I represented my county school again at the inter-counties match last Saturday. I was entered as a guest following my 3rd place at my county schools championships in which I was put in the wrong time trial, so I won my race but was 3rd overall. This meant I was a guest runner at this event.
I have also just completed a parkrun this morning, and got a new PB by 6 seconds, 20:23. However, I wanted to get sub-20 minutes, and would like to achieve that by the end of the year. I was the first female back out of a field of 384 runners, though, which I was very pleased about. I have noticed something recently when running - that girls are not the same as boys. This may seem obvious, but if you are a girl and you seem to be hitting a plateau or even running slower than you'd like, don't panic, keep persevering. Boys get their growth spurt and suddenly they are a lot stronger and quicker than they were even a month ago. Girls' hormones work a little bit differently: they don't get the straight performance enhancer like boys. So don't worry if you're running with boys and then they get a lot faster all of a sudden, just keep persevering - your significant improvements with come, they will just be gradual.
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Last weekend, I competed in my first track league meeting of the season. I participated in the 1500m and the 4x300m relay. I came 3rd but 2nd in the A-string and got 5:01 as my time, a better time than I achieved at that meet last season, which is a good way to start the season, even though that is still some 7 seconds off my actual PB. I was probably the eldest racing, as it was U15 girls (Year 9s and 8s) and I am a Year 9.
In the 4x300m, which is not my best event, our team came 2nd, which is good. I do not know our times, but half of our team were distance runners and not sprinters! Tonight I have training, 4 x (500m - 30 sec rest - 100m) with a 3-4 minute rest in between each set. Hope your running is coming along well. I am very sorry that I haven't written on this blog for almost a year! Since then I have run in the national cross-country championships, represented my county in the national inter-county championships and the English Schools.
In the nationals I came 60th out of 426 - that was one of my best races of the season. It was very muddy and hilly: a course that apparently suited me! In the inter-counties I came 99th out of 295, and that one was against Scotland as well. There were less people in that race because that was the elite - the eight best runners from each county were taken to race there, whereas the nationals had the 'anyone can enter as long as they run for a club' rule. And then in the English Schools I came 107th out of 344. This was, again, the best runners from every county, however it was through the Schools (even though I was still racing against the same people). This race was against my year (year 9s) and year 8s, although the nationals and inter-counties were against my year and year 10s. However the course for the English Schools was fast and flat, something that suited other runners rather than myself as I'd been doing lots of hill training over the winter! Now I am moving into the track season. I will race against my year and year 8s again, like the English Schools, and my first event is next week. I am very excited and can't wait to get onto the track. Something I've learnt over the cross-country season is that the type of course the race is on plays a large - not a deciding, but a large - part on how the race unfolds. It is because of this that I also love the track: every course is the same, running round a flat 400m track for however many laps. Hope your running/exercise is going well! On Sunday the 18th of May I competed in the county championships. I came 5th in the county in the U15 girls 1500 metres and considering there were Years 8 and 9 racing (and I am a Year 8) I think I did quite well. However, only one Year 9 came above me and she won! I didn't get a PB (5:11 as opposed to 5:03) and my coach and I agreed we need to work on my start as it was too fast - and the girl who won gradually made her way up to the front throughout the course of the race. So a fast start helps, but only if you can carry it on all the way through!
Then I missed a training session at our usual training place on Monday, so I did the session at school at our school athletics club. It was 2x(4x(200 metres then a 90 second rest)) with a 3 minute recovery in between each set of 4. I felt good but because our school track is a 200 metres grass track with a slight hill on it and so it is harder, physically and psychologically. And today I have been out for a steady/tempo 3 mile run. I felt really good today, especially as the course was hilly. I got 4:20 average kilometre time, which is good for that! Happy running! On Wednesday, I had a Watford Open Meeting in which I was competing in the 1500 metres. I was really looking forward to it as I could attain a good time there... Only to find out I was ill and my body was not co-operating with what I wanted it to do (which was to run fast!) and I received the ok time of 5:19, which would have still beaten my previous best from last season, but it wasn't the best I could have run and I was disappointed. I shouldn't have gone, I had a sore throat and runny nose beforehand but I really wanted to go, and the 2 hour drive back home was quite quiet as I slept through most of it! Consequently I had to stay off school the next day as I had contracted a temperature and had got into bed and asleep at 10:15pm (which is late for me, as an athlete, as I get more sleep).
However, these illnesses only last certain amounts of time, and being quite fit and healthy most of the time, I managed to get out to a hills session on Saturday morning in the scorching heat, having missed the session on Thursday due to my illness and a rest day on Friday. The heat played its part and I was slowly getting back into it. Yes, I was at the back, and yes, I didn't do as many as the older ones in my group did of the hills, but I could barely feel the aftermath of the cold I had had. And then I did an easy run on Sunday with my Dad, again in the scorching heat, and I felt like I could have gone so much faster! Which is a good thing, which meant I was getting better - running-wise and health-wise. However, Monday was amazing. I had the best training session I've had for a long time (4x400m, 4x300m, 4x200m) where I kept up with the older ones in my group and could not feel the cold/illness at all! I also felt really good even though I felt dead at the end because I'd done the same amount as the older ones but I was ready to push myself as I have the county championships on Sunday and I want to go for a medal in the 1500 metres, which is the event I am doing. I hope you haven't got too many illnesses like me and I hope your running is going well! Happy running! I did a pakrun today - and got 23:11. My PB (personal best) is 21:15. I wasn't disappointed, however, as I had to do the first mile slowly and the second two miles fast - or at 90%. But I find it very difficult to run at 90% and not 100%! However I think I did it ok today and felt like I could have gone a little bit faster - that's 90%, isn't it? (5 kilometres is just over 3 miles (3 miles is 4.8 kilometres to be precise), but the parkrun I did is just under 5 kilometres). Well done if you got up and did a parkrun today - or any run in general! Happy running! Just a quick update on what I did yesterday. I did a 1500 metres in the YDL and I got 5:03.18, a new club record! I also did an 100 metres in 18.33 seconds but I was saving myself for the 1500 metres - hence why I did it so slowly!
I've also just been out for an easy 4 mile run to, in a way, warm down from my competition yesterday. Going back to what I said yesterday about parkrun, you don't have to do one, but it's just a great way to get fit if you want to, and if you look on the parkrun website, on the newsletter, there are so many inspirational stories on there - it's just if you're looking for something friendly and can't get out and do a run on your own, then parkrun is a great thing for you. Happy running! Hello again. In the Open meeting I mentioned in the previous post, I did the 800 metres and got a new PB, 2mins 31 seconds! This was 4 seconds off my previous PB, set last year on July 26th when I raced for my county. Then I did the 300 metres and got a new PB (because I'd never done it before!) of 48. something seconds. I think that was alright considering I'd never done a 300m before.
I have a league race today, the YDL. I am racing in the Under 15 girls category, where I am the youngest year racing (I am in Year 8). I'm racing in the 1500 metres B string. Hopefully I can get a medal! I'm aiming for a PB - my current one is 5:33. However, I haven't done a 1500m, again since last year, and I'm faster now. I would also like to point out about parkrun. You may be aware that the Little Stoke council are trying to charge the Little Stoke parkrun - the parkrun community managed this dilemma very well. So, I really encourage you to do a parkrun. If you can't muster up the courage to do it, I can assure you (having done 28 parkruns myself) that the atmosphere is extremely friendly and they welcome everyone of all abilities. If you're not sure where your nearest one is, search it up! If you don't know what time it is, it's 9 am until whenever you finish. This means it doesn't take up much of your day, yet you can still get up and do it! Happy running! Hello! I haven't written for ages, so happy New Year for ages ago.
For the last league race, I came 10th, finally achieving Top 10! Then I did the Southerns race at Parliament Hill, with a really steep hill in it, even bigger than the Hill of Doom, and this hill was right at the start of the race. I came 102nd out of 267 I think. Next, I competed in the Schools races. I ran for my school, and won! Then I ran for my district, and came 14th, but 7th out of the Year 8s (it was against Year 9s as well, as was the race where I won!) Then I raced against Year 8s and 9s again, where I raced for my county, and I came 64th I think, out of about 150, maybe. Finally, and this is my most recent race - and last cross-country of the season - I raced for my county again, just against Year 8s, and I came 12th. I was very happy with that performance as I got out well, took the hills well, and had a good finish! Now, it's to the track. I was signed up to compete at an Open Meeting, in the 3000m, but unfortunately it got cancelled. Thankfully, I have another Open Meeting on Sunday, where I will most probably be competing in the 800m and either 600m or 300m - or 1500m and either 300m or 600m. Then in two weekend's time, on Saturday, I have a league meet. I don't know what distance and/or event I will be competing in yet, but it will probably be 1500m or 800m, as you cannot do both at a league meet. I will be racing against Year 9s and possibly Year 10s... so I'll just try and keep up with them! I will probably get a good time though. Happy running! Sorry I haven't written for a month! Anyway, here is the update on my cross-country running:
I think I pointed out last post, or the one before, that I came 13th in the first League event; there have been four altogether. I wanted to get top 10 on at least one of the races. The next one came up, and I came 11th. It had the Hill of Doom on it (a really steep hill we had to run UP). Afterwards I came 13th again on the 3rd League race. Then there was the District Schools Cross Country, which was against schools in my district (not county). It was Year 8 and 9 Girls and I am Year 8, and I won that! Next it was back to the League, and the last race of the League this season. I came 10th but I should have been 8th but two girls sprinted past me near the finish. At least I managed Top 10! Hopefully whatever sport you have chosen is getting along well! Merry Christmas - at time of writing, 8 sleeps to go! |
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April 2017
If you are finding it hard to get into running, I highly recommend parkrun. It is very welcoming and encourages people of all abilities to get fit and have fun!
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