Follow Lake Region HS sprint/jump star Kate Hall as she blogs about her junior indoor season & the quest to be the best. Hall is one of the top long jumpers/short sprinters in the US. She has won every individual state meet event she has competed in. Kate is the current Maine indoor state record holder in the long jump (19-2), 55m(7.07) , 60m (7.76) & 200m (24.81). She won the New England title in the 55m last winter, and added the 100m title outdoors. She finished 4th in the 100m dash at New Balance Nationals in 2013.
Tis the season once again! Not only for the holidays, but especially for the indoor track
season to begin again! It feels as if it was just the other day that I was a freshman
getting ready to run in my very first high school meet. The excitement of those first
meets haven’t faded after time. Instead I’m finding the anticipation of running in meets
growing as the years go on.
Anyways, I’ve learned that the number one thing that I hate about track is the wait from
the end of outdoor to the beginning of indoor. Training for six months without actually
running in meets is very hard, but completely worth it. I’ve been strength training since
the end of July and running since October and I’ve never been happier to say that I’ve
never felt stronger, faster, or healthier. My training regimen has been much more
personalized and organized this season compared to the past two. I have specific
workouts for five days out of the week, and every month they change. I’m learning so
much more this year about the different phases of strength training, peaking, block
starts, and just the sport in general.
I’m so excited after six months of not competing to get some official times. I refuse to
time myself in practices because it lessens the excitement and anticipation of those first
few meets (my dad usually times me even though I tell him not to though.) The funny
thing with training is that I tend to focus on the little details instead of the big picture for
my events. For example, I don’t run 55’s over and over in practice, but I do a lot of block
starts to concentrate on my form, which is definitely the most important part of that race.
Also in the long jump, I NEVER jump in practices. I always just do run throughs and
popups. I enjoy training this way because I feel like it’s very beneficial and I’m still able
to get done what I need to get done.
My goal this season was to jump in the 19’s, and I can’t believe that I did that my first
meet. Everything felt so much smoother than previous years. My mark was almost
perfect for once, I had a lot more height than usual, and it felt so effortless overall. My
goal now is to take things one meet at a time and approve upon my distances as the
season continues, and hopefully by the time the bigger meets come around I can jump
in the upper 19’s.
Everyone’s support this early in the season has been mind blowing and I can truly say
that my favorite thing about this sport is how kind and supportive everyone is, including
all of my competitors. I can’t wait to see how this season turns out and I wish everyone
the best of luck!
Kate
