People ask me why I train farther than what I am racing quite a lot. Simple answer: I love it. I love the freedom, the feeling of achieving a new PR, and knowing that the hard work I put forward now can take me farther when I get older. If I am at a comfortable pace, I don’t want to stop running. Although I train hard, my current cross-country times are nowhere near what I want them to be. When I read an article about Molly Huddle, I want to know what she does in training that makes her fast. The truth is: it’s not all about how much you run in training, it is also dedication and passion for the sport. Recently, I lost most of my confidence. I lost the spark of passion to run. After constantly doubting myself and finishing in disappointing times this season, I did not know what to do. After every race I would tell myself “I should have gone faster at this point” and “I should have stayed with her at this turn”, I was never satisfied. As a runner, improvement is always a goal. I hope one day I can look back on a race and say that I could not have went any faster. Many runners go through a plateau in their timing, you have to keep going. If you are not happy with the timing you finished, push harder and run faster. Remind yourself how far you have come and the feeling of achievement after a good race. My team competed at a local road race, The Mile Burnout. This weekend, my mind repeated the phrase: “It’s 0.5 of a mile out, 0.5 of a mile back in. That’s all, and then you are finished.” I finished placing 3rd Overall Female and around a 6 minute mile. I was not focused at all, but tried my best to just finish with a decent time. I am very proud of my team’s performance with a majority of them taking home a trophy in their age division. This Thursday, we will be competing at the Athens Bible Invitational. This is my first year racing in the 5K at this meet. I am hoping to improve my time, of course, but also improve my overall attitude toward the sport. This is our last meet of the regular season before we compete at Sectionals. It’s amazing how fast time flies during the season!