You've got to want it to win it

Today we got to enjoy a nice sunny practice with the sun right above us because we had an early out from school :)  We started with the normal team warmup of 2 laps and then stretching, then we lined up on the football field for drills.  We did lunges, then strided to the other side of the field, and then side lunges going back which I had to start over half way through because I was throwing in skips between them so I wouldn't have to as many haha... that plan failed.  We also did high knees, butt kicks, high knees and butt kicks, toe touches, fall and gos where the last person there had to do another one and blasts where we had to another one if we were last, and I was last so I had to do it again :P  Oh well.  Then we finished with all of us laying across the field in a line for high knees over everyone.  Then we got into groups with our coaches.  For distance we stayed on the track, we did laps in a clockwise direction the whole time.  We did a mile warmup, 2 miles of speedchanges, then a mile and a half cooldown.  Then I practice hurdles for a little bit with Abigail.  I did some at the 300 hurdles marks and I practiced 100 hurdle marks too, its hard going over them when they are so close together!  And on one of them I collapsed after I landed, I didn't even hit the hurdle anything so it was just weird :P  After I decided I was done with hurdles for the day I went and got an ice cup which I stocked the freezer full of yesterday and I massaged mainly my calves and shins, and I did my hips a little bit too.  Then I had to make more ice cups because we went through almost the whole freezer full today!  I don't know how there is going to be enough room in the freezer for the otter pops that the freshmen are going to bring, we'll figure that one out when the freshmen actually bring them I suppose.  When I got home I did my crunches, pushups, arm swings, then weighted lunges, squats, and calf raises.  Then I stretched for a few minutes before getting into a 10 minute ice bath.  

This morning after arriving at the meet we took a potty break before starting our warmup for the mile.  We did 2 miles around the campus, we ran part of what had been on the Orem-Kiwanis cross country course, though it looks like there probably is a new course now because of the new track and a bunch of other construction.  Then Bill went and checked us in so Abigail, Sarah, Natalie, and I just did drills and stretched while we waited for Bill to come back.  My hips were feeling very sore from the hurdle stuff I've been doing so I'm probably going to have to stop those this next week to be careful before Arcadia.  After being checked in we still had a while before we could go into the bull pen so we did 2 laps around the block that the track is on.  Each lap is about 3/4 of a mile so that brought us up to 3 and a half miles total warmup for the mile.  Finally we got our stickers and heat assignments and changed into our spikes in the bull pen.  I was number 1 so I got to start in lane 1.  Before they walked us over to the start line Natalie and I did some strides just outside of the bull pen.  Then we did more strides when we were out on the line.  We had to line up at the dotted line before they said runners set to get up to the real line, we had to hop there as the officials demonstrated for us haha.  Going out Summer was at the front of the pack in the first 100 but I moved up and then I had the lead, and Shea came with me.  The first lap was a 73 and Shea continued to just stay with me.  At 600 meters I thought to myself that since it was only 1000 left I should try to pick it up and gap Shea.  At the 800 we were at 2:34, I guess since I'm not really used to having people with me I relaxed the pace a little bit and just went at Shea's pace.  Finishing the third lap and with 500 meters left in the race was when Shea broke away from me.  I heard her coach telling her to break hard and I knew my only chance would be then to go with her but I couldn't make myself do it so she gapped me.  Then with 300 to go I couldn't get my legs to go and at 200 meters left I got passed by a girl from Mountain View.  Then with 100 to go I got passed by a girl in purple.  My time was 5:12.52.  My hips were just too tired to push, hurdles yesterday were probably not a good idea.  Afterwards I watched the guys races, and then I put on my trainers and went for a mile and a half cooldown out to a roundabout and around it 3 times and back :) 

After the mile we played Scrabble to pass the time, Bill takes forever to take his turns!  And then after the game was over I tried to take a nap, but found it impossible when laying next to a wiggly Abigail who kept kneeing me and elbowing me :P  Finally it was about time to get warming up for the 3200, I took a potty break with Amanda and Sarah and filled our water bottles, then as we were walking back down the others caught up to us on their warmup.  Back at the tent I took my Gu and some ibuprofen and then put on my shoes and started warming up.  We did 1 lap around the block for warmup and then Bill checked us in and we got our shoes and headed to the bull pen.  Again I was sticker number one, and Natalie was number 3.  We did strides on the track while they finished up the guys 200s.  Then we lined up but it took a while to get started because some girls had the same number so we had to wait while they fixed that, I just did more strides.  When we started I got out well and took the lead immediately but the officials fired the gun because one of the girls shoes fell off.  The second start I got out probably just as well as the first one, taking the lead immediately, then I just kept creating a gap.  My first lap was a 73, and my focus for the race was to push the straightaway where the wind was to my back and try not to slip into 1:20s like I tend to do a lot...  At 800 I was at2:36, my legs were feeling really tired in my calves and shins but I was able to push through it and try my hardest to push to the pace I needed to be at.  Thanks to the ibuprofen I didn't notice my hips or my arch which was hurting a little bit, probably also from the hurdles.  At the mile I was at 5:27 so I knew that the second mile was going to be tough to try to get my pace up very much, but I pushed with what I had left.  Going into the last lap I was at 9:52, and I finished in 11:14 so a 1:22 last lap, not so good :(  Afterwards I told Bill that I thought we probably should scratch me from the mile at Arcadia so I can focus on the 2 mile since I made it into the invitational for it, and he told me he had actually already scratched me from the mile yesterday so I didn't need to worry about it.  After cheering on the other girls I changed shoes and then noticed my right hamstring was feeling kind of tight so I got it massaged out by the trainer and then they gave me ice.  They wanted to know if I wanted it wrapped to my leg but I decided to do my cooldown first, so I did 3 laps around the block and then got the ice wrapped to me leg, it felt really nice!  It was nice to continue my winning streak in the 3200, I really hope I do well at Arcadia next weekend and can stay strong all the way through the race, especially with how tough the competition is going to be and watching the races from the past 2 years. 

Today at track practice we started with the usual team warmup of 2 laps and then our stretching circle.  Then we did a few drills before separating into our groups.  For distance we started with 8 laps warmup and then 4 laps speedchanges with a lap recovery.  Then we changed shoes for our speed which was going to be twelve 400s.  I was supposed to hit between 73 and 75 for all of them, and we just took standing recovery between each until we were completely recovered.  My first three were 73, 71, 69, and then Bill said that if I ran my first eight under 72s and if RJ ran his in under 70 then we would only have to do 8.  So that thought motivated me to keep putting forth the same effort on each one.  On the next ones I hit 70 and 72, by then the wind was really picking up against us on the last stretch which was not fun.  After the 6th one I started to hyperventilate a little bit almost to tears, I think I just kind of panicked that on the 7th and 8th ones I was going to slip over 72 and then would have to do 4 more.  Bill had me sit the next one out so I could wait a little longer to get my breathing back, and then I calmed down enough to do 2 more, though my times were 1:15 and 1:16 so not the best.  I felt a little light headed after the last 2 also so I was so glad to just be finished.  Then I changed shoes back and did 9 laps cooldown with Natalie and Bill.  When I got home I did my crunches, pushups, arm swings, weighted lunges, squats, and calf raises.  

Today at practice we started with the normal team warmup of 2 laps warmup and then our stretching circle.  Then we did a few drills, we finished with the high knees line where we step over each other and lay down.  Then I had to do an interview with KUTV because I'm the prep of the week this week :)  They filmed us while we were doing our warmup stuff at practice and made a video for the 6:00 news.  Then we went on our run, we ran down to Liberty Park and did fireman, we did a boys line and a girls line, though Bill was in the girls line...  Then we ran back up to the stadium and finished with two 300s where we start about 5 seconds apart and try to catch the person in front of us and not get caught.  On the first one I went second to last, I didn't catch Dylan, who was in front of me, but I caught the 2 people in front of him.  Then we jogged back over and this time I went first, I didn't get caught.  And then we practice handoffs for the medley team we are doing at the meet tomorrow :)  When I got home I did my crunches, puhsups, arm swings, then weighted lunges, squats, and calf raises.  My legs felt amazing today, we had a nice leg stretching session in yoga today.  After I finished my core I took a 10 minute ice bath.

Here is a link to the video that KUTV did:

http://connect2utah.com/prep-of-the-week-story/?nxd_id=139696

Today when we got to the meet we started with the usual team warmup of 2 laps and then a stretching circle right in the middle of the field.  When it came time for my event I did 2 miles out on a road from the track and then back, and then we were short so I went out and back some again with Amanda and Natalie.  Then Bill had us do drills and strides with the boys, he said he needed us to be sweating when it was time for our races :P  Finally it was time to get on the line, I started in lane one and I took the lead from the start and kept it.  My first 200 was a 33, but then on the home stretch I was running straight into the wind and slowed down some (which I was probably doing anyway).  My first lap was a 71, and then I finished in 2:32 so a bit slow for my second lap...  But I can work on that later.  Next was the medley and I was doing the 800 for that so I just waited on the field as I recovered from the 800.  Amanda and Abigail did the 200s and Natalie did the 400.  Natalie outkicked the Dugway 400 runner as she was bringing me the baton so my goal was to catch the Tooele girl.  I caught up to her at about 300 meters in, and was with her on the windy stretch.  I thought about drafting behind her but I felt like I should just pass her at that point.  That might have been a mistake, from what I heard afterwards she just sat behind me for the rest of it.  I remember with 200 to go I was getting nervous because I could see her shadow and my teammates over there said that she was catching up.  I realized how tightly I was clutching the baton and relaxed my grip a little.  But going into the final 100 stretch she caught up to me and passed on the inside which I thought was weird but whatever.  I couldn't make myself fight the wind for the final kick, that's turning out to be a weak spot for me.  So we finished 2nd in the medley.  Afterwards I needed a mile and a half cooldown so I ran it with Natalie.  We just made a loop out from the track, we went to some aquatic center and went down the slide on a playground!  And finished with laps in a field to the side of the track.  Then Scotty trapped me in my hoodie and I had to wait for Natalie to finish her cooldown to untie me, that was a tricky knot!

This morning I got up early and did an easy 2 miles on 14th, just to 17th and back twice.  I will run again later when I am in California.

When we got to California we just wanted to go to the beach, so we did :)  as far as running... well when we got to the beach, Natalie and I ran across the sand to the water as fast as we could :)  The water was warmer than the air, it felt good :)

I don't know how much I really ran, but it was probably at least 3 miles.  At the meet at South Pasadena Natalie and I did warmup laps around the softball field with Dakota for his warmup.  Then when we got to Arcadia I warmed up a little bit with Natalie for her race, we just did laps around the baseball field and the basketball courts and tents and stuff.  Natalie's race was awesome, she got a 22 second PR and matched my PR for my junior season :)

This morning Natalie had the mile at Arcadia, I warmed up with her again with laps around the baseball fields and basketball courts.  Bill found a bunch of spikes on the ground and a plastic baggie, so we started picking up all the spikes we could find on the ground, and there were a lot!  Again, Natalie ran an awesome race, and on tired legs too!  She didn't really want to cooldown, so we just went to the beach :)  

Again I don't really know how much I ran for warmup and stuff, but I was doing laps at the baseball field and basketball courts like yesterday.  I started them on my own, Bill was busy seeing about getting a pair of spikes from nike for a free trial but he joined after he had gotten a hold of those.  Earlier we had talked about strategies so I was feeling pretty ready.  I'm guessing I might have gotten 3 mile warmup, I don't really know but I just kept going until a few minutes before going to the bull pen.  I took my Gu and then took the borrowed spikes and went into the bull pen and changed into them.  Then I did a few drills and stuff.  They let us out of the tent and sent us right over to the line.  I did a stride on the way over.  Then they let us do a stride out and back before having us line up.  I was seeded number 4 so I got to start on the main line and in the second lane.  Girl 2 was missing so us first 3 seeds had a little more room on the line.  They shoot the gun fast in California!  So fast that the officials weren't ready because some of the girls didn't know to line up on the waterfall start.  Once they clarified that the second start was a success.  I got into a good position going out, I was towards the front of the group and I was able to get a spot on the inside of lane one.  For that first lap I just stayed where I was and moved with the pack.  First lap was a 73.  Along the straight for the other side I decided I wanted to be a little closer to the front of the pack so I went out to the side to move up and then moved in again.  I decided I should only move on the straightaways because after watching some of the races yesterday I had noticed some girls who had run on the outside the whole time and thought what a waste of energy that would be.  At the 800 the pack was at about 2:31.  During the third lap I was able to work up into 4th, we were still in a pack and were just all going with each other still at that point.  Going into the 4th lap the girl in second made a move past the leader and then they picked it up a little but I stayed back a little with the pack.  Then 2 girls moved up from behind and I was in 6th.  Then with us top 6 we were all running in a line instead of side by side.  The leaders at the mile were at 5:06, I was at 5:09.  By then it looked like I was slipping into no-man's land as I was falling behind the top 5 a little but.  But using the big screen I could see that I still had a little bit of a lead on the pack behind me, but that they were closer to me than I was to the girl in front of me.  On the curve on the far side I remember Bill, Dakota, and Natalie all yelling "Fireman" at me which I think really helped. I was able to push like in our workout.  Starting the 7th lap there were 3 girls that came up past me, one of them passed me and then went to the inside but then she slowed down too much so I went right around her and stuck with the other 2 girls that had come.  One of them was really pushing to stay ahead of me but I was not going to let her go.  Going into the final lap I was just behind her, then with 300 to go I started to push even harder and was able to break away from her.  I kept pushing because I didn't want her to catch back up to me.  And I was closing on the girl in 5th too so that gave me more energy as I got closer to the finish.  Going into the last 100 I was able to get up onto my toes and I was closing on the other girl, but she kept looking behind her and then would speed up when she saw me.  I could tell she was scared and really wanted to catch her for having looked back but I finished just .65 of a second behind her.  But I did secure 6th place which got me a medal :)  I liked the nike shoes that I tried, I think the way the spike plate is set up gets me to run on my toes more because it is more comfortable that way.  I did bleed on them though, they were rubbing on the tops of my feet.  Afterwards I changed shoes and ran a cooldown with Bill until I felt like being done.  I'm guessing that might have been 2 miles.  I was very happy with my race afterwards, now I am ready to really focus and do my best in all of my workouts so I can break Rosie's state records! 

Here is a link to the race video:

http://www.runnerspace.com/eprofile.php?do=videos&year=2011&pg=1&event_id=63&video_id=41506&folder_id=1714&offset=3#video

Today at practice as Bill arrived we asked if we could go to Pipeline since we were doing a long run but he said no because it would be muddy :(  So instead we just did our regular team warmup of 2 laps and then our stretching circle.  Then Mansell made everyone do 30 pushups except for me because I was counting :)  Then we lined up for drills before splitting into groups with our coaches.  For the distance workout we ran along the Shriner's route and the up on 11th Avenue and then into City Creek up to a quarter of a mile past the drinking fountain and bathrooms, which weren't working sadly.  Then we just ran back the same way.  I was with Natalie and Bill the whole time until Natalie and I stopped on the way back at the Shriner's fountain and Bill didn't.  Later when I was at home I did my crunches, pushups, arm swings, then weighted lunges, squats, and calf raises.  Then in the evening I took a 10 minute ice bath. 

Today at track practice we had our fun day. The first event was the tied together 400. I was at the back of the chain and Suzette was in front of me, and both of us tripped and got road rash from the track :(  then it was a not so fun day.  The trainer bandaged both of us up, then Suzette had to go to work and I just sat out the other events.  We had been planning on doing speed today but just went for a run instead.  It felt really weird trying not to move my shoulder as to keep the gauze on while I ran.  We just ran 4 miles up Emigration Canyon and turned around and came back.  When I got home I went to kids care and got an x-ray on my hand because it was hurting after breaking my fall.  I have a small fracture in my 5th metacarpal :(  It doesn't hurt that bad though.  So no pushups in my core for a few days I guess. 

Today we were excused early to help set up for the meet, and to try and get a workout in before it started.  While I was still getting ready Bill said it was time to start but I wasn't ready yet and I still had to tape the gauze on my shoulder and put my hair up (which is really hard with one hand) and tie my shoes (also hard with one hand).  Finally I got going my warmup, I was on my 6th lap when I found out it was just supposed to be 4 laps and then 4 laps speedchanges so I started speedchanges on the next lap.  Then Bill said I had to change shoes and start the speed and then I was not happy because I didn't want to change shoes yet because I hadn't done my full warmup and my hair was a mess and I couldn't get my watch on.  So he told me to finish my warmup and sit the first few 1000s out, which I did.  I did another 3 laps of speedchanges and then changed shoes, Scott had to tie my shoes for me.  The group had done two 1000s so I wasn't too far behind, we were planning on doing 5.  I was supposed to hit about 3:15s, or 3200 pace.  The wind was strong going north so on some of the straightaways into the wind I tried to stay with RJ so I could draft off of him.  We had equal timed standing recovery between each.  My times were 3:22, 3:23, and 3:25.  We stopped after that because the other teams had arrived and some of them were kinda being jerks about moving out of lane one.  Then Bill made a deal where I could not do the last two 1000s if I raced 1000 meters of the mile and finished and then if I did the 800.  We did 2 miles recovery from the speed which we had just done.  During the events before the mile my mom put my hair in a ponytail for me so I was happier :) Then before the mile I just went and did strides by the start.  Then Bill told me that the principal had come to the meet and wanted to see me race so I had to race all 4 laps, but I wouldn't have to do the 800 later, so I took that offer.  The mile wasn't too fast, I'm guessing the wind played into that but also I didn't have the best attitude :P  my time was 5:43.  Then I changed shoes back to my trainers again, and my mom had to tie them for me.  Then I did stadium laps for cooldown until I had reached 2 and a half miles, bringing me to 10 for the day.  When I got home later I took a 10 minute ice bath.  And the radiologist called and said I do not have a fracture in my hand, the bone is just bruised so I will not need the splint for much longer :)

Today at track practice we started with the usual warmup of 2 laps and then stretching, followed by drills. Then for the distance workout we ran a warmup to Sugarhouse Park, where we met at the drinking fountain at the top of the hill. Then when everyone was there we went out to the outer edge to start fartlek. We did 10 sets of 1 minute off 1 minute on. After the first one the part of the group that was ahead turned around and ran to the others so that we'd still be close as a group, but we decided after that to just turn around after every other one. By the time I finished my 10th I had gotten in a full lap and had just gotten to about where the road for the maintenance vehicles and stuff go. So we turned around and then just ran out of the park and then back to the track along 15th, with the hill by Bonneville, and finished with a lap on the track to bring us to a total of 8 and a half for the day. Then I got an ice cup and massaged my calves, I don't know why but my lower calves have been so sore! When I got home I decided to stop being a bum and got my core done. I did crunches, arm swings, lunges, squats, and calf raises. I wasn't able to do pushups or weights because of the splint on my hand, but at least I got some of my core done!

Today at practice we started with the usual warmup of 2 miles and then stretching.  Then we split into groups with our coaches.  Before we got to start our workout Bill wanted to talk to us about our races tomorrow.  Then we got to start.  We did 4 laps warmup, 8 laps of speedchanges, and then 2 laps cooldown (originally it was 4 laps but Bill changed it so we could be at an even 4).  Then I ate a blue otter pop! :)  Later when I got home I did my crunches, arm swings, lunges, squats, and calf raises.  Then in the evening I took a 15 minute ice bath.  Good luck to everyone racing tomorrow, either track meets or in the marathon or half or 5k!

Today at the meet after playing iPod idol with Abigail, we went and warmed up with Natalie for the mile.  We did 3 laps around the school and field to the south of it, that was 2 miles.  Then we went to the bull pen where I struggled with the new rules, I had to take my hair ribbon out (actually Natalie and Abigail had to do it for me, I can't do my own hair at the moment) and they were telling us we had to put the stickers high up but I wouldn't because of the team logo (the logos are there for a reason!).  We got a good laugh from Abigail, she raised her t-shirt to put her sticker on and her uniform was on inside out!  After leaving the bull pen we went over by the start to stretch, change shoes, and do strides.  Abigail had an amazing race, getting a 6 second PR, so I had her tie my spikes for good luck :)  Bill talked me into taking off the splint for the race so I did that right before we got on the line.  My hand is bruised all the way through!  When the race started I went out fast and right into the lead.  My first lap was a 70 and I could hear a girl close behind me, I guessed it was Natalie from Skyline and I was right.  She stuck with me the whole time.  At the 800 I was at 2:30.  With 500 to go I think she started to make a move but I surged and she didn't get me then.  But then with a little under 300 to go she moved again and I tried to stay with her then but I couldn't hold on.  So I finished second.  Nat was 5th (I think) and almost qualified for state but barely missed it again, this time by .13!  Afterwards I changed shoes and did 3 more laps like the warmup with my iPod.  

My other event was the medley, I did the 800 leg.  A while before that race I did another 3 laps for my warmup.  Then we got our sticker from the bull pen and a while later headed over to the start.  Bill had told Victoria, Janie, and Madeline that if they got me the baton in under 2 minutes that I would run a 2:25 or better, which would qualify us for state.  At the first exchange Janie was able to secure the lead for Madeline, who kept it and held off a girl from I think West Jordan, and then it was my turn.  For about the first 200 meters I could hear the girl behind me, Tolbert told me she was about 5 meters back.  I kept pushing and eventually she fell off, but I really wanted to keep pushing for the team to qualify us for state.  I don't know my full split, but my last lap was a 1:14.  The team time was 4:23.91 so we qualified for state!  And our girls team took home the second place trophy, which was fantastic since we don't have that many girls but all of us contribute a lot to the team scoring :)

Afterwards I changed shoes back and then ran 2 miles cooldown with Bill.  When I got home I took an ice bath for 15 minutes.

Today since there wasn't school because of spring break we met at the track later than we would for practice when we have school, but that was alright.  Only distance kids were there (surprise surprise) but that was alright, we just didn't do the usual team warmup.  We did the same run as last Monday, along the Shriner's route and then up City Creek a quarter mile past the drinking fountain and bathrooms.  I was with Natalie the whole run, and the guys weren't with us this time which rarely happens!  At the Shriner's fountain we dropped our jackets because we had decided it wasn't that cold.  I was wearing my Arcadia shirt, I really like it :)  Up City Creek the guys were waiting to see how much further they would have to run up.  Back at the drinking fountain and bathrooms, Bill was there.  He had been working at a job and then drove up City Creek.  He started the way back with Natalie and I but we figured he must have still been way sore from his marathon Saturday because right after we got down to the main road we pulled ahead of him.  When we retrieved out jackets at the Shriner's fountain we found that someone had tied them to the no parking sign (Abigail and Gavin :P)  Our average pace for the whole run was 7:21 so not bad.  It had just started to rain as we were coming down Sunnyside.  Also we were catching up to the guys at that point.  After we left practice, Natalie, Abigail, and I got our rainboots and went puddle jumping at the track :)  that counts for our ice baths!  When I got home I did my crunches, arm swings, lunges, squats, and calf raises.  Then later, Abigail and I went and biked with Scott at Steiner for half an hour.

Today at the track again it was mostly distance kids.  We didn't do a team warmup, we just started with our normal warmup of 2 miles and then a mile of speedchanges.  We stretched between the 2 warmup miles.  Then we changed our shoes and listened to what the workout was for the day.  Bill said we would start with two 800s.  I was supposed to hit between 2:30 and 2:35, my times were 2:33 and 2:35.  We took a lap and then a little standing recovery after each.  Next we did 400s.  We had two options, one was that we could do four if they were all under a target pace but six if one of them slipped over, or one until we hit a specific pace.  If I was going for four I would have had to hit 73s or faster.  For one I would have to hit 72, no faster or slower, and we weren't allowed to wear watches or hear splits.  I tried for the one, and I thought I was doing pretty great but then on the last 100 Taylor and Natalie were outkicking me and we all finished in 69.  We just took standing recovery after the 400s.  On the next one  I hit 73, then on the one after I finished after he said 72 but before he said 73 but I did another one anyway, and that one was a 72.  My legs felt great during the whole workout, I think right now its breathing that is the hardest part because of coughing up mucous and stuff :P  After we were done with the 400s we changed shoes and then needed a 4 and a half mile cooldown so we did the VA loop but cut across at Guardsman and then finished in the stadium with 2 grass laps and 3 track laps to bring us to 10.  Later when I got home I did my crunches, arm swings, lunges, calf raises, and squats.  

Today since it was Ben's birthday I went to watch his meet at Clearfield :)  he had to do a workout so I did 2 miles while I waited for him to finish that, and then I cooled down a mile and a half with him afterwards.

Later when I was back in Salt Lake I went for a run with Bill at Liberty Park.  We did 2 laps on the woodchips and then 2 laps on the outer perimeter of the park.  After I got home I did my crunches, arm swings, lunges, calf raises, and squats.  Then I finished with a 10 minute ice bath.

This morning we did a speed workout at the track. We started with the normal warmup of 1 mile, stretching, a mile, and then a mile of speedchanges, and then a lap recovery.  Then I changed to my spikes.  The workout was two sets of 600, 400, 300, 200, and we each had splits we were supposed to hit that had the last 200 picking up the pace as if kicking at the end of a race.  My target times, if I remember correctly, were 1:50 (75, 35), 71 (37, 34),  54 (37, 17), and 36 (34 for the second set).  I don't remember all of my splits but I had a hard time hitting the first few :P  For the first set I hit 1:55 (78, 37), 72, 52 (?), and I think 36, we had a 200 jog before the 200 and then took 800 recovery after each set.  On the second set I hit 1:52 (76, 36), 73 (36, 37), 52 (?), and 31.  Natalie was right with me on the last few which really helped me to push, I think I could have put more effort into the whole workout though :P  Then we did an extra 200 meters recovery after the second set to get us to 3.25 for the speed stuff.  Then we changed shoes back and I went with Natalie and Amanda to Sunnyside Park to cooldown.  We did 3 laps there and then finished with a lap on the track to bring our cooldown to 3.5 and our miles up to 10 for the day.  When I got home I did my crunches, arm swings, lunges, calf raises, and squats.

Later in the evening I went to the gym and biked for half an hour.

This morning I had to get my run done early so that I could go snow mobiling in Kamas :)  I ran from my house along 1500 East and to Sugarhouse, then I did part of an outer lap going counter clockwise but when I got to 1700 East I turned and went south.  I went to 27th and then turned and then continued south again along Imperial Street until I reached 3300 South.  Then I went up to Melbourne, like we do when we do the cemetery run and went back to Sugarhouse Park.  Again I did a partial lap, opposite direction of last time and then I finished going back to my house along 15oo East.  Then I was at 8 miles and I decided I actually wanted to hit 10 for the day so I went inside and grabbed my iPod and ran along 1500e to Sunnyside Avenue and back, which is 2 miles.  Then I went and had fun playing in the snow :) 

This morning Ben came to Salt Lake to run with me :)  We went up to the Pipeline Trail for a nice 10 miler.  I threw in 10 strides during the run because that's what Bill had told me to do today.  The view from the turnaround point was incredible!  And I didn't trip at all :)  And it wasn't as cold as I thought it would be :)  Afterwards I took Ben to Eggs in the City for breakfast and it was a great start to a fantastic day :)

Today at track practice we started with the usual team warmup of 2 laps and then stretching and drills.  Then we did more warmup stuff in our groups with our coaches but we were doing the workout together.  For the distance warmup we did a mile and then a mile of speedchanges.  I didn't change to my flats because I remember Demetrio told me one time not to change shoes when I was sick because it could increase chance of getting injured or something like that.  The workout was 2 sets of an 800 and six 200s, the sprinters did the last 500 of the 800s with us and four of the 200s with us.  For the first set I hit 2:35, :34, :34, :34, :34, :34, :36; I wasn't feeling too great during those so I took a potty break while the others were doing the recovery lap to see if it would help.  It didn't but I still finished the workout, my time on the second 800 wasn't that great, a 2:48, but for the 200s I was able to pull off :34, :35, :34, :35, :35, :35.  Then we all stretched as a group afterwards, that felt nice.  For cooldown we did 5 stadium laps.  When I got home I did my crunches (I switched to some of the core Em showed us for the last 2 sets), pushups (my hand is better!), arm swings, lunges, squats, and calf raises.

Today at practice we started with the usual warmup of 2 laps and then stretching.  While we were stretching though, all hail broke loose!  I was in the center leading stretches so while we were in the middle of stretching our calves and the hail was starting to hurt as it pelted our legs I just stood up and told everyone to move to the shed.  So we finished our stretches in there.  The weather settled enough for us to do our drills outside on the track and then we split into our groups.  For the distance workout we ran down to Liberty and did a lap of fireman.  We did 2 groups again, but this time it wasn't boys and girls :P  Natalie and I weren't too happy about that because as we were finishing the lap the guys started to pick up the pace which was dumb since its just a workout!  But there's just proof that boys are dumb :P  When we were done we finished by running back up to the stadium.  When I got home I did my crunches, pushups, arm swings, lunges, squats, and calf raises.   

Some of the distance girls went up to the North Summit Invite today.  It was supposed to be yesterday but got postponed due to weather.  I was the only girl in the 2 mile so I did 6 laps warmup on the track by myself, and then I got my spikes and headed to the line for my race.  There were 3 other girls in the race, but they were doing the 3200 and I was doing the 2 mile, so my starting line was further back than theirs.  There were some people who wanted to run the guys and the girls together but they couldn't because I was doing the full 2 miles and going for the record.  But I wouldn't have wanted to run it with the boys anyway since it was an invite.  I did my drills and strides by the line, they weren't sure what they were doing so it took them a while to get organized.  Finally they were able to get us some stickers that they wrote numbers on (which they didn't collect anyway :P)  but then they lined us up.  I was on my line and the other 3 girls were up at the regular start.  The officials weren't very loud so I really had to pay attention to know when to line up.  In the first 100 meters I caught right up to the other 3 girls and passed them right away.  The far side straight of the track had a bit of wind but it wasn't too bad.  All around the track people were cheering for me, which was awesome.  All of Park City's team was cheering for me too haha, I heard someone singing 'Oh Susannah'...  I tried to listen to my times at the regular starting line because I figured that might be easier, so when I got there after my first lap I was at 1:17.  After the second lap I was at 2:36.  After 4 laps I got my split at the mile (not the finish line) and that was a 5:33.  I knew I was really going to have to hold on so that my splits wouldn't be too slow for me to break the previous 4A state record of 11:29.  My stomach was not feeling too great but I was still on pace to go for the record and I wasn't going to give up, this was my only chance.  On the curve going into the final straight I could hear Natalie yelling "Every second counts!" to me which really helped.  My goal for the finish was to push the last 600 so I tried to pick it up there.  Hearing Natalie yell the same thing at me again as I was on my last lap coming down the final stretch helped me to go to my toes to kick it in.  And I got the record by 3 seconds!  And at a higher altitude too, also still being a little bit sick but improving each day.  Afterwards I did a mile and a half cooldown on the road.  

Later when it was getting to closer to time for the mile (not the 1600, I was going to go for a state record again) I really was not feeling good.  I called Bill and he said that I should do it to see if I could help Natalie qualify for state.  I warmed up on my own, out a mile and back on the road, and was just trying to make sure that I wasn't feeling bad enough that I wouldn't even be able to run the mile.  There were a lot more girls in the 1600, and there was a North Summit girl who was going to run the mile with me which was awesome :)  We barely heard the official as he was telling the other runners to step to the line.  As we were almost to about 100 meters in the race there was a false start, though we couldn't hear a gun so it was just people yelling at us to stop and there was a lot of confusion.  The clock apparently had not started :P  They lined us up again and sent us off but then at about the 50 meter mark they called us back again.  Third times the charm because that time it worked.  Erica, the North Summit girl, had a quicker start than I did.  We both had to work around the pack in the first 100 meters since we had started behind everyone.  I was not feeling for the right speed so I wasn't able to move up like she was but she held an amazing lead, and Natalie was in second, and she was able to get a gap on the pack.  I just steadily moved up throughout the race, my 2 lap split was in the 2:40s and then I kicked down the final stretch when I saw a girl's shadow moving up closer to me but after I kicked she didn't stay with me.  I finished in 5:37.02 and was just glad to be done.  Erica got the state record for her division though which was awesome :)  Afterwards I did a mile cooldown on the road again.  Then we were on the car ride home and that's when we found out we were supposed to do the 800 as well... Oops, oh well.  I doubt I would have been able to pull off a good 800 anyway.   

Today at track we started with the usual warmup of 2 laps and then stretching.  Then we were doing our drills and one of the lines didn't do one of the drills on the way back so Bill made all of us run a lap :P  Then we separated into our groups.  For distance Bill talked to us first before we began our workout.  We were doing all core stuff today.  We started with 3 sets of step ups on the bleachers, and then we moved to stairs.  We did a set of 5 where we stepped on every step and then a set of 5 where we did every other step and we did that twice.  We were supposed to be getting fast turnover on those.  Then we stretched our calves and after that we did the macarena while we did 3 sets of wall sits.  Then we ran over to the soccer field and did hills, originally we were going to do 10 but we ended up just doing 8.  We ran up the hill, touched the fence, walked down the hill backwards and then jogged back for each one.  Then we did 300s.  Bill put us into groups of 3 and started us at the same time and the goal was that we were each supposed to try to outkick each other.  On the first one I was with Dakota and Natalie, I was last :(  Then we did a set of the Flannagan circuit before doing another 300.  This time I was in a group with Natalie, Caden, Taylor, and Jared.  I was last again but I held on longer and wasn't as far behind.  Then we did ten 100 meter strides on the track.  Since the wind was going north we only did strides to the north and then we jogged back after each one.  When we finished those Bill said it was all we had to do and then we talked about Davis this Saturday.  While he was talking to some of the others I started my  core.  I was able to get in my abs, pushups, arm swings, lunges, squats, and calf raises before we left so I didn't have to do them at home :)

Today after school I went pool running with Natalie, Abigail, and RJ.  We ended up in the shallow end because of water polo practice but we made the most of what we had.  We did 10 minutes warmup, then did 5 sets of 1 minute on 1 minute off, then finished with a 10 minute cooldown.  Then while we were still in the water we stretched a little bit since we hadn't been able to straighten our legs fully without touching the bottom of the pool :P  After we left we went down to the track to pick up our awesome track sweats!  And then when I got home I did my abs, pushups, arm swings, lunges, squats, and calf raises.

Even though my races were in the afternoon I went to the meet in the morning to cheer for Abigail and Ben and other teammates.  Bill told me that I should do a shakeout sometime in the morning so after Abigail and Ben had both finished with the 1600 I ran about a mile with them in the halls of the school since it was snowing outside.  

The meet was running late because of weather earlier but by the afternoon it wasn't as far behind.  I was signed up for the invited 1600, medley, and 3200 which were all about an hour and a half apart but I was only planning on doing the medley and the 3200.  I did about a mile warmup for the medley and then I did strides and drills in the field.  Bill and Tolbert really wanted us to win this so before the race started they talked to Victoria, Janie, Jasmine, and I and told us we had to all push our hardest and do our best.  Jasmine was in the 200 right after the medley and I was in the 3200 right after those so we had to be in it for the team since we were using some of what could have gone to our upcoming events.  When Jasmine got the baton for the 400 I think we were in third and the girls were in a pack throughout the first 200 meters of that.  Then coming around the final turn Jasmine was able to pull into the lead and along the final straightaway she kept it so I got the baton first but the other teams were not far behind.  I took off and thought about staying on my toes and running tall and I was scared that the other teams were catching up.  After the first curve Tolbert told me that I had 15 on the next girl but since there were still 700 meters left in the race I was worried about them catching up to me.  I stayed on my toes all throughout the first 300 meters of it but coming down the straightaway finishing the first lap I relaxed a little bit but then picked it up again when Bill said I had 12.  On the last lap I really worked to stay on my toes and to keep pushing and go hard at the 300 and even harder as I got closer to the finish.  Through the last few meters I was really scared that the other girls were right behind me which got me to stay pushing all the way through.  I crossed the line in 4:16.50 which is a new team best and also means I probably ran a 2:14-2:18 for that 800 which would be a new PR in that for me :)  After I finished that race I was really cold since it was a little bit windy on the final stretch and all I could think about was that I did not want to do the 3200 but Bill told me I still could.  It felt like it took forever to recover, my heart rate was way high after pushing so hard in that 800.  Bill had Natalie and I do drills and strides.  The strides helped because they were a more active recovery which helped my heart rate.  I got to go up on the podium with Victoria and Janie and we all got t-shirts and watches, but Jasmine had to be on the line for her 200.  Finally it was time for Natalie and I to drop our sweats and head to the line.  We did some strides on the track while we were waiting.  I was in the third starting position next to Kelsey and Alex.  Going out I got boxed in which was not fun but I was able to break out of that after 100 meters and move up to Natalie and another girl who were ahead of everyone.  I figured that I would have a hard time setting the right pace for the 3200 after having been in the 800 but the pace felt good and from looking at pictures it looked like Natalie and I led with a bit of a gap for the first 2 laps.  The first lap was a 77 and at the 800 I was at 2:42.  Then Kelsey came up and was running with me through the next few laps, she kept hitting my elbow and at one point in the race on the straightaway on the far side she stepped on me a little bit and I almost fell.  I think I lost focus after that point, I was still leading barely but then at the mile, which we hit in 5:29, she moved and cut in front of me and then I tried to stick with her but I just was not very happy.  She was able to gap me and I wasn't working as hard as I should have to be able to catch her.  With 1000 meters to go I made myself pick up the pace but she was way far ahead.  Then going into the last lap a girl named Kaylee was catching up to me and I heard someone telling her to go at the 300 so I tried to pick it up from where we were but I picked it up more at the 300.  We passed each other back and forth until 100 meters left but then she picked it up and I finished third.  Afterwards I went and sat down and Ben and Abigail came and sat with me as I slowly changed my shoes and put my sweats back on.  I missed standing on the podium as I was cooling down with Ben but Abigail went on the podium for me and one of the photographers said to her "Wow you look a lot like Abigail".  Haha I wonder why...  I did about a mile cooldown and then had to pack up my stuff and get on the bus.  

In the evening after I got back I still needed miles so I went for a run with Bill and Emily.  We met at the capital and ran up City Creek and then along 11th Avenue and then cut down on Virginia street and cut up on the next one and then over on the next one and so on.  We passed by Ben's house from our team and noticed that there were 3 bottles of Gatorade sitting in the gutter since Bill had been on the phone with him before we left and jokingly told him to set out some Gatorade for us haha.  We kept going until we had passed the Utes track and under Legacy Bridge, and we turned around at the intersection after it.  We picked up the Gatorade on the way back, we went back to the capital the same way we had come and finished when the Garmin said we were at 10.