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Elise Dunshee
Week 1
Mon. Aug. 18th- My last first day of Wildcats Cross Country. I can't believe how fast the last three years have gone by. I feel like it was just yesterday that I walked to the basketball court behind Camillus Middle School and sat down behind Coach V's car for the first time, wondering what I could expect from Varsity XC. Three years and eight running seasons later, I am now one of a small group of dedicated seniors who know what it means and what it takes to run cross country.
Workout: Segmented general conditioning (GC) run and a short FARTLEK.
Tues. Aug. 19th-
Workout: 3000 meter time trial around the Outer Loop and a GC recovery run.
It's been a few months since we've really done any racing, so it was hard at first to settle into a faster pace, but it will get easier as we start to integrate some more speed work into our training in the coming weeks.
Wed. Aug. 20th-
Workout: 20 minute Threshold run in the Woods Loop and a short FARTLEK.
I think after three years I'm finally able to pace a threshold run properly! Threshold running definitely helps me with training for races, because I get to test how fast I can go for a prolonged period of time, while still staying somewhat comfortable and under control.
Thurs. Aug. 21st-
Workout: Long Run.
My training group: Carly, Grace, and I, ran a strong long run. We started off relaxed and then helped to push each other to keep a strong pace through the middle miles. We picked up the pace and tried to beat the impending rainstorm on the way back, but we unfortunately ended up back at the school dripping wet, a reminder that cross country runners have to be prepared to train in all types of weather.
Fri. Aug. 22nd-
Workout: Repeat 800s on the Inner Loop.
A good mental strengthening day, teaching us that we can push through when fatigued. The Inner Loop is one part of our course that many people struggle with, because it's hilly, long, and 'conveniently' located in the middle of the course, so this workout will hopefully help people to be more confident that they can run this part of the course well even when fatigued.
Sat. Aug. 23rd- Rest day.
Sun. Aug. 24th-
Workout: Relaxed one hour run.
Reflections on Week 1:
A good first week of transition from the more relaxed days of summer base-building to more race-specific training. And as we circled up for core drills Friday and us seniors moved to the center of the circle, I saw that it doesn't take long for us to realize that we have to step up and try to fill the shoes of the senior class before us and set a good example for our teammates. Already, I see our team, regardless of our differences in age, ability, and personality, coming together as a team that will hopefully become like a second family for all of us by the season's end.
Week 2
Mon. Aug. 25th- One of the questions our coach posed to our team many times this summer was: What are you willing to sacrifice to work towards fulfilling your potential as a runner? While there is an array of possible answers to this question, one answer that came to my mind was: comfort. Getting out of your comfort zone as a runner is something that many people (myself included) struggle with at times. This can hinder improvement, because if you panic and slow down when you start to feel bad or uncomfortable in races or hard workouts, you're not increasing your resistance/tolerance to signals of pain and fatigue, so you're not getting much faster in the long run. However, you can make a mental decision to be a better runner and increase your training effect and tolerance of fatigue by teaching yourself to push through discomfort. On our team, I'm proud to say that we have a lot of runners willing to get out of their training comfort zones and run stronger even when tired, in the name of making improvements in their training and earning PRs. In my training group, I'm lucky to have girls that support each other no matter what. But, we're also not afraid to push each other and we know that we can expect everyone to put in the hard work and effort that will only make our team better as a whole.
Workout: Figure 8 Hill Circuits and an 8-8-8 FARTLEK.
Tues. Aug. 26th-
Workout: Segmented/Timed GC.
Wed. Aug. 27th-
Workout: Five Interval 1000s on the Outer Loop.
A really good team workout. Each group picked either the third or the fourth interval as a "hammer interval" to just pick up the pace a little. My group chose the third interval as our "hammer," but then ended up going negative on the next one as well, proving that the base training we did this summer is working for us.
Thurs. Aug. 28th-
Workout: FARTLEK. and a timed GC.
Fri. Aug. 29th-
Workout: Blue v. Gold 5k Time Trial.
Possibly the best Wildcats XC tradition: two 'supposedly equal' teams, everyone scores, and the winning team eats first at the brunch afterwards. Both teams got really into it this year. Everyone wore their team's color and some people came up with team cheers (I was on the Blue team though, and we opted for being more intimidating by not making up a cheer, because a few of the guys said to, "let our racing do the talking.") Everyone really raced hard, and there were a lot of good 5k times and even a few PRs. I ran about a minute and a half faster than I did at the time trial last year, so I was happy with my race, even though I definitely could have gone out harder the first mile. After the race, we went on a recovery run and then enjoyed the delicious food in the cafeteria. Later we found out that the Blue team barely beat out the Gold. All in all, a good starting point for the competitive season ahead.
Sat. Aug. 30th- Rest day.
Sun. Aug. 31st-
Workout: I ran a one-hour long run with Carly in the neighborhood.
Reflections on Week 2:
The end of this week marks the tipping point into the competitive season. In another week and a half, we'll be racing, and I'm really excited to see what we can accomplish as a team this season. At this point, when we haven't raced that much, it's hard to try to "compare" this year's team to past teams. However, the time trial did give us some insight into this comparison. Our coach calculated the team cumulative time from the top five girls at the time trial last year (1:52:15) and then compared it to this year's top five cum time (1:46:49). We ran over five minutes faster than last year's team, even though we had one of our top runners not competing due to an injury. With Lindsay back in the game soon, all of us running well, and a lot of hard work in the months to come, I think it's going to be an interesting and exciting season.
