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
- 800m
- warm up
- 200m
Sunday, May 29th, 2011
- no running
- 6hrs walking around Paris!
Monday, May 30th, 2011
- off and sleep
Tuesday, May 31st, 2011
- 15min biking
- 20min biking
- 1hr and 15min weights (including >1000 abs)
- 15min biking
(EMS to follow)
Wednesday, June 1st, 2011
-15min bike to the gym
- 30min bike tempo:
warm up
14x 1’ hard, with 30" recoveries
cool down
1hr weights
- 15min bike back
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
- active recovery hamstrings
- relaxing massage calves
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
Is everything OK? What happened with those x-rays?
Hope you’re feeling better.
Yes, sorry for the delay in reply
X-rays did not show a stress fracture, yippeeeeeeeeeee , but it’s tendonitis, so now trying to get rid of that, by training on soft surfaces (which doesn’t bother it), taking voltaren and ems-ing calves.
Most of the training so far has been tempo (100s, also tried 300s the other day with no problems), and some weights.
Monday, 6th:
Still in Milan: 15min biking, 15min biking tempo and 1hr weights
Tuesday, 7th: (fly to Athens)
x-rays
30min run, 2 strides (strides were a little uneasy on the foot)
Wednesday, 8th:
15min warm up
20x100m tempo runs on grass, jog 100m recoveries (all excellent)
Thursday; 9th:
morning:
10min warm up
4 x 300m (not timed)
10 x 100m
evening:
20min run
Friday, 10th:
10min warm up
7 x 300m tempo (1:00-1:30rests)
Saturday, 11th
went to watch a track meet
warmed up and cooled down with a friend
Excellent. 
Sunday, 12th
- 10min warm up
- tempo:
100+100+100+
100+200++100+100+
100+200++200++100+
100+200++100+100+
100+100+100+
100+100+100+100
(total 2600m)
Monday, 13th
- 30min warm up/run
- many drills (grass)
- 3 x 100m runs on grass
Tuesday, 14th (all in a park; dirt surface, and a number of turns)
-15min warm up, stretch, strides
- 4 x 500m @1:45, 1:42, 1:42, 1:41, w/50" rests (yikessss) >this was done in a group, and can only be done this way (lactic in the end… )
5min rest - 1x200 @30" , 3.5’ rest
- 1x200 @28.5"
(total 2400m)
cool down
Foot is fine while running (on softer surfaces), however there is still inflammation there, as it hurts if I poke it.
Blood tests tomorrow as part of a research
Good news, Stef!!!
Wednesday, 15th
morning: 10min warm up, drills and 8 x 100m on grass, slightly uphill
evening blood test, as part of a research, they filled 1 bottles, I almost passed out. I HATE giving blood.
Attempted to train in the evening: FAILED (way too tired).
Thursday, 16th
40min run (I had planned to do tempo, but it was too humid and wet and I didn’t want to go faster)
Sorry for the lack of spice in this journal lately… I’m trying to recover my tendonitis ! And… I’m in a ‘laconic’ kind of phase…!! Feeling good.
Hope you’re doing better Stefanie.
((double post))
I soooo lost track of training !!! I’ve been pretty much training, but then Copenhagen conference got in the way, and I had no sessions for 5 days straight =oooo and resumed again today.
I’m not sure if I can make it to nations (end of July), I’ll see how things go in the next three weeks !!!
Sorry about the lack of posting (to myself as well )
Copenhagen was nice. The only problem was going from a 35 degree Athens to a 12 degree Copenhagen, and now I have a cold (or whatever), so it’s pretty annoying.
I’m in Thessaloniki at the moment !!!
Yesterday I traveled from Copenhagen (breakfast) to Dusseldorf (lunch) to Milan (dinner). This morning I made it home, at last =)))
My tendonitis is much much better now (especially after giving it a break at the conference).
Every coach on earth that I meet, tells me what a good potential I have, as long as I succeed in keeping my training uninterrupted, and injury-free… This is the biggest challenge for me, considering my hectic reality of a non-existent ‘base’.
I would like to get some self-satisfactory results regardless.
GOing to sleep now =)))
I would like to keep posting, but I’m afraid of some screaming and yelling, regarding what I have in mind for the next three weeks of training, as ‘experimentation’ in case I eventually feel ready to compete.
(I completed my 5th publication during the course of this phd ) yayy. A sixth one is also a given, and probably will prepare this 7th one as well. I think 7 is ok?
Laters!!!
I don’t know if some (forum-oldies) of you remember Krasnayafleur who used to have a journal here several years ago, but I thought it would be truly inspirational to post this video, which was broadcasted about 4 (?) years ago http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdWZwCHwj7k
(she’s currently an assistant coach, and ‘chasing’ the track thingy professionally, in the heptathlon).