Let's DO THIS!

Yes.

I hope to get to go to OFSSA. To do this, I must be a top 3 individual, or in one of the top 2 teams. Since our Senior girls team always gets dead last... I must be a top 3 individual.

I got 10th at Bay of Quinte, and many of the people ahead of me were in the top 2 teams. So if you remove them... I would be 4th. The person I have to beat ran about 1:30 faster than me.

I think I might be able to shave 1 minute AT LEAST off my time. Then hope the adrenelaine will really kick in.

What one of the coaches.. not even a coach, just one of the gym teachers at my school said "Everyone at Cross Country wants the same thing, everybody has the same mindset and the same goal"

I agree. I can't agree more. But I want this... so bad. I feel like I can do it. I know I can. I can push it at COSSA. BUT WHAT DRIVES ME COMPLETELY NUTS is the way this is run. I have to qualify at cossa.. but if you look at ofssa's times from last year... I would've made 113/245 runners. So even though my time is amazing... I still won't qualify because everyone at cossa is really good.

Brb let me go switch districts.

Anyways, in other news, I am thinking I will do varsity cross country in univeristy. I was looking at the times at universities I want to go to, and yeah, I am going to get on the team. My time is about average of theirs. Maybe a bit higher.

UGH!

Anyways, my personal best is 22:13

I am trying to get it down to 21:00

Let's do this?

Yes.

Anyways, I have to do this by next wednesday. So I am going to all practices, I am going to run on Saturday, rest on Sunday, but I might do 2 runs on Monday and Friday (one in morning one afterschool) just so I can get in the extra practice.

If I don't make ofssa, well I can't really complain... well of course I can.

But nobody in moira in cross country has made ofssa in years...

Also, so far none of us have gotten any awards at any meets.

Kinda sucks.

But oh well. I wish I started this younger, but I am doing it now, and that is all that matters!

Avoidances

I have being avoiding so many things lately.

I knew that once school started, my fitness would begin to deteriorate! I have less time! So I have been working out like... 5 times a week.. for like 1-1.5 hours. I used to do like 2-2.5 hours about 5 times a week. I do have cross country... but that doesn't make up for much lost time... especially strength training.

But I just slowly moved slowly away from being determined to go to the gym... more assignments piled up and tests popped up. I tried going in the morning before school.. which doesn't work too well unless I only do strength training. I don't sweat as much then, so I can get away with not taking a shower, or just not washing my hair. Drying my hair takes too long...

I mean, sure. I'd have time, but I have to sleep.

So basically... I can't make excuses anymore. I might quit my one job. I've been saying this for 2-3 weeks now. I really don't know when I'll quit. If I do anytime soon.

So I guess I should be setting some more goals...

Well. Running first of all. Update! For cross country, I am a senior girl which means I run 5km. Out of our whole cross country team, it is mostly senior girls. I'm the only grade 12, the others are grade 11s.

Anyways, I went to the first invitational and I got 16th out of 61 senior girls! It was AWESOME! Except for the insane amount of hills, horse shit, sand, twigs, rocks and mud. But otherwise it was so fun! I ran 23:36 or something like that.

So my pace averaged 4:41.

I really REALLY want it down to 4:20. Bay of quinte is... in 19 days? If I run 16 of those days... and run 5km each time + do other things like speed training and I can do things like use the treadmill to keep my pace steady.... I might be able to do that. But it is still going to be a struggle... even if I can't get it down by BOQ... if I can get it down for COSSA I can make it to OFSSA! But honestly... its not like that is an unrealistic goal... but very difficult to make it to OFSSA. You must be in the top 3 from COSSA or in the top 2 teams (our team is dead last). I figure that based on COSSA results from last year, if I run a 4:20 pace I can be 5th. But if I run my 4:41 pace I would've been... 17th. GAHH! 3rd place runner last year ran at 4:11.

I'm so mad at myself for not starting running earlier! But thats okay. Maybe I'll do varsity in Uni.

But on the plus side, I am the fastest female runner at my school. :)

Okay other than the 4:20 goal...

I will work on my upper body strength. My arms are actually so weak. I work them out all the time, but something is just not working. I think I need to get more creative with my arm routine. Like going across monkey bars like a zillion times and weird shit like that.

Well. Now that I've got all of that off my chest...

Run run run

Running 5km. The only thing on my mind.

So last Tuesday I ran 5k in 27:40 something like that.
Then I was timed again on Friday and I did it in like 23:30.

If you are a runner, you understand this is a significant improvement. Even though on Tuesday it was extremely hot and Friday was nice and cool... this is still intensely different.

23:30... is an amazing time for a 16 year old girl to do a 5k. I would likely score in the top 20 at meets.... depending, obviously.

But I still want to make it faster. I want to run it in 20:00. Which would make me in the top 5 (likely would at least). That means I need an average of a 4:00/km pace.

Right now my pace is averaging at 4:42, but I run between 4:10-4:53 usually. But I usually am steady at 4:20-4:45. It basically averages out to 4:42.

I want to slash :42 seconds per km off of my time. That is insane. Insane. No. It is not. If I work hard, I might be able to do this. I just might have to throw up a few times (I mean this in the sense that when you work too hard you throw up, not in an anorexic way), pass out a bit, and maybe fall down a couple of times.

But I will do a LOT of training this week. I only can make practice Tuesday, and maybe Friday. I am going to do Monday and Thursday on the Treadmill at Goodlife. I like training on the treadmill because you can set in your pace, and so you know you are steady. I will do that Monday and Thursday. Sunday and Wednesday I will train by myself outside not at practice. Likely I will do some sprints as well. If I can get my 100m sprint down to 13 seconds, I might join track and field for 100m sprints in the Spring. But thats not what I am focusing on.

Right now (without trying too hard) my sprints are about 16 seconds.

But anyways.

I am planning on making OFSSA. Or I hope to.

HOLY FUCK. People made ofssa with times of 23:30! They got like 160th. But. Yeah. Having a time of 20:00 would be nice. I might get like 20th at Ofssa.

But I am not saying I am going. I just really hope I do.

Oh goodness I am now really pumped.

<3

Where am I going with this?

Hi. I still have not blogged about my HALF MARATHON!

AH! I did it! 2:01:42.7? Something like that. The 2:01 part is right. I came 2nd for my age and sex. Which was UNEXPECTED!

Amazing.

Anyways. After I ran it, my mom said "So where are you taking this?" in reference to my running. Of course, I didn't know. Would I try to improve my time/pace? Would I try to work towards a marathon?

I really didn't know.

Now I do.

I joined cross country at school! I am hoping to get to COSSA. I need to attend 16 practices (which should hopefully work out).

But the coach said something about a pace of 4:00min/km is what she would like us to be at, but 5:00min/km is best. For senior girls this is a 5km race. The half marathon is 21km. So that is not the issue.

The issue is my pace. My pace running the half marathon was 5:46min/km. Which is actually not a bad pace... for a half marathon. But I need to make my pace faster and run less.

I used to go for 10-15km runs to train, a couple of times a week. Now I need to go for faster and shorter runs to train.

I don't see it being an issue. I tried a 5km run with a faster pace the other day, and my pace was around 4:35min/km. But of course, I definitely want to bring it down. Just a lot of training.

Time and persistence give you results.

Thats all it takes.

Lesssgooo. 

Halfie...

The half marathon is coming up so quick! Oh my goodness! I actually am so nervous/excited. I am nervous, more just because it is social interaction. *cough* nerd.

I am excited to run though! Hopefully this will boost my speed!

I had a dream the other night that I finished the Half-marathon at 2:04:58 (2 hours 4 minutes 58 seconds). But in my dream I realized I forgot to wear the tracker anklet (so they know your exact time). So I was disqualified.

I always thought that it would take me about 2:20 - 2:30 to finish it. But I realized that my pace will probably put me at 2:08. I have to run 9 seconds a mile faster to reach 2:04. Amazing right? So I might be able to do it!

But I keep forgetting, I shouldn't make a time goal my first time around! I just should make the goal to finish the half-marathon! I am just so excited!

But in all honesty. I will probably finish anywhere in between 2:08-2:18.

Compared to the (only 61) runners last year, that would put me in 26th-48th in the race. So not last. Not first. But whatever. I'm EXCITED!

In other news, my mom is making me stay at her friend's house during this time in Ottawa. I want a hotel. I said I'd pay for it. My mom STILL doesn't want that. Mom, you can go visit your friend but I don't want to.

Anyways, thats it for now!

Toodles.

Fitness stuff I want

I need new running shoes. I got bored and decided to look around at different shoes, then I decided to make a blog out of it.

Nike Free Run Shoes
I want to try them on before I get them but theres a lot of hype about them. Plus I am going to need a new pair of runners soon!

http://www.footlocker.com/product/model:175880/sku:10643002/nike-free-run-+-3-womens/black/grey/?cm=GLOBAL%20SEARCH%3A%20KEYWORD%20SEARCH#sku=10643004

Vibram Five Finger shoes
Yes, they look ridiculous. But yes, I REALLY want them. Yes, I am willing to be made fun of for wearing them. Runners are built up like that. You are GUARANTEED to be yelled at while running, especially after 7pm. The other day one guy literally yelled "I wanna see that ass naked" at me. I don't think he was as straight to the point as I was hoping. Sarcasm.

Either the Treksport ones

or the Spyridon LS ones

I'm too lazy to look now. But I am going to get a new pair of runners, and some of those type of shoes, soon. Hopefully!

I'm not an Athlete + Why I run

Today on my run I remembered something...

As a kid I never considered myself athletic. Even now I don't. Now I just say that I am active, because really... what sports can I play? (Cricket Noise)

But as a kid I played softball and eventually basketball. I gave up on basketball in grade 7 when I didn't make Harry J's team. :(

But I briefly remembered something else. Once as a kid I decided to be healthy... randomly. Allow me to explain. I decided one day that I would fill up my Heart and Stroke foundation water bottle, and grab my jump rope and my bicycle and I would spend quote "All day" outside exercising. I was probably 7. Also, I probably lasted 20 minutes before I gave up/my mom made me stop.

Right before I left Lyndhurst in grade 5 I decided "I would do everything". Meaning clubs. So what did I do? I signed up for choir. I signed up for cross country. What happened? I fucking moved to Belleville.

Why do these things happen to me?

The other day I told myself that I probably would've never started running if I never moved to Belleville. But now I am remembering cross country. Would I have given it up if I lost, like I did with Basketball? Or would I have continued like I said I would have? I actually don't know. I probably would've given up, but if I didn't that statement I said about moving to Belleville isn't true.

Oh. You know what? I don't think I have ever explained WHY I started running. Oooh. Thats awkward... well I sort of have.

Back in November 2011 is when I finally decided to "start running". Trust me, I sucked. I barely could run for 3 minutes straight. I felt so happy when I ran without stopping to a song... I think it was Katy Perry.

But the reason I started THEN was because I wanted to start exercising more.

Then as I said before, I started running even more in February 2012 when I joined the gym. This time was because I wanted more cardio, so I decided to start running for cardio.

Somewhere around March/April/May ish I started running outside. I really don't remember when. Probably April. But THEN I started running because it was a goal. A goal inspired by, as I have said before.... ShayCarl on youtube. As you may know, he lost a lot of weight and has now ran 1 half marathon and 2 full marathons. Before he ran his first marathon this year (The LA Marathon) I decided I wanted to run a marathon someday.

And you know the rest.

But basically right now the reason I am running is for cardio and because I don't want to embarass the shit out of myself at the Halfie. Which is in.... 21 days?! WHAT. HOLY SHIT. That is 3 weeks.

The most I have run is 11.5 miles. The halfie is 13.1 miles. I told myself that I know I can run it as long as I have run at least 10 miles. I am still hoping to run 15 miles before the halfie though.

Tata for now ;)