Training Log Archive: Kat

Biking to Shotover. Going uphill is hard...

C • Bottoms Up 2

OUOC training day at Shotover. Since many of us know Shotover quite well, this wasn't really technical training so much as team building and having some fun the weekend before the Varsity Match. The first exercise was a "trains" thing where people went out in groups of 3-4. One person would go first and set a few controls, then the others would follow, with the last one collecting the controls. With a different area, this could potentially be quite a fun "chase" activity, but none of the people in my group (including myself) felt like doing the first exercise very fast, so it was a pretty leisurely affair. (Distance is estimated.)

Running between the first and second exercises.

The second exercise was a 13-control course, which I decided to run all out. To give me some motivation, Joe said he would chase me from three minutes back. Well, obviously he had the advantage because he set out the controls, hadn't run the relays yesterday, and was faster, but it was still sort of demoralizing to see him at #6. On the other hand, he told me afterward that he absolutely blasted through the first few controls until he caught me, and then took it easy for a bit, whereas I was trying to keep the same fast pace throughout.

After the second exercise, we had a snowball fight. It was pretty funny because it was really sunny and warm today and all of the snow was gone except for this one huge chunk that was lying in the middle of a trail (leftovers from a snowman, perhaps). So we took turns hitting each other with snow. For some reason, it was ridiculously fun - definitely the highlight of the training day. I love OUOC!

Running with our bags to the assembly area after being stuck in traffic and arriving later than planned.

Warm-up running with some of the other Oxford girls after quickly changing and pinning on my numbers (two because I'd be running twice).

The Hyde Park Relays! The Oxford cross country club was supposed to put up several women's teams and at least two men's teams, but a lot of people have gotten sick recently with some flu, so instead of running on the second team as planned, I got to run on the "first" team with Courtney and Ali. Courtney ran first and came in first, then Ali was caught by a Birmingham girl and came in second. I was caught by one more girl and came in third, and finally Olivia was passed by Cambridge and somebody else to finish fifth overall.
The women's relay had four identical legs of 3.5km on pavement paths around Hyde Park. This seemed so short compared to the 6-7 km I've gotten used to running in races. I started out at the same pace I use in those races and wasn't really able to go much faster. My legs felt a bit heavy, despite having taken it easy this week. Also, I was running by myself the entire time, with nobody else around to spur me on, and I was running on paved roads (which I have a sort of mental block against). But even if my time wasn't very fast, it was still good training, which is the main reason I do these races, and it was fun!

The second race of the day (time is estimated because I didn't start my watch right away). Courtney had entered some of us for two relays, me included. So I ran the third leg on on the fast relay team and then the fourth leg on a slower relay team. This gave me a few minutes to regroup (no more than 2-3) between the two runs. Courtney told me that I didn't have to run if I didn't feel like it, but I felt good after the first one and decided I may as well jog the second one. The place and time didn't matter anyway. So in the beginning two girls passed me and I let them. But then I passed one of them back and stayed ahead of everyone else who had started behind me, which was nice. Instead of a jog, this second run was more of a tempo run. But rather than focus on speed, I tried to keep my shoulders relaxed and have a quick light stride. It's surprising that at a heart rate of 168 I feel like I'm cruising whereas at a heart rate of 175 I feel like I'm working. In both runs, the only time my heart rate got up around 180 was at the very end when I sprinted. This time, I started my sprint with about 200 meters to go because I actually knew where the finish was and also because there was a girl ahead of me who I decided to beat (and I did). So that was another fun run. It's such a good feeling to run fast and to enjoy it!

C • Not bad for a second run! 2

Cool-down jogging with a couple of the girls. After jogging on the pavement for a while, I switched to the grassy path right next to the road and immediately sped up. I swear there's just something about the roads which makes me go slower. Perhaps it's because I do most of my training on softer surfaces? Perhaps it's because seeing the paved path keep going for hundreds of meters ahead of me is a bit daunting. Or perhaps I was just tired. Not sure. But as long as I don't care so much about my times, running road races is good exercise and a good way to spend Saturday afternoon.

Another easy day.

C • Haha, check out Jagge's commen... 1

Easy run by myself in University Parks. So exciting to see snow everywhere! There were tons of people building snowmen and having snowball fights.

Core and stability.

Easy run with Scott around University Parks and then across the bridge through the meadows. Still quite muddy in some areas, despite the sun!

Core and stability again.

Easy run by myself in University Parks while looking at a Harriman map (Hogencamp Mountain). My legs still feel really sore and my right ankle (which I twisted again while side-hilling on Sunday) feels a bit odd. I'm going to take it easy this week.

C • contouring... 6

Just upper body, core, and stability stuff today.

A much-deserved rest day.

C • Welcome to the US Team :) 2

I am currently ranked 21st out of 182 women listed under W21L in the BOF ranking list. I can probably climb up a few more places, but cracking the top 15 would be tough. To see the list, go to
http://www.britishorienteering.org.uk/asp/rankings...
and click on "Full Ranking List covering all classes."

C • Wow, that's really cool!!! To... 9