During the fall, I run with Red Deer College’s x-country team and compete in the ACAC grand prix. This past fall was my 3rd year with the team and I couldn’t have been more pumped. I had finished off the previous season ranked 12th and was hoping to crack the Top 10.
Unfortunately, this would not happen. I went into the season exhausted from all of the training and racing completed during the summer. My school schedule was crazy and I got a new job at Ignite as a crossfit coach. My motivation to train was virtually non-existent and I dreaded going to practice. I was tired all the time and this showed at the races as I wasn’t even able to get within two minutes of last season’s times. Each race my performance became worse and worse and I became more depressed. Internal team drama and questionable coaching were not helping the situation.
I was so frustrated – I had such a good summer and expected to have a great fall. I failed to realize that my body was exhausted and needed time off from racing to recovery. A week before provincials I had an epiphany – I realized that having a couple bad races didn’t define my entire athletic career. I decided to listen to my body and stop forcing it to run. I went into provincials with a great attitude and decided to enjoy the race and run for the fun of it. I ran the entire race with fellow teammate Anna (who had just ran a 3:25 marathon in Kelowna) at a comfortable, enjoyable pace. My time was nowhere near amazing but I finished happy and ready to move on from the season.
After taking several weeks off I feel better than ever and ready to start training for the triathlon world championships. As well I’ve decided to attempt to qualify for the Crossfit Regionals as a part of my gym’s team. This x-country season I may not have met any of my expectations but I wouldn’t change it for the world. I was able to grow mentally, learn to listen to my body, and deal with setbacks. As well, I was able to truly figure out where my passions lie: triathlon and crossfit.