This summer I spent five weeks training at a high-altitude running camp in Crested Butte,
Colorado. I was out all of track with a sacral stress fracture and didn't get the opportunity to
showcase all the hard work I put in over the winter, so I knew I wanted to stay in Crested Butte
for as long as possible to get the best training possible for cross country. It was an incredible
experience to train between 7600 and 9600 feet every day with high school runners from all
over the world!
Every morning we would do a 15 minute shakeout followed by either flexibility or core. Then
later in the afternoon we would drive to a variety of trails for our main run. After every run we
would do strides and stretches and ice in the river for 15 minutes.
July 16
AM: 2.40 mile shakeout at 6:34 pace (Splits: 6:39, 6:27) and flexibility. I felt pretty solid on the
shakeout this morning and it felt good to get my legs moving.
PM: This afternoon we did an easy filler run since everyone was tired from the past week. I did
35 minutes where I covered 5.04 miles and averaged 7:04. I definitely was tired today so I'm
glad I took it a bit easier.
Daily Mileage: 7.44
July 17
AM: 2.31 mile shakeout at 6:40 pace (Splits: 6:53, 6:29) and core. Today was another good
shakeout and my legs felt good.
PM: Today we ran Cement Creek which is a road that was mostly downhill with a few rolling hills
in the last mile. I ran 5.59 miles in 35 minutes and averaged 6:16 per mile. My splits were 6:38,
6:01, 6:05, 6:14, 6:23. I felt pretty good today which was expected since the route wasn't too
challenging.
Daily Mileage: 7.90
July 18
AM: 2.32 mile shakeout at 6:34 pace (Splits: 7:03, 6:13) and flexibility. We went out slower than
usual this morning since a lot of us felt all the downhills from the run yesterday in our legs today.
Since we went out slow we were cruising on the way back but it felt really good.
PM: Today we did a run near Crested Butte Community School. I ran 5.24 and averaged 6:57
per mile.
Daily Mileage: 7.56
July 19
AM: This morning we went to Western State Colorado University's track which is highest
collegiate stadium in the country (7771 feet) for a tempo. My tempo group was given a 20
minute tempo and were told to hit between 86-88 second laps. First, we did a 15 minute warm
up where we covered 2.29 miles. Then we stretched for 10 minutes and then jogged 4 more
minutes to loosen up again. We did a few fast strides and then got ready to tempo. Our watches
were a bit off but we determined our splits were 5:57, 6:08, 6:05. The majority of us didn't hit
our paces but we all put in the effort that was expected so overall it was a good workout. After
we finished we cooled down for 12 minutes, did strides and stretches, and iced.
PM: Since we did our workout this morning, we did a shakeout this afternoon. Everyone's legs
felt heavy from our tempo so the pace wasn't quite as fast as normal. I ran 2.20 miles at
6:57 pace (Splits: 7:27, 6:30)
Daily Mileage: 9.83
July 20
AM: This morning we hiked Mount Crested Butte! We started at the base and hiked almost 6
miles all the way to the peak, 12,162 feet above sea level! It was a really good challenge and a
lot harder than I expected. We climbed 2,813 feet from the base to the top and it took me about
1 hour 30 minutes. It was a fun change of pace and break in our normal routine!
PM: We were all sore from the hike so our afternoon run was shorter today. I ran 3.07 miles and
averaged 6:38 per mile pace.
Daily Mileage: 3.07
July 21
AM: 2.33 mile shakeout 6:40 pace (Splits: 6:57, 6:29) and flexibility.
PM: Today we went to a flat trail to run for a recovery day since we hiked yesterday and have a
long run tomorrow. I ran for 30 minutes and ran 4.30 miles. My legs were a little tired from
yesterday so I'm happy we took the run a bit slower.
Daily Mileage: 6.63
July 22
AM: This morning we had a long run. We started by running to a trail, stayed on the trail for
about 4 miles, then connected to Slate River Road which brought us back to where we started. I
did 65 minutes, ran 9.22 miles, and averaged 7:04 pace. I wanted it to be a bit faster but for
being at 9000 feet and it being the end of my fourth week here, I have to be happy with it!
PM: We did a shakeout this afternoon since we had our long run this morning. Everyone was
super tired from the run so naturally we took it a bit slower. I ran 2.21 miles and averaged 7:01
pace.
Daily Mileage: 11.43
Total Weekly Mileage: 53.96
July 23
AM: 2.31 mile shakeout at 6:40 pace and core.
PM: This afternoon was a recovery run. I ran 4.18 miles averaging 7:16 per mile. The run was
pretty hilly and we took it slower since we were all pretty fatigued from the long run.
Daily Mileage: 6.49
July 24
AM: This morning we drove two hours to Lake City, Colorado to spend the day on Lake San
Cristobal. We got our run in right when we got there, I ran 5.18 miles and averaged 6:51.
PM: No run
Daily Mileage: 5.18