Week 2 - August 7th to 13th
The cross country season has started! Soon we'll begin to add more speed sessions into training in addition to the weekly tempo and long run. My sister and I are driving three times a week to Lansing to practice with our team. It's been so much fun being back with everyone, meeting a few new faces, and feeling the anticipation grow as we approach our first race (August 21st) and X camp!
Friday: 6.5 miles (7:10 pace)
I met up with a friend who lives nearby and we ran downtown. She has been giving me some pointers on college running and it's been interesting hearing what she does for training. Later a bunch of kids from the summer running club came over for our final practice/party which went great! Finished up the day with the stretching routine (45 min).
Saturday: 10 miles (7:40 pace)
I drove to some nearby mountain bike trails in a state park and did my long run. I was tired by the end of it, but I enjoyed exploring some new trails and I felt accomplished afterwards.
Sunday: OFF
Today I took my weekly day off running. I just changed from a seven day week to a six the past summer and so far it's been a good way to recover more fully and mentally take a break. I did a bike workout with my mom (2 min hard, 1 min recovery) and finished up with the core/strength routine. Family Movie Night followed (one of my family's biggest weekly traditions)!
Monday: 6 miles (7:30 pace)
I biked to the High School to run. Occasionally I've run with the school's team on their off-season runs, but they were going somewhere else today. After a good warm-up (15 min) I ran downtown and in some nearby neighborhoods. I felt great although I felt more than ever the desire to be practicing with my team again! I finished up with some barefoot/hill strides. Stretching routine (45 min).
Tuesday: 6.5 miles (7:40 pace)
Today I ran on a nearby dirt road. I was a half mile out when I remembered I should probably get a hat and bug spray if I was going to run this route! The deerfly can be terrible sometimes out here! I really like this route because it's pretty, quiet, and shaded.
Wednesday: 6.5 miles (8:30 pace)
Today was the first practice of cross country season! It's exciting getting back with everyone and seeing how much the program is growing with all the new kids coming out for the first time! I ran with the rest of the varsity HS girls to a nearby park. It was a beautiful run and the company couldn't have been better! Core/Strength routine (1 hour).
Thursday: 8 miles (7:15 pace)
After a 15 min warm-up, I ran 3 miles easy and then went right into the tempo scheduled for today. As a medium effort workout the pace for the tempo (6:25) was a little slower than normal. Overall I felt strong and encouraged by this workout. Earlier I did the stretching routine with my mom and sis (45 min).
Total Weekly Miles : 43.5 Miles
