This is my first post on TheLeadPack.com, so I thought I would introduce myself. My name is Jessica and I am a run-aholic. Born, raised and still living in Indiana I am a Hoosier through and through. I was raised by a pack of wild Boilermakers and am a proud graduate of West Lafayette H.S. Luckily, though, I managed to escape to Bloomington in 2002 and ran at IU for 5 years before taking a job once my eligibility ran out this summer with the IU School of Journalism; it helps pay for my running addiction. I run for Brooks Team Indiana Elite and am coached by Ben Bartley, who runs the Indiana Running Company here in town. While at IU I did my undergraduate degree in Political Science and Spanish with a minor in Business and squeezed in a master's degree in Journalism on IU's dime since I had redshirt eligibility left. Basically, I like to write and am excited about someone asking me to write, so I apologize ahead of time for my lengthy posts!
I started running mainly to get in shape for soccer and to tag along with my best friend's parents who were avid road racers. This summer I broke my soccer juggling PR (150 in a row) and have an eye witness to verify, so all of you who read that article about Galen Rupp and Salazar, I did that first! Ha ha, anyway... I started playing soccer in 1st grade and played all through high school. I only ran cross country my last three years while I did both fall sports. I would run in the morning before school and go to soccer practice after school. On weekends my dad put many miles on his car driving me from early meets to soccer games all across the state. I mention this only because I disagree with the current theory that kids have to specialize in one sport to be truly successful. Playing soccer was fabulous cross training and injury prevention that gave me a lethal kick at the end of those 4k's and also kept me mentally fresh. When I was being recruited my senior year of high school one college coach told me in September of that year that I would not place as highly in the state meet or at national high school races because I played soccer. I went on to win the state meet that year and qualify for Footlocker Nationals, so not only does that show the value of mixing things up but also the power of attitude in sport (don't tell me I can't do something if you don't actually want me to do it!).
Early on I was convinced I was an 800m runner, even refusing to run the lengthy 1200m race in junior high track. I couldn't have been more wrong as I am actually a 10k-marathon type person. Every once in awhile I pull out some bursts of speed, a 72 at the end of a 10k or one 31-second 200m at the end of a long track workout last year stands out in my mind, but normally I have to be very warmed up to get my legs moving. I've been doing drills with some sprinters lately and I look like a sloth compared to them, but I'm getting better!
I ran my first marathon last October in Columbus, Ohio and qualified for the Olympic Trials - Marathon this April in Boston. That was really exciting as I had only done one 20-mile long run beforehand and my mileage only went above 70 per week twice, so I know with a more focused build up I will eventually be able to run a really fast marathon. Even with the extreme booty-lock I had the last 5k of the race it was a fantastic experience and I am completely hooked on the event. I am running the 10k at the Stanford Invite on April 5th in hopes of also qualifying for the Olympic Trials - Track & Field on June 27th in Eugene, Oregon. Because of that my training is really more 10k focused, although I've been doing longer long runs (16-20 miles) and have bumped my weekly mileage up to 70-80 miles per week whereas last year at this time I was averaging 55-60. I think this will greatly help me later in the season, but I sometimes struggle with not being able to do workouts quite as fast as last year because of the increased mileage. Luckily I have some great friends and running partners around here to keep me motivated and positive. I do a Tuesday evening track workout and Sunday long run each week with Dani Prince (formerly of Indiana State) and Jane Daniels (formerly of Charlotte) and they are fantastic training partners and friends.
If anyone has any questions feel free to let me know; I'm more than happy to answer. I'll be posting my some of my training, race results and random thoughts on running on here and am grateful to Derick for inviting me to be a contributor. Stride on friends!
~Jessica Gall
Jessica, I enjoy the info on the site, but have a question. I recently read another interview from a female runner that identified "booty lock" at the end of a race. I can't recall if it was Kara Goucher or Sara Hall. I am a male, so what is booty lock? Thanks!
ReplyDeleteAnonymous:
ReplyDeleteI read that article too- it was an interview with Sarah Hall about the mile race her and Kara Goucher were in in NY I believe. The term booty lock, though, has nothing to do with gender! It's that lactic acid burn that rips apart your backside at the end of a race when you're muscles have absolutely nothing left to give but you are trying to make them move as fast as they can anyways. That's when your butt pretty much locks up and you can barely walk afterwards. It often occurs when one goes out too hard but also at the end of all-out efforts.