Redemption

5 miles @ 6:30 pace w/ 1 mile warmup and cooldown.

Strength Training: Swimming/deep water running

7 miles w/ 10*50m hill sprints

Strength Training: Upper Body

8 miles easy

Strength Training: Swim/ deep water running

This morning I ran the Uncle Sam 5k I took it more as a Tempo Run, but I'll admit I am way too competitive to just tempo run a race, however I am not in very good "racing shape" I ran it in 16:42 :/ and took third to some BYU runner and I think it was Adam Haynes from Bingham. I'm not too worried though considering I just finished active rest for over a month. Easy cooldown/ warmup mileage

Strength Training: Lower Body

I really impressed myself with this workout, because at the 4th rep I didn't think I could finish so I just ran the rest of them like it was my last and ended up finishing. It hurt bad! I threw up like halfway through (I know I'm kind of out of shape), but my Dad was there and he is a sports psychologist so there was no way I was giving up.

The workout was 8*800m @ 2:27 w/200m jog for rest.

Strength Training: Lower Body

Today was 8 miles @ moderate pace with hills.

Strength Training: Upper Body

3 falls trail run

Strength Training: Swim/deep water running.

400m easy- 400m hard*4  usually about 1:15- 2:00. However, last 400m was 1:03 last 200m was :26.

2 mile warmup, 2 mile cooldown.

Strength Training: Upper Body

Today was grass repeats we did 11*1 minute at probably 2 mile pace w/ 1 minute rest between. 2 mile warmup, 2 mile cooldown.

Steeple Chase Thursday!!!!! Today we wanted to do something different than swim so we went to walmart bought a kiddie pool set out the hurdles on the track like a steeplechase and put the kiddie pool in front of the "water barrier" and we did a pyramid workout. It was sooo fun! We did 1 lap rest- 2 laps rest- 3 laps rest- 4 laps rest. Then finished with 3 *1 lap. It was really hard actually.

6 miles easy

Strength Training: Very very hard lower body day...ouch :)

Death Day. 2 mile warmup. Today was the day I have been nervous of all week. It was an 8 mile Tempo run @ 5:50 pace w/ Hills. I didn't really think it was possible. I started and my first mile was 6:20 (uphill) second mile 5:45 (uphill then downhill) 3rd mile 5:41 (uphill then downhill) 4th mile 5:37 (Downhill) 5th mile 5:41, 6th mile 6:13 (Uphill), 7th 6:05, 8th 6:02. (5:54 ave mile pace) I am very happy with how this went, and it hurt like crazy.

Strength Training: Lower Body

7.5 mile fartlek (3:00 @ 7:00 pace-:30 @ 5:00 pace) This workout felt great! The last 200m of the workout I ran a :27 200m. I also created a daily standard warmup routine (2 laps jog, 2*50y strides, 2  laps jog, drills, 2*50y strides) I decided I needed to up my warmups because I have been having trouble with warming up, and have spent half the workout still trying to get loose. Cooldown routine is (1 mile easy, 4*100y strides)

Strength Training: Upper Body

AM: XC Practice 5 miles @ 6:27 ave. with 1 mile warmup and cooldown.

PM: First day of scout camp up in Kolob. I will be kept pretty busy up there trying to finish all the merit badges I need for my Eagle. So I will try to workout and run AMAP (as much as possible).   

  Cinder Block Strength Training :)

 AM: I had to be ready for breakfast to help cook before 6 am, so that meant I had to wake up at 4:30 If I wanted to get in a good workout. I set my alarm for that time but I guess I slept through it because next thing I know I woke up and it was almost 6. So I just went out and ran 2.5 miles. I snuck in any extra running I could during my free time. However, I didn't want my scoutmaster to think I was using this campout for a personal little running camp so there was only so much I could do. Probably finished the day with 4.

PM: My Dad was in charge of putting the Aaronic Priesthood Encampment together. So he was there and was able to give me strength training workouts to do with cinderblocks. Ha! They were actually really hard workouts. The only problem is my strength training workouts always take me over 2 hours so when I had free time between classes I would do it, a lot of people would say like wow do you just workout all day long? Do you ever stop? And that made me nervous because again I didn't want to seem like I didn't care about the campout and just wanted to train. So hopefully that message didn't get sent out, I just love  to workout and stay fit.  

Strength Training: Total Body

Ha! This kid in my ward volunteered to wake me up at 4:30 in the morning since I've been having trouble waking up. He was like "I wake up at 4 am every single day." I wanted to say: and do what? But I just thought it was awesome he wanted to help. He woke me up and I woke up Jesse and Isaiah in their camp area and we actually got in a good 10 miles that morning. So that felt good especially because it was at 8000 ft altitude and one way was straight up, however coming back was straight down. We averaged 8 min miles going up, and 6 min miles coming back down for a 7:15 mile average I think. Which isn't bad for 4:30 in the morning at 8000ft altitude, with no real good sleep, and terribly unhealthy food :)  

Strength Training: Plyometrics, core

So I guess the kid in my ward did wake me up... but then I mumbled something and went back to sleep...however, I have no recolection of this happening. So that afternoon I ran with Jesse and it was probably a good 95 degrees or so. My Dad told me to take this trail up to the water tower and he said it would be about a mile. Well we started running up and up and up and up and up and up and up and up and up and up and up. Unti finally we decided to turn around because we had been running for 35 min and didn't bring water and we still had to turn back. Well on our way back about 2.5 miles or so later we see the water tower. Ha! We went WAY too far. Afterwards we did a little bit more of running and a bit faster paced around the campground.

I did not have time to do a strength training workout today. :(

Woke up at 4:30 am again (Last day of Camp!!!) and ran 10 miles up and down the trail again. Then packed my stuff went to flag ceremony and headed home.

Strength Training: Chest, Shoulders, Triceps, Core

9 miles easy (6 am, 3 pm) It's my birthday today and I just turned 17...too bad I'm not going to be a junior and have two more years :( Instead I am just a young senior.

5k Tempo run @ 5:50 mile pace. 3*1 mile Tempo Pace. (So 6 miles total @ 5:50 pace) I didn't feel to good, I ate too much junk food on my birthday.) With 2 mile warmup/ 2 mile cooldown.

Strength training: Upper Body

AM: 4 mile fartlek run 

PM: 4*2 miles at 6:20 pace (2 miles- core workout- 2 miles-core workout-etc.)      

Strength Training: Back/Arms/Core

Deseret News 10k: We started off FAST! I tried to stay with the ogden guys (Justin Sheets, Garret Barton) but they were basically sprinting at the start I fell behind the lead pack of the high school runners, but caught up by the 2nd mile. 1st mile was a 4:57! After that mile a bunch of kids started dropping off and it ended up being just me and Adam Haynes from Bingham...once again :) Ha! And once again he beat me. We were basically all alone side by side until the last mile and he pulled ahead. I felt great and was averaging around 5:10's or 5:20's until the last mile and my legs turned into concrete. I am not used to racing a 10k. I finished in 33:28 and averaged 5:21 mile pace. It was really downhill though but still a great race for me. I'm glad Adam was there to push me, and I learned a lot. :)

Strength Training: Shoulders/Swimming (Legs will be tomorrow and Saturday, I decided to give my legs a break today)

PM: 3.5 miles I will do this evening @ Long run pace (6:45-7:00). This is to get 13 miles again today. (I did an additional mile on accident to get 14 miles today)

9 miles of easy running/light fartlek mixed in there, as well as some strides.

Strength Training: Swimming

Today I had a revelation. I realized that I am not doing what it takes as an athlete to be where I want to be. I love running, and I definitely want to take it as far as I can. I am not pushing hard enough. I have let myself become to complacent. I will not say I haven't worked hard, because in my opinion I have worked pretty dang hard to get where I am. However, if I want to get further I need to start pressing more. I have let myself be content in the fact that when it starts to hurt I don't quit. However, I often stop pressing. I had a great 10k race last Thursday, and I know it was just a little summer road race, but when it started to hurt really bad I stopped pressing. I definitely did not quit, but I did not accept the pain that was neccessary to achieve the goal that I really wanted (32:59). I just need to take it one step at a time and it starts with my average training paces. I am not running them fast enough. My long run paces usually linger around 7:00 when they need to at least be 6:30-6:45 (If not 6:15's at some point), my tempo runs are usually close the right paces however I take to many breaks. I need to run more consistent mileage without constant stops. I should also drop my tempo runs down to 5:30-5:45 pace instead of 5:50's (depending on the distance). I think if I can intelligently take this one step at a time then I can start to see real improvement again. Maybe I can once again see a big PR that keeps me up at night excited about what I could do next. Maybe I'm not talented enough or whatever to do exactly what I want to do in this sport, but I at least know I can be much better than what I am now. I know it, because I can feel it. I know I can get better. So I would hope that I'm taking a step in the right direction, by pressing a little more each day, maybe being a little more welcoming to pain each day.

Today we traveled back home it felt like the longest drive ever. I took a shuttle and so we had to take a lot of stops along the way. I had lots of time to think (maybe too much time) which explains why I just got a little preachy earlier :) When I got home I hit a decent 8 mile run @ 6:45 pace on the trails behind my house, and finished with some legs and core work. Good week its been, and I look forward to next week where I start doubles with running.

Strength Training: Lower Body, Core

10 miles Trail w/mod fartlek at the end to get some turnover.

7 miles @ Long run pace (6:30-6:45)

Strength Training: Full Body (We did weights as a XC team...lets just say I didn't get much of a workout.)

AM: 2 miles @ Long run pace (6:30-6:45), Hill sprints 5*:30-5*:12, 2 miles easy. 10*800m@Tempo Pace (5:30-5:45) w/1 lap walk or jog rest. .5 miles cooldown.

PM: I will do 2 miles@Tempo Pace/Swim. 2miles easy cooldown

Strength Training: Swimming

PM

AM: Surprisingly my legs still don't hurt, and I felt pretty good today! I did 9 miles @ 6:30 ave and it felt like a jog :) I love seeing improvement :) I finished with a 1 mile cooldown to total 10 miles this morning.

PM: 9 mile recovery run (I was just going to do 6 miles...but I started feeling freakishly good) @ VERY SLOW pace (whatever feels good really)

Strength Training: Weights...with the XC team again :/ (I love my team but...we don't do much in the weight room, I like my weight training program that has helped me a lot to be stronger.)

I have been trying to be very cautious lately, because I am doing much more mileage than I have done in the past. However, I still find myself with no problems at all. I have never felt so strong or fit in my entire life. I feel as if I have gained more control over my body and my stride  throughout these past two weeks. Running has just become so fantastically natural and smooth. I remember running as a little kid, and having NO sense of control over my body. Haha! I flailed all over the place. As I have gotten older and ran more I have noticed I start to feel more control over myself physically as I have mentally. I can't imagine how the pros feel. AM: Had to my morning run short to meet with my school counselor to get my schedule for next year set (6 miles@ easy pace). So afterward I went to the rec center and ran another 6.5 miles (6:15 ave pace).

PM: I met up with Kody and Jesse and we ran 4 miles easy before we went to practice and swam. But then I made the mistake of going to subway after and eating a footlong only to know that we were going to do another 5.5 miles total before and after swimming...ouch! Good day today though, I felt really good, and I amd still able to hit the correct paces for my run even with the mileage bump, so all is well. :)

Strength Training: Swimming