The women’s cross country team has competed in two meets this season with their best performance, a 2nd place finish at the Southern Miss Invitational. Lauren Jones, a sophomore transfer from Indian Hills Community College in Iowa, placed 3rd overall at the Southern Miss Invitational, directly following senior Charlotte Everhardt. Jones discusses personal and team goals, as well as the specifics that make her a competitive runner in the Southland Conference.
Q. What were your goals coming into the season?
A. “My goals were mostly centered on the team’s performance. We want to finish top five at conference. As for a personal goal, I intend on running an 18 minute 5k race.”
Q. Now two meets in, are you on pace with your personal goal?
A. “I’m pretty much on pace. I ran an 18:13 5k at nationals last year, so it’s just a matter of time until I build back up to that kind of shape.”
Q. Do you feel as though the rest of the team is making the same strides you are?
A. “It’s hard to tell until we have another race. Every runner on the team responds to a different type of workout, so we can really only mark progress on race days, and we’ve only had two.”
Q. As a runner, you experience a great deal of pain during a race. What do you do to manage the pain?
A. “I just try to block it out and remember that every step brings me closer to the finish line. That, or I just picture everyone chasing me.”
Q. To put into perspective the training regimen of a Division I women’s cross country runner, how many miles do you run a week?
A. “During the summer I ran about 50 miles a week, now I am running near 70 miles a week.”
Q. Do you follow a particularly strict diet?
A. “No shot. I try to stay healthy, but I figure as much as I run I deserve to eat whatever I want.”
Q. Is there anything else you do to give yourself a competitive edge?
A. “We lift weights three times a week, but nothing too heavy. Distance runners don’t want to be huge and jacked.”
Q. Does a good cry help you to cope with the disappointment of a poor performance?
A. “I wanted to cry after one race, but I’m not a freakin’ pansy.