always stay safe; never run outside with an iPod.
also, playing sports makes you smarter in school. the regimented lifestyle keeps you in a mode where you are living like a clock and that makes schoolwork much easier to sit down and do.
will edit with more random ramblings once I finish my schoolwork
edit:
on weight: I am not sure whether I want to gain or lose weight. I mean, at 115 lbs racing weight I was skinny and puny as fuck but I was soooooo fast (relatively) and I'd like to get to that kind of speed again. at the moment I fluctuate from 140-145 and definitely at a slightly higher bf% but much more muscular. for now I guess I want to re-comp, gaining strength but not weight, staying at the same weight and lowering bodyfat percentage. if at that point becoming varsity-level quick becomes a reality again (I go to a D1 school, not competitive but fundamentally I'd need like a 1:67-1:57 800m just to walk on and not be on the traveling team), then I will likely give up being big in order to pursue that. hopefully I'll stay (assuming I become strong) decently strong if I go that route. otherwise, I'm perfectly content being a casual who just runs for health/fitness, in which case getting big will obviously be a priority. also, if I go the casual route I'll probably max at 55-60 miles per week because unless you're competitive or just fucking love running, the extra miles won't be worth the extra time training.
goals for the rest of the school year:
1. reach 2/3/4 plates in bench/squat/deadlift. they're not great or earth-shattering lifts but they are a good strength standard to hit and within maximum one year's reach (much less for squat).
2. reach 30 inch standing vertical jump. this is a pretty arbitrary number but it should be a good enough indicator of leg power to get me moving quickly around a track again
3. reach 50 miles per week of jogging, with strides or hill sprints and lifting at least 3x/week
4. learn how to do a standing back tuck (backflip)
how I will reach these goals:
1. starting strength
2. starting strength, plus a day of explosive work (probably kettlebell swings unless I feel like learning power clean form, plus box jumps, maybe medicine ball throws, idk). if I can get my squat up to 3 plates below parallel at <150 lbs, with a little bit of power work I should be able to hit 30 inches. last summer I tested it while I was in endurance base training and got like 24 inches iirc, and that is with zero explosive work
3. building up mileage. really. fucking. slowly. not gonna get injured again this time. until december, all my runs are probably gonna be 9+ minutes per mile, and after that maybe 8-8:30 per mile. not going to increase speed at all or add any intense workouts to the mix. just straight up jogging with strides. once I hit 50 miles per week I'll maintain some more. I think when I was in über shape my mileage sweet spot was around 70-75 per week so I'll continue building up and once I've handled 2 months of 70+ consistently, I'll start adding back workouts.
4. a guy in my dorm knows how to do a back tuck. he says he will teach me once we can find a gymnastics gym. it's just a "fun" little goal
long-term goals (like, once I'm at the end of college):
1. 1:54 800m, preferably low 1:50s to 1:50 by senior year but I'll take what I can get given my extreme lack of talent. I think given four years of optimal training I can hit 1:54
2. sub-49.0 400m FAT - this one should be easy once I am regularly doing interval training again (inside a mix of high mileage, of course). when I was at 40 miles per week in the middle of track season and doing workouts with the sprinters, I could regularly keep up with the 22.x 49.x guys and just behind our only 48.low guy in sprint workouts. of course, I have much more endurance than a sprinter, so if I can keep up with the speed of a 49.x guy I should be able to extend my speed a little longer than him. I expect to hit this maybe sometime during sophomore year, I hope. worst case scenario, I am just a workout hero and all my teammates were slackers and I am actually never gonna be faster than a 52 guy. I ran 56.0 off zero training, an incredible physical and mental slump/exhaustion, and a bum achilles tendon earlier this year so I hope I can do it.
3. perform a back lever. just because they are so cool and a good indicator of both strength and balance
4. perform 100 reps of hang cleans at at least like 80-90 pounds. I bet having hang-clean-specific strength/power endurance would make you an animal in bed. would like to eventually find out what it's like to have the strength in the sack of a thousand snorlaxes.