'm glad I was facing it on the downhill rather than coming up!  I ran home the same way.  My hamstrings are really sore, probably from RDLs in the circuit yesterday :P  I stretched when I got home.

This morning I did a workout at Liberty.  I started with a lap warmup around the park, and then did some drills and strides.  Then I changed to my red flats and had fun playing with my Garmin to set it for distance and rest distance intervals, I've only ever set it for times.  The workout was three 1.5 mile repeats, and I was supposed to give myself 2 minutes rest but I decided to do half mile to get mileage and because I was running by myself so I just went by the rule of do what I want...  The first one I ran a 9:33, the first mile split being 6:18, then a 9:23 for the second one with a 6:13 at the mile, and finishing with 9:32 and a 6:21 first mile on that one.  I think the times fluctuated because of the parts of the park I was running on, though I guess it really didn't matter since I did about a full lap for each of them anyway.  After finishing the recovery for the third one I changed shoes for my cooldown around the perimeter of the park, then I had to add some and back to get my miles to a full 10 for the day.  As I was finishing that I saw Amanda from my team just finishing her workout, we must have been there at the same time but never saw each other since we were running in the same direction!  When I was finished I went and stretched by the drinking fountain until my ride came.

This morning I ran up to 1500e and then over to Sugarhouse.  I was supposed to do strides on hills, so I went over to the hill by the pond that I've run with East before and did 8 loops on that for the strides I was supposed to do.  When I was finished with those I ran to the outer perimeter of the park and did 2 laps going counterclockwise until I was on 1700e on the second lap and left the park.  Then I ran up to 2100e and over to 1300s and then home.  

Finished my weekly mileage today with a nice run going north only!  I went to drop Abigail off at practice with Bill and Tomy but then turns out they were planning to drive to Holladay and run back so the wind would be to their backs, so I joined them.  I ran the first 2 miles with them and then had to do my Kenyan run (drop 20 seconds a mile for 4 miles).  The first mile was 6:44, the second wasn't so great with a 6:49 (I hit the split button late since I missed the exact mile mark but still it was not what it was supposed to be...)  then I hit the third in 6:35, and finished with a 6:09.  Not the paces I was supposed to hit but at least I did it... sort of :P  The last mile I had a nice downhill on Keller Lane so that helped my time, and then I just ran 2 mile cooldown back to Highland and stretched until the others finished their run.  Feels so great to be done!  And I'm glad I didn't hit any red lights until after I was done with the Kenyan part.

Today we had a group of 9 for the run!  We started out on Foothill and did the Albertson's loop.  Hilary, Macee, and Kate turned around before we got there but still the rest of us stayed in a group (well sort of, Lauren and I fell behind the others when they ran a light when there was a car that Lauren and I thought was too close!).  We caught the other girls after they had to stop at some lights though.  On the way back it started to snow a little bit, and when Lauren and I left the group to add mileage at Sunnyside Park it was hard to see when running north!  She ran a lap with me before going back, and then when I finished another lap it was sunny again!  So I decided to stay and do my strides there while the weather was good and where I could be on the grass.  After I finished those I did another lap and ran back to the lockerrooms.  I did my drills in the halls of HPER as I walked to the training room to roll out and stretch.  My right hip and hamstring and quads all hurt today :P  But they felt better after stretching.  I left the training room with a bag of ice wrapped to my hamstring.

We had yesterday's workout today because of the better weather :)  We started with the usual warmup up on the road above the track and then up North Campus to the road up there and back to the stadium.  Then we did our strides and drills.  The workout was three sets of four 400s at 10, 5k, then 1500 pace.  I was with Bekah and Nikki, and AuraLea was going to join us for her last 2 sets so we waited and did strides while she did her first set.  When all of us started we were supposed to hit 84s, we hit 87, 87, 86, 85 so slightly off what we were supposed to :P  After each in the first set we had 30 seconds recovery, then 3 minutes (a lap) between sets.  The second set was supposed to be 79, and I hit 78, 78, 79, 78 and this time we got 1 minute rest after each.  The third set I did by myself and was supposed to hit 75 for all of them.  Since I was by myself it was hard gauging how much I needed to pick it up so the first one was too fast in a 72.  Then I hit 76, 74, 73.  After taking a recovery lap I changed shoes and then ran 3 laps at the track with Nikki, and then went out on the road for cooldown same route as the warmup.  Afterwards I went to the training room and rolled out for a few minutes.  My right hamstring has a knot in it, I couldn't feel it during the workout but towards the end of the cooldown I could.  I'll just keep taking care of it and hopefully it will mellow out.

Today we had another workout at Liberty.  Good thing it was only threshold or it would have been a lot harder on our legs following yesterday's workout!  We started with the usual warmup from the 900e Trax station then part of a lap around the park.  Then we did our drills and strides and changed shoes.  The workout was 25 minutes threshold.  I started with AuraLea and we were supposed to hit about 6:20 pace and Bekah had gone ahead to the other side of the park to join us when we got to 5 minutes.  Then about halfway through, if Bekah and were feeling good we could pick it up a little bit.  I didn't really catch the mile splits but I think we had a 6:13 in there somewhere, and when Bekah and I picked it up we got down to 6:10 pace but I think we finished at 6:20 pace.  For the whole thing I probably got about 2 3/4 laps in, or just barely short of 4 miles said my Garmin.  Then I did the four 35 second strides with Bekah and changed shoes and ran back to Trax for cooldown.  When we got to Trolley I still needed a mile so I ran up to the 900e station and back.

Today we had a well deserved recovery run :)  We ran up on 11th Avenue all the way down into City Creek Canyon :)  The other girls took Trax back but I just turned around at 3.5 and ran back to campus the same way.  I did 2 strides on the way back as speed changes but they felt way too difficult so I just ran and enjoyed it much better :)  Traveling to Arizona tomorrow to race the 1500 on Saturday night!

I took a 10 minute ice bath before going to bed. 

This afternoon after arriving in Phoenix and going through the slow process of getting our rental cars and getting checked into the hotel, we finally got to go to the track for our premeet!  I went running with AuraLea, Amanda, and Andrea.  We went out to a path that runs alongside the river and it was really nice.  We crossed a bridge to run on the other side of the river, and about halfway through there were these 2 little boys probably 4 and 5 years old and they raced us to the end of the bridge and they won!  They were so cute :)  AuraLea and Andrea turned around then and the boys wanted to race them back haha :)  Amanda and I kept going until we were at 15 minutes and then turned around and went back the same way.  On the track I did 6 strides and a couple of drills.  Then I did another lap to get to 4.5 for the day.  After we left the track I went to dinner with Amanda, AuraLea, and Kep, where we waited almost an hour for our food :P  It was delicious though.  Back at the hotel I took a 10 minute ice bath, though it wasn't very cold since the tap water is a lot warmer here.  Still I had goosebumps on my legs so I figure it still counts!  Hoping for a great race tomorrow night!

This afternoon it was really weird warming up by myself... I ran out on the trail by the river that we did yesterday, I did 3 miles.  I still had a bit of time when I got back to the stadium so I decided to go for another half mile before starting strides and drills.  I went over to the far straightaway and just did strides and drills on the grass there.  When I saw the other girls in the 1500 walking out onto the track on the opposite side I hurried and changed into my spikes (I made the mistake of sitting on the grass... when I stood up there were sticker things stuck to my spandex! :P) and then got onto the track for strides.  I was in the second heat so I had time to do strides while the other race was going on.  It was really weird being the only Utah girl in the heat and being in it with schools that had 4 or 5 girls in it!  I was seed 4, and probably didn't get out as well as I could have but was with the pack the whole time.  The first 400 split was 74, then I had a 76, and 76.  With about 500 to go in the race I could tell the pack was picking it up and then I was dead last but right on the heels of another girl who had fallen off.  Probably not the most exciting race for my aunt and uncle who happened to be in Tempe to be there for... But I'm glad they were able to come :)  I pushed hard the last lap and especially the last 300.  I got ahead of the other girl who had fallen back and she never got into contact with me to worry me, but I was still running in fear of getting outkicked!  The last 300 was a 55, and looking at the splits for the race and what little training I actually did specifically for this event, I did a pretty good job!  After walking off the track, I went and changed back into my trainers and did 6 strides on the grass.  They felt really good after pushing so hard in that 1500!  For cooldown I ran with Andrea and Amanda for their warmup, then I added just a little bit to get to 7 for the day.  Then I enjoyed getting to cheer on my teammates in the 800 and the 5k :)  Utah swept the top 4 places in the 800 and AuraLea got a new PR in the 5k :)

Today we just had a run since the weather was bad; the workout is postponed until tomorrow!  When we went outside to start our run it was snowing!  We went out on Foothill with the intention of doing the Albertson's loop.  When we got to the light at Sunnyside, the snow had stopped, but it was still cloudy and windy.  Today was basically a replay of last Monday... By the time we got to 2100s it was just me, Macee, and Nikki.  It was also sunny by then!  They went back the normal way but I wanted to get more miles today so I ran to Sugarhouse Park, did a lap, then came back up to 1900e.  I got hot with the wind to my back and with the sun out so I took off the headband and gloves but was kinda trapped in my long sleeve because I can't pull it off over my Garmin :P  But since I ran to Sunnyside Park to do strides I was glad to have it for when I jogged back facing the wind after each one.  After finishing all 8 strides I only needed .8 of a mile so I ran back to campus along Guardsman and finished at 10 in the HPER W parking lot so just walked back the rest of the way.  I did my drills as I walked down the hall to the training room, and then I stretched out for a bit.

Today we had a speed workout.  We started with the usual warmup from outside the lockerroom to the street across North Campus and back to the track.  Then our drills and strides.  The workout was three 1200s at 10k pace and three 1000s at 5k pace, 3 minutes rest on everything.  Bekah ran the 1200s with me.  First we did two 200s in 36, then 40 to get a feel closer to what pace we'd be going.  For the 1200s we were supposed to hit 84s.  On the first one we ran a 4:18 (1:24, 2:51), the second 4:18 (1:25, 2:53), and for the third we hit 4:19 (1:27, 1:27).  I did 400 recovery during the 3 minutes between each.  For the 1000s I was supposed to go around 79-80 pace if I could.  After the first one Bekah switched to 600s.  On the first one I hit 3:27 (1:23, 1:23), then the second one I hit 3:22 (1:19, 2:41), and finished with 3:20 (1:18, 2:39), right on pace!  It was hard but I'm so glad I was able to do it!  :)  I took 200 recovery between the 1000s to get back to the same starting point on each.  After I changed out of my spikes I just cooled down on the track to get some backwards laps.  Macee ran 4 with me and then I did 2 more.   

Today for the run we got to go as a big group!  We ran down from the lockerroom to Guardsman, then across to 1500e all the way to Sugarhouse.  The rest of the girls turned down to go to 700e and run to trax, so I felt kinda bad breaking off to run at Sugarhouse because it was the first time a while we had so many people!  I did a lap around Sugarhouse and then ran back to campus the same way I had come.  When I got to Sunnyside some guy in a durango gave me jelly beans from Australia... Strangers have the best candy! :)  Then I finished to the locker room with 8 miles total.  Then I got to go test out my photography skills on my sister's team before their track meet. 

Today I got to do a hills workout with Amanda and Andrea since none of us are racing tomorrow.  We started with a warmup up Legacy bridge and past the dorms to Red Butte, then got on the trail heading north to add some.  I said we should go that way since it is more flat than the other way, but some parts of it hurt really bad and Andrea's and my calves were both really sore.  It seems every time I run up there with teammates it is steeper than I remember... After we got back to the road we did a few drills and strides.  And there was a really cute dog that loved Andrea and Amanda and when the owners couldn't get it in their car we had to help them!  Finally we got going on our hills.  We were doing between 6 and 8 sets of 90 seconds up then walking and jogging down.  We got just over a quarter mile for each of them.  Most of them I switched lead back and forth with Andrea and they didn't feel too bad.  Kep came to watch us do the last 3 of them.  On the last 2 my quads were starting to feel pretty fatigued so I was good to be done.  When we were finished, Kep told us that we'd probably have more days like this for workouts between races.  And that I'd probably do between 12 and 14 at some point :P  For cooldown we ran down to the road above the dorms and then over to the road that the Orthopaedic Center is on down to Foothill and finishing at the locker room.

This morning I got up and took my iPod for a run.  I ran to Sugarhouse, did part of a counterclockwise lap to 1700e, then south.  When I got to 2700s I cut down to Imperial Street, then took that to 3300s and turned left.  When I got to Melbourne I turned again and headed back to Sugarhouse.  I did a full lap and then part of a lap back to 1500e since I needed to add some, then ran home.  I felt kinda sick when I got back to Sugarhouse, probably because I didn't eat breakfast before, and then as I was leaving the park I realized my stomach probably hurt so bad because of the abs on the couch workout I made up with McKensie, Abigail, and Celeste last night!

This morning at 6:15 I finally decided to get up after being awake for about half an hour already and with only 15 minutes left until my alarm would go off anyway.  I started my run out on 1500e to 2100s, then up to 1900e and north.  The instructions for today's run were to start a Kenyan run after the first 25 minutes and drop 15 or 20 seconds each mile off of the current pace I was at.  I hit 25 minutes between 1300s and 900s and hit the split button on my watch, then about 30 seconds later I realized I had forgotten to check the mile point so I would know when I was at each mile split... so I just started from 3 miles which is what it was at when I looked.  I ran to Sunnyside and down into the park, messed up the split even more by having to take a potty break with about a tenth of a mile to go in the first one, then splitting it at 7:58 (I checked my Garmin later and it said 7:32 pace for the mile, I'm glad I was able to go back and look that up!).  I continued doing a big loop, the one that goes behind the one field that I think is mostly used for lacrosse, then out by the baseball diamond and onto the sidewalk on Guardsman and then up around the corner of Sunnyside, keeping the lap going as I had before.  The second mile was a 7:06.  During the third I had the loop in the field again and when I got to the sidewalk this time I decided to cross Sunnyside to go along 1500e for the rest of it (and to use those downhills to my advantage :) also because I didn't want to stay at the park :P).  The third mile split was 6:44, and then I finished the 4th in 6:25 just a few blocks short of 2100s.  Then for the rest of my run I ran to 2100e, back up to 1900e, over to 1300s, and home.  And I was finished before 8:00 :)