UCF Cross-Country Invitational 02.09.22

Back in America :)

5th year - let's go. It's crazy how time flies. Granted, it was a long decision whether to continue - but I'm not done here yet.

No question, life here has been anything but easy. Year after year, I just got stronger and was able to cope better with mental difficulties. This year, I can say for the first time: I feel ready. :)

The first days after my arrival, I took it easy: arrive and adjust. Last week it officially started with everything - university, training, and new: work.

One thing is for sure, it will be a busy year. Sometimes I start work at 4 am and go to training at 6 am; there's no break after that.

The good thing? I can finally handle this stress and activity again. It feels so good to just have a normal routine again.

With that, I also got into official training last week :) Intensities are finally back, and I'm excited to see how everything develops.

This week we even had our cross-country season opener!!!

Friday 02.09.22 Race DAY!!!

It's Meet day! We drove to Orlando, UCF. That is just under a 3-hour drive from Boca Raton; so we went on meet day.

Luckily the weather cooperated, and the thunderstorms stayed away.

The start was at 6:30 pm for the girls; the guys ran ahead of us.

We warmed up only 40 minutes before the start; it was incredibly hot and humid anyway.

I had put my jersey in an ice cooler, and just before the start I put ice cubes in my shirt - but it didn't help much 😀.

For this year, my big goal is not to do anything; just run and have fun - get the smile back.

And right now, it's all preparation anyway. I want to build up my fitness again. The most important competition is at the end of October. Nevertheless, I was curious about where I stood after the disastrous summer.

Start: whoops- we know that ---- not my strength. Somewhere in the crowd between a bunch of crazy girls. After one kilometer, the field, fortunately, I found my spot. You just have to be patient.

Until about km 3.5, I felt relaxed and easy. Then the heat came into play a bit, and I noticed that my power and strength were still missing. The lack of training in the summer was noticeable.

My time was still positive for me.

Unfortunately, the course had a few hundred meters extra at the end; therefore not a pure 5km.

Overall I am really happy with my result. I saw that my base is still there, and the power is still missing a bit - but that will come back now with the training.

So good start for me.

The girls were all great, and everyone surprised themselves. Overall, we are in a good starting position, and the season can begin.

After the race, we went out for dinner and drove to the hotel. I was in bed very late by my standards. Nevertheless, I did not find sleep. Competitions in the evening and the required caffeine tablets are just horror for me.

The next morning, we started early for the long run - clay loop. There is just something about the clay loop. It's part of the experience when we go to UCF.

During the night, it rained really hard, so it was relatively muddy - my shoes are ready for the washing machine. But it was still fun.