My Running Journey Continued

I spent my freshman year at Florida Southern College. Although I wasn't happy being a part of the xc/track team and being so far from home, I really enjoyed the school and my sorority. It was a gorgeous school.

Crescent Cruise with Matt :)

Eta Beta Chapter/Founding Sisters

Alyssa and I

The roommate Kass and I

Gamma Phi Beta Suite at FSC

Lake Hollingsworth

Fountain outside of Spivey (Freshman Dorms)

Water Dome (It was a 10,000 dollar fine if you jumped in it!)

Florida Southern College

After a year in Florida, I decided to transfer to the University of La Verne. I couldn't be happier with the decision I made. I love my teammates and coaches and I am so grateful to be close enough to home so that I can see my family and friends all the time. I am going into my second year at La Verne and I cannot wait to see what this year holds in store for me!

La Verne XC Hootenanny 2011

Walnut Creek Running Adventure with Micaela and Andrea

Syd and I before the LMFAO concert :)

SCIAC Track Championships at Pomona Pitzer

Coach Mike and Coach Josh

Making peanut butter cookies with the boys

NCAA Division 3 Regionals in Oregon

Bring it on junior year!

My Running Journey in Pictures

My best friend Bre and I were hanging out the other day and discussing our blogs. While I enjoy blogging about running I also realize that people are getting sick of reading solely about my races and training. So I think I am going to try something new: I am going to incorporate fun blogs from time to time documenting anything that pertains to running or that I find of interest. I thought I would start by showing you my running career in pictures. So in a nutshell, this has been the past 6 years of my life. Let me know what you think of the new blog idea!

It all started freshman year. I had been playing soccer competitively all my life and after being denied varsity my freshman year of high school, I finally decided to go out for track and field after much persuasion from Coach Soles (track/xc coach at my school). I loved track so much and realized it was something I was pretty good at so I decided to give cross country a shot.

I love my high school team and all the memories we created. We got to race in the coolest places and we had so much fun kicking everyone's butt in the process. :)

Bass Lake XC Camp

Manhattan XC Invite at Van Courtland Park, NY

Nike Cross Nationals in Oregon

Woodward Park in Fresno California for the state meet and Mt. Sac

Malibu XC Camp

And not to forget other memories and high school races...

Varsity 4xmile at Gahr Relays and a pep talk from Coach Soles

Southwestern League Champions

Woodbridge Girls Sweepstakes Race

Mt. Sac Invitational Junior Year

Buena Park XC Meet with Kaity (We both set a personal record...hence the "pr")

As senior year drew to a close, I had a big choice to make. I knew I wanted to run in college so I started to do my research and contact college coaches. I didn't think I wanted to go out of state until I made a visit to Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida. I ended up transferring after my freshman year of college because it was too far and I knew I wasn't happy. However, it was a great experience and I made some friends that I still keep in contact with.

Continued...

Pink Holter Monitor

So last Wednesday, I went for my annual check up at the cardiologist. It would be an understatement to say that the experience was miserable. It is more fitting to describe the appointment as horrendous and uncomfortable; so much so that even the promise of a shopping trip couldn't cheer me up. And as we all know, shopping is almost always a guaranteed way to lift my spirits. It wouldn't have been so bad if I didn't have it sprung upon me that I would be stuck wearing a holter monitor for 24 hours, destroying any hope I had of leaving the house or following my training plan.

Okay so I am being dramatic, but let me tell you about the uncomfortable experience of being hooked up to one of those suckers. A holter monitor is an ongoing EKG, which is a way to monitor your heart for an extended period of time so that the doctor can observe heart activity more extensively. It consists of a bunch of electrodes that are attached to your chest which are also connected to equipment you have to wear around your neck. Not the most fashionable accessory to put it lightly. Trying to hide the wires was futile and I spent the rest of the day bitterly complaining about the stupid monitor hanging like a medal from my shirt. After waiting at Children's Hospital for 4 hours to see the doctor and then being told I would be stuck wearing a holter monitor I was not a happy camper.

It was a long 24 hours. It would have been a lot easier if they made fashionable holter monitors. For example, if the holter monitor was pink and included rhinestones, it would almost be desirable. Okay, maybe not desirable, but more tolerable than the ugly black holter monitors they currently force people to model. Thank goodness I only have to wear it once every 2 years.

Conference Championships and Oxy Invitational

There were over 50 girls in the 5k at Conference!

So I guess I am going to take back that last post about my horribly atrocious and disappointing track season. While I didn't break 18 in the 5k, I did run a personal best in the 5k by quite a significant amount. And realistically, I don't think I can allow myself to be too upset about running 18:34. Here is how it all went down in a nutshell:

I was extremely nervous going into conference championships. I was trying so hard the week leading up to the race to relax and to think about anything else but the race, however, it was a futile attempt at best. I knew that it would be my last or second to last attempt to run a good time in the 5k and I wanted it more than anything. I felt like everything was ready to fall into place; my times in workouts showed I was ready to go sub 18:30 and I was just waiting for the right moment to finally accomplish what I knew to be possible. I was excited, but stressing about little things like the insane number of girls in the 5k. Coach didn't hesitate to tell me to stop thinking about the race. Let me tell you, it is harder than it would appear to be. However, I gave it a shot.

The week flew by and before I knew it, I was getting ready to warm up for the 5k. At this point in time, I had no game plan or idea about how the race was going down. Coach decided that it would be for the best if he didn't discuss it with me until a few minutes before the race. While it sort of sucked not being able to think it all through ahead of time, I definitely thank him for not freaking me out any more than I had already freaked myself out. The plan remained consistent throughout the season; run even 87's no matter what. I was determined to run my race and to run a good time. The start of the race was chaotic with over 50 girls scrambling to get a good position. Luckily, I was able to cut in with ease and find my rhythm.

I finished the race in 9th place in 18:45, a 15 second pr from what I had run at any of the quad meets. Ironically, I also finished in 9th place in cross country. I was happy because I had proved to myself that I was capable. I walked away from that race feeling happy for the first time during track season. While I didn't finish any track races this season completely devastated, I settled at feeling "content" with my performances. I was happy with my conference finish, however, I was also hungry. After my 15 second pr at championships, I felt like I needed another race. I just knew I was ready to run 18:30.

My season ended at the Oxy Invitational the following week. After my performance at championships, I couldn't wait to break my new pr. Mentally, I was finally ready to end my season with a good race. I didn't experience the nerves I did going into the conference meet. I had the confidence that I could run a good 5k which made all the difference. I am so thankful that I had my teammate Micaela to train with me and come watch the race! I don't think I could have done it if I didn't have her there with me warming up and helping me get ready. I finished the race in 18:34, over a 10 second pr from the week before. It was an awesome confidence booster going into cross country season and a great way to end my sophomore track season!

As happy as I was to end my season on such a high note, I can say that I am more than ready to be done with track for a while. No more 12.5 laps running around a track, no more trying to get out of lifting weights with the strength coach, and no more waiting for a bazillion hours to run the second to last event of the meet...well, that is until next January rolls around. :)

Mediocre

I feel like that one word sums up how I feel about my track season so far. It is hard to remain positive and to still have faith in my ability to run a fast 5k when my times haven't been nearly up to par with my expectations. I don't know if I am just not capable of running fast anymore, or if I am simply setting myself up for failure when I tell myself that I want to go sub 18. I thought it was possible; but at this point in the season, it seems like a far-fetched and ridiculous dream.

This post is short and sweet, because frankly, I am frustrated and disappointed. And I feel like this is just going to be one of those pathetic ranting/venting posts if I continue. I am also pretty sure that most of you reading could care less so I am going to end it here. Hopefully things get better. And hopefully my track season starts picking up speed. Until then, I am going to try and focus on classes and finishing my sophomore year of college on a good note.