Full Circle

Well I made it through my busy week of sorority recruitment, swimsuit fittings, school, and work. Recruitment went really well and we have a new pledge class of 16 wonderful girls! As a senior it was kind of weird to think that this was my last rush ever... So it was a bit sad and happy at the same time.

Me and my little sis!

 TNT girls all dressed up : )

We even run in heels!

Mmmmm dessert! I sampled every one ; )

Roomies and faves : )

Amidst all these activities I actually managed to stick to my running schedule! Since I couldn't make it to track Tuesday night because of recruitment, I swapped with my usual rest day Monday and squeezed in a quick 3 miles that night, then took Tuesday off. Wednesday I managed to squeeze in my 6 mile tempo and totally hauled ass! My tempo splits were 8:56, 8:48, and 8:48. That's nearly 30 seconds faster than my tempo pace last week! While I'm really happy with my times, I have to admit that it took a lot out of me. I had to do it in the middle of the afternoon when it was pretty warm, so I think that had something to do with it, but mainly I just pushed harder than I was used to. At least I know I'm capable of this pace though, and I'm sure that with time it won't be so hard! Thursday afternoon I did another easy 3 miles with my roommates to finish up my weekday workouts. Today was another rest day in preparation for my 10 mile race tomorrow!

The SB Chardonnay 10 Miler was my first race ever last year. Like this year, this local race was incorporated into our Team's training schedule. It's a strange feeling to look back and think of how much I've done in the year since that first race. I've truly become a runner, completing 3 full marathons, 4 halfs, and numerous shorter races. Sometimes I ask myself what I did before I ran... What did I do in my spare time? What did I spend my money on? Running is such a huge part of my life now that I can hardly remember when it wasn't! So tomorrow, I'll have come full circle in my first year as a runner. I have even bigger plans for the future, but I'll never forget the beginning. With that said, on to my goals for the race! A part of me (ok, a big part) wants to beat my time from last year (1:44). I think I'm definitely capable of shaving of at least a few minutes, but I'm still debating whether or not I should race it or run it for fun with all my girls. In a perfect world I could do both, but alas, the world is far from perfect. However I do think Jordan, my roommate and running buddy, is totally capable of maintaining the pace I would need to PR, so I guess we'll just have to see... Maybe I can have it both ways? Either way though, I'm sure it's going to be tons of fun!