What is your favorite type of cross training?

I absolutely love the spin/stationary bikes. I feel that is probably the best cross training to get my heart rate up. Aqua jogging doesn’t bother me but I can’t get as much of a workout as I can on the bike. Plus I feel my legs are still working really hard.

What is your favorite song to run to?

Honestly, I love anything that is upbeat. It can be rap, country, pop, rock, indie etc. As long as it has a good rhythm and beat I will enjoy running to it!

What brand of shoes do you wear?

I wear Nike Structure Triax +13 or +14 for training.

I wear Nike Jana Stars for cross country and track.

However, I am hoping to get some Nike racing flats for track because when I race the longer distances on the track such as the 5k and hopefully the 10k, I will definitely want racing flats instead of spikes. Personal preference.

Right now my racing flats are Saucony Grid Fast twitch

Do you wear a hat when you run?

No I do not. I also don’t wear sunglasses. I mainly don’t wear hats because I have so much hair to begin with, that a hat would seriously make my head so hot. I don’t wear sunglasses because I don’t have trouble seeing when I run, probably because I tend to look at the ground when I run because I am so clumsy that I will most likely trip if I don’t.

But that’s only when I train and in the woody areas in cross. Otherwise when racing, head is up. Promise lol

What temperature is your favorite for running?

mid to high 40’s. Perfect weather for shorts and a t shirt. But if I want to tan and I’m just training then I love 50’s and 60’s. Perfect sports bra and shorts weather. But racing conditions I prefer 40’s to low 50’s.

Do you have any big races coming up?

Not big races, but I have a race coming up on the 4th of July and one on August 6th. Those are the only two races I am doing this summer. One is a downhill mile that is fun, I did it last year. The other is a 5k cross country kickoff that I also did last year.

What is your favorite distance?

Half marathon. <3 it, truly. I have done one so far and I absolutely fell in love with it! I think I smiled for a lot of it because I was just truly loving the experience. I didn’t race it, I just ran to finish it and now I really want to race one. However, I can’t until after college. Then I plan to run some marathons as well, but I don’t think they will come close to my love for half marathons.

 

HAH pretty sure if I was actually racing I would not be smiling or waving, that is for sure.

 

Are you a morning, noon, or evening runner?

This is a funny question. If I have people to run with then definitely morning. But when I am just training by myself it’s really hard to get myself up out of bed therefore I result to evening runs because it’s too hot during the afternoon.

Do you run solo or with a buddy?

In the summer I train mostly everyday by myself and I end up doing the same route everyday as well hah. Every season but summer I train with my team <3

What is your favorite post run snack?

Chocolate milk! A huge glass of chocolate milk afterwards is my favorite. Otherwise I love ice pops currently after I finish running. It’s so hot that they are just so delicious to have after my run. Honestly I have to consume liquid calories after I finish running because usually I can’t even think about food until I have cooled down.

What is your favorite race?

Hmm, this year I absolutely LOVED racing the 3k. Especially indoor! I am getting so pumped about indoor season and hopefully actually competing this year. Indoor track is nice because there is no wind and that makes me happy.

If we are talking about actual races that I have done then I guess probably the Go! St Louis Half Marathon has been my favorite race throughout my running career. I just loved the atmosphere of it and how many spectators were there. But also running through St Louis was cool.

OH another fun race I did was the I-64 run. After they redid the highway they opened it up to runners and bikers before cars and they had a race. That was really cool because it’s not everyday you get to run down the highway. It also is extremely hilly and I never realize that driving in the car.

Do you wear a Garmin? If not, how do you track your distance?

I LOVE my garmin and I wear it 99.9% of my training runs. I like knowing how far the routes I run are to get an accurate mileage for the day. I also have it auto lap my mile splits which is nice. Some days you just feel awful and it’s nice to see “oh I actually wasn’t running that bad” or “dang, what happened” when looking at the times. It helps me see how I improve, especially when I run the same route everyday.

What is my least favorite race?

Every high school race my senior year honestly. It was always a question whether I would finish the race or if I would be carried off the course. One race in particular I remember and I was running JV as a senior because I was so bad. However, I was in the top 10 of the race and was feeling great. Then I hit the mile (like usual) and collapsed to the ground. My dad had to carry me off the course and I was crying. I remember him telling me “you better be crying because you hurt and not because you didn’t finish.” Honestly I was more frustrated that I couldn’t finish the race and upset with my legs. I think that day I knew I had to do something about my legs.

The races I did end up finishing, it was with a time worse than my freshman year. I can honestly say high school races were the worst but senior year made me feel worthless.

Where is your favorite medal from?

Ha, I didn’t really get many medals since my high school experience was not a great one. The medals I did receive were JV medals but I still loved them. I guess my favorite medal is my half marathon one because with that race I planned to just run to finish and thought that a 1:45 for just running was extremely high of a goal. And yet I did it and I couldn’t of been more happy about hitting 8 flats easily for 13.1 miles at that time in my running career. It was my goal after having my surgery. I used to not be able to run a mile because of my legs and yet I just accomplished 13.1 at 8 flat pace. It was surreal and was a new chapter to my running career.

 

Who is your running idol?

I have many running inspirations but I think I inspire myself the most. I never thought I would say that I would be my own inspiration but it’s true. I push myself so hard and work for everything I do. There are so many moments I could have given up, especially having so many people tell me how I would never be fast. My past coaches particularly were ones with that attitude or who never believed I was injured and that I was faking my legs hurting. I relearned how to walk after my surgery, started running weeks before expected and made it on a division I collegiate track and cross country team. To know I’ve made it this far and went from the possibility of losing the ability to use my legs to competing against girls I would never dream of is what truly pushes me.

How long have you been a runner?

Well pretty much my whole life. I always loved having my mom or dad time me. If they needed something I would say “I’ll get it, but time me!” The time never mattered to me but having them think I was fast did. I didn’t have middle school track or cross country and I didn’t know about track clubs at that age. All I knew was that when the track part of gym came around for the year, I was pumped. I spent many gym sessions skipping “Mat Ball” or “Jail Break” to re-time my mile to improve. I actually started training with running my freshman year of high school.

Do you run with your wedding/engagement ring on?

I don’t have a wedding/engagement ring. But I have two rings that Alex gave me that I always wear, so yes I run with them on.

the other ring I wear is a claddagh ring.
What is your favorite workout? tempo? long run? fartlek? repeats?

I never considered a long run a workout, but I do love long runs. However, if we are talking about actual workouts for speed then my favorite workouts are ones with long breaks in between haha! Seriously as long as I get a break I don’t care how far I’m running. We did 24 x 400 meters one day and it didn’t even phase me because I got decent rest between each one. I guess I like fartleks too because the “off” time you get where you aren’t going hard is a nice rest. HATE tempo runs and hill workouts. HATE the workout we did that was 2 x 3 mile repeats. I think I almost died and never wanted to run again that day.

What is your favorite place to run?

Scenic routes and places I’ve never ran before. I like to find routes that are pretty and save those for once a month occasions so I don’t get tired of them. I enjoy flat trails that go through nice wooded areas.

Do you use Gu?

I have never used GU because I haven’t ran far enough to need it. I have tried it before in sports nutrition class and GU sent me some but since I don’t run long enough to use GU I have no reason to use it. If I was running a full marathon then yes I might use it, or maybe I’d just pop skittles and m&ms into my mouth haha.

What do you drink to keep hydrated?

WATER! Powerade, Gatorade, and chocolate milk. Honestly that is all I drink right there. Sometimes I’ll drink juice but it’s extremely sugary and hurts my stomach. I also LOVE smoothies but have those on occasions.

What do you take with you on a run? Does it vary by distance?

I take my garmin with me, ipod shuffle, and roadID with me. I’m also going to start carrying a dollar with me on my runs. Just in case I would need a drink on my run, especially since I’ve been told I most likely am hypoglycemic and tend to have low blood sugar, it would be a good idea to have money on me in case I needed some drank on the run hah.

 

Now it’s your turn! I want to see you fill out this too because I will love to see your answers!