My boyfriend, Michael, hates going into a meeting at work unprepared and is known to hole himself up in a conference room in the days leading up to a presentation to practice his speech over and over. I doubt anyone enjoys going into anything they care about feeling under
prepared. I am the same way when I get
on the track.
Usually, pro runners have a year-long build-up to their
spring and summer racing seasons. The
year starts in the fall, hopefully after a nice break from running; 2 to 4
weeks is typical. Runners slowly build
up their mileage, and I usually begin to do workouts a couple weeks after
returning to running. Depending on if
I’m racing cross country or indoor track in the winter, workouts start to be
tailored to the distance I’m focusing on.
In February or March, many professional athletes will spend some time at
altitude and change their focus to outdoor track. By spring they have had a long base-building
period, and bodies have slowly been sharpened for outdoor track during workouts
in the winter and early spring.
My year has been atypical – to say the least. After getting
surgery in late August, I spent the next three months cross-training. In November, I transitioned from the elliptical
and swimming to running on the anti-gravity treadmill. December was spent
transitioning from the anti-gravity treadmill to running on the ground. January, February, and March were spent
trying to get back in shape and losing my extra surgery weight. Beginning of April I did my first steeple
workout, and at the end of April, my first steeple race at Payton Jordan .
My goal at Payton Jordan
was to run sub-10:00, and I snuck under in 9:59 . I was pleased with the performance. It’s not anywhere close to my PR, but my
coaches have done an excellent job getting me in as good of shape as possible,
without injuring me, in the short time-frame.
But, I was exhausted after Payton Jordan . The steeplechase is a grueling race, and it
usually takes me a few days to recover, but a week out I was still feeling
lethargic. I felt more rested after
taking Sunday completely off, but I had to get going again quicker than I
wanted to for the Hoka One One Middle Distance Classic, which is tomorrow and 12 days
after Payton Jordan .
This season will continue to be an adventure and a test in
keeping my perspective. With not being
fully in shape, I have to continue to balance doing the races I need in order
to take the next step in the season (right now I need to qualify for Outdoor
Track Nationals by running under 9:53) with giving my body the rest it needs,
knowing that I’m asking it to do a lot after a very short build-up.
Even if I don’t achieve all my goals this season, I know it’s
a building year. The long term goal is
to be healthy and ready for Olympic Trials next June.
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