Thursday, May 19, 2011
afternoon training: (drizzling)
Bike to the track (30min)
10min warm up, static stretching
Drills, the usual
3 x 80m strides on grass
3 x 80m strides in spikes
200+100 (30"rest). Where is the speed??? Low 28", low 13", self timed. I tried to run as relaxed as possible. It worked, but not fast 
20min rest
Bike back (30min)
1 hr walk with mom
Friday, May 20th, 2011
half hour easy biking
10min warm up, stretch
drills, the usual
3 x strides
tempo:
Long circuit, rest (2200m)
100+100 (200m)
100++100++100++100++100 (500m)
(total 2900m)
tempo form felt better than ever. Maybe there’s some kind of tempo competition I can enter in.
Sorry these journals are not so interesting with drama etc, but I’m overwhelmed with life right now !!! Training makes me tired, and phd needs to be doneeeeee (in 6 months).
Saturday, May 21st, 2011
half hour biking
10min warm up, stretch
drills, the usual
3xstrides on grass
2xstrides in spikes
Feeling tired.
I also have a minor injury to the inside of my right angle (since 5 days ago, but nothing major), and since my shin also hurt, I decided not to do another one.
15min biking, flat tire.
1hr walking… Oh boy.
2hrs sleep
Sunday, May 22nd, 2011
passive rest (ping pong, but that doesn’t count, I think)
Monday, May 23rd, 2011
afternoon abs and other exercises
evening:
10min warm up
100+100+100+
100+200++100+100+
100+200++200++100+
100+100+100+
100+100+100 (total 2000m)
5min cool down
^%^#$#%&&*(&Y$%#$^$%#$%@ (breath in… breath out)
(inner ankle pain… I have to resolve this)
session failed today
meet tomorrow??? (400m)
World University Challenge on Saturday, in Paris (200m, 800m)
Don’t feel any pressure to do any of the above!
can you explain?
Hey Nick!
Saturday is a bit of pressure, as our team captain is all into this and wants many many points!! But the organizers stress in the emails: “key words for this extraordinary journey: conviviality and relaxed encounters”. Let’s see!!!
John, I started having niggles about a week ago, but as I’ve never experienced pain there before (inside of the right ankle,exactly in the middle, hurting especially with spikes on and while applying pressure, and also when stretching the foot upward and towards the right direction - if that makes any sense), I thought that maybe I just twisted it on the grass; this usually goes away quickly (in my experiences).
Last Thursday’s session was somewhat painful, but it was drizzling then, and I thought ‘oh, it must be the humidity’
Saturday was ok, and also Monday’s tempo was ok.
Tuesday (yesterday) it hurt with everything; warming up, strides, spikes especially. The meet today did not happen (I didn’t even go). I’m hoping to be fine on Saturday so that I can eventually get rid of the niggle all together, because I’m running in Paris regardless (there’s a minimum number of girls who have to run in order to have a complete team to participate and I’m committed to run.
I think I can resolve this with EMS, strength exercises, icing etc.
Today I did general weights, and it felt better already. I hope it’s a matter of ‘equilibrium’/strength; this I can deal with 
Wednesday, May 25th
Today: 1hr total biking, very light jogging and 1hr general strength.
Thursday, May 26th, 2011
Things are ok on grass.
20x100m tempo.
Traveling in a short while.
Trip to Paris tomorrow !
I’m overall nervous. (with everything)
Out of my comfort zone …
Have you been to Paris before?
Good luck on saturday. Hope you’re pain free by then.
Thank you myway !! I’m not gonna think about it and I should be ok.
Never been to Paris before, vedette
(I’m in Italy right now. 7am BUS to Paris tomorrow with the team Oh boy !! )
Enjoy! I hope you have some time to walk around.
[u]Paris was nice but tiring and injury-related !! Overall a ‘good’ experience though.
Just to give all the statistics of the conditions (and a video too!), Thursday night I traveled to Bergamo and then slept 3hrs. Then I took the train(40min) to Milan, and we got on the bus, and 16hrs later (:p) we arrived to Paris. But what a wonderfulll ride!!! The sceneries were beautiful, especially around the Italian-French borders; a route that I’ve heard much about in the past, but got the privilege of experiencing it for the first time with this great opportunity. The team was also wonderful, and I never thought that 16hrs would cruise along my conscience so smoothly and un-noticeably!
When we arrived, we got settled in, and then only had time for 5hrs of sleep until the next day’s meet.
Needless to say, how AWFUL we all felt the next day But the meet was just ridiculous =P, with lots and lots of noise, mascots, soccer games going on in the infield, lots of food!! (nutella crepes, cakes, juices, cookies, granola bars and candy, which we had to ‘wisely’ consume, hahaha).
My 800m was at 11 in the morning, and I only cared to finish ahead enough for the finals, so I stuck behind the first lady, and comfortably finished in 2:32.
Here is my race. I’m in the bright yellow shirt and short tights, starting second from the right, and always in second place. My 400 split was 68, which was surprising to me to be honest, as it felt rather easy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCQyr_gorWY
But in the end I wasn’t so relaxed, my hamstrings were too tight (well I guess it’s natural), and I had a mini-allergic reaction 5’ later (not so natural !) , with constant sneezing, runny left eye, runny nose, sun-sensitivity, and a vast headache… for the next 5 hours… I honestly started thinking that another 800 would be a baddd idea (I really felt SICK, I suppose all the stress accumulated after the 800). But the more bad news appeared while warming up for the 10x800m (yes, you read right =PPP ), as I felt my ankle really bother me.
Anyway, I told the captain before the relay that the relay would be my last race, and as I felt extremely bad (I would have to be substituted for the final in the 800, and the final in the 10x200, which we were sure we would make). He told me not to be silly and that I should take care of myself. So unlike U.S.-colllege-philosophy; “leave your body on the track”.
The 10x200m was so much fun !! I also felt fast, because I was going against guys and although I did have a head start when I got the baton, against guys, no one managed to pass me, yipee…
(I don’t know my split… ).
Then I waited for 1 hour on the line for the orthopedist, who made me jump through the roof when he pressed hard on the spot that hurt, and he thought that I could have a stress fracture. How nice.
So now I am pretty much working on strength, EMS and not running for the week, keeping track of the pain, and then I will resume with some grass, which seems to feel fine.
Looking back, as my foot didn’t really hurt before the 800, it was probably a very bad idea running in sprinting spikes for 800m.
And now that I’m in race-mode, let the recovery begin… How lovely.
Staying in Milan for a week, and then Athens on Tuesday. Probably Dejan will fix me up =)))
To wrap up:
Friday, May 27th, 2011
no running
16hrs bus ride
Saturday, May 28th, 2011
-warm up
Sunday, May 29th, 2011
Monday, May 30th, 2011
Tuesday, May 31st, 2011
Wednesday, June 1st, 2011
-15min bike to the gym
1hr weights
Foot doesn’t hurt at all today, but I’ll take it easy running-wise this week until I get my x-ray on Tuesday, just to make sure…
No comments at all after my very first race of the year 
It seems you had quite a great experience overall, with the trip, sceneries and teammates. It sounds like you had a lot of fun.
Very nice race, thanks for posting that video, you looked comfortable throughout the race… do you happen to have a video of the 10x200m as well?
Hoping the X-Ray comes out negative and you’ll get better soon. Take good care of that foot.
Thanks ! No video for the 10x200, which is too bad, because it was tons of fun !!!
I HOPE SO TOO !!! I’m thinking very positively and it should be ok
Thursday June 2nd
x-ray is on Tuesday, come on Tuesday come closer…pffffffffff…
Friday, June 3rd
1hr kaleisthetics
Saturday, June 4th
-15min bike to gym
10min bike warm up
bike tempo:
4x 2min hard, 1min rests
4x 1.5min hard, 1min rests
2x 1min hard, 30" rests
cool down
1hr weights and abs
Rain rain rain !!!
The university coach gave me an extra sweatshirt as a gift because I ‘sacrificed’ my health at the meet 
He was feeling a big guilty for passing over some negative energy prior to the meet, with his worrying about my on-time arrival to Milan (from Greece) and all, and we had a small ‘raise of the tone’ back then. So sweet…
I need to run already… !!
Sunday, June 5th
Time is fast.
1hr biking in the rain, to get the rain out of my head
My legssss hurt from lack of my normal trainin. I can barely sit for 15min straight =O
Despite all that, things are good
EMS: 25min strength on glutes. EMS on glutes turns me on… It’s not so practical.
Travel to Athens on Tuesday