What's next?

Monday, November 19th

8:00 AM - 7.5 Miles, 50 min
River path

My hamstrings were tight starting out, particularly the right one. Started real easy and progressed into a comfortable pace as the legs loosened up. Overall, I felt pretty good. My body was definitely tired, so I know I ran hard yesterday... but mentally, I felt like I was ready to do it all over again. We have less than 3 weeks til nationals and I just want to get there as soon as possible. These next few weeks are just about maintaining what I have and feeling prepared for what lies ahead. I have worked really hard over the last 10 weeks in preparation for this so there isn't a whole lot more that I can do fitness-wise. You may ask, 'if that's the case, how will nationals be any different from NEs?' The truth is I'm not really sure. I felt like I ran as hard as I could yesterday, but at the same time, I believe I can run harder at Nationals. The reason for that is this... I know that my confidence, experience, and motivation will be so much more developed on that starting line because of what I did yesterday. There will be much more at stake and there will be no boundaries, therefore, I will refuse to fail.

The finish of NEs was just over a day ago, yet it has felt like an eternity ago. I have been showered by congratulatory messages and have had some long conversations with some close friends. All of this has reaffirmed in my mind how much I want this. --What is "this"?-- I can't really answer that right now. All I know is that I want it more than ever. My passion continues to grow with every step I take. I try not to get too far ahead of myself, but I can't help but start to think about the track season ahead. How will my current fitness translate onto that small rubber oval? Where do I set my goals and how do I continue to improve? I still have so many questions about myself that I want answered. I just have to be patient and be ready for each passing opportunity, because one of those opportunities could be my ticket to greatness.

Thanks again for all the messages and thank you to those of you that continue to believe in me.