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I have no idea what I am doing, but here we go. Welcome to... The Hunter.

Hello everyone, my name is Drew Hunter. I am a professional distance runner living and training out in Boulder, CO.

The goal of this newsletter is to speak honestly with you, in a template that shows more than just the "glamorous" glimpses you catch on Instagram/Twitter/Strava etc. To me, writing is thinking - and I want to think, as deeply as I can, about my running career and life in general so that I can make the most of the short time I have in this career. Simply put, I want to write about things that are hard but meaningful. There is something powerful that occurs when a pen hits the paper and you are forced to grapple with something that means the world to you. I think it's time I tapped into that type of reflection. I don't expect you to read all of this, or any of it for that matter, but regardless, I am gonna dive into some things below because they matter to me.

I probably still have some reflecting to do on my turbulent 2022. So much happened, on and off the track. Let's dive into the running stuff first, because that's what you all want to hear about, right?

I started the fired up and motivated to be one the best 5000m runners in the country. I hadn't had a TRUE year dedicated to the 5000m, or one that wasn't plagued by injuries. I was also coming off a high of winning the USA road 5k champs, so the track 5k seemed like the natural next step. However, the training never came as natural as one would hope. I started to build with my teammates up to the 85-90 mile weeks but never was comfortable with the proper 5k work. It was survival from workout to workout to long run. Rinse and repeat, until I was really really tired. I wasn't recovering, my lungs were clogged, and my body seemed to constantly be fighting illnesses. No one really knew how to fix it. Sam Parsons and I even got an Airbnb up in Nederland (about 8000 feet above sea level) to really champion the "live high, train low" lifestyle for 4 weeks going into our big outdoor 5k. In theory, this "worked" according to my blood work. Too bad race results don't just run themselves; I ran 13:34 and finished almost DFL in what was supposed to be my break through 5k. I put all my eggs in this basket.

I had to reflect on what went wrong and how I could fix it. This took some time, and some honest reflection of what was going to be best for me moving forward. Most people in my close corner wanted me to shut it down. I wasn't running like myself, and we we're just digging ourselves into a bigger hole if we kept going. I jogged around for a week or so and decided, well, lets shift focus to the 1500m. I visited some doctors and quickly learned that I was carrying excessive fatigue throughout all my training, despite not knowing why. We were fairly confident I was dealing with symptoms of long covid, which is a frustrating diagnosis because your best bet is to basically just wait until you start feeling better. Despite this, I got back to training and found out that my recovery was starting to come around a bit better so long as I focused on shorter distances. 8x200m hill + 8x200m track repeats were a lot better for me than a 17 mile long run (also, lot more enjoyable.) My mom and I quickly developed a "Panic 1500m fitness plan" for the next month and kept workouts really short and faster, knowing I had a great foundation of strength behind me from the previous months.

I showed up to Portland Track Fest with the one chance to qualify for USAs and absolutely zero idea of how I would run. I ended up second in the "B" heat and ran 3:39 to squeak into USAs. Honestly, I was pretty happy. It felt good to win that little battle. Although this is far from how I had planned this season, it was nice to succeed in a challenge that at one time was pretty much off the table. That's running in a nut shell.

USA championships were undoubtably a failure and a race I wish I could re-run. I felt like that 5000m runner again-- despondent, weak, and a passenger along for the ride to the stands for the final. It didn't really matter what my mind had decided to do in that race, my body wasn't responding.

I didn't make any world teams and so the rest of the summer was filled with races that don't REALLY matter, unless I decide they matter. So, my intention the rest of the summer was to race as much as possible, and try to win as many races as I could. I ended up with 3 wins and personal bests in the Mile and 1500m. I had fun, and walked away with a newfound purpose of being intentional about running, and winning. Were these races diamond leagues, or the olympic games? Of course not. But I am a big believer that you have to practice winning, with the goal of leveling up in competition while not straying too far from the "winning" mindset. The times will come, if you can work on being first across the finish line.

I felt like I was really able to take this mindset into my fall training build up. When you can focus on the process of showing up best prepared to a starting line, you really start to eliminate a lot of the flashy stuff and get back to the basics. This fall was as steady and consistent as ever, with 12+ weeks of 80-85 miles. But, most importantly, I stayed healthy and am heading into this year with a strong foundation behind me. Some of the biggest changes this fall had to do with my shift in event focus, as I will be running the 1500m this outdoor season. We capped long runs at 15 miles, and started to incorporate a lot of faster running into our weeks, (hills, 200m repeats, 60m hill repeats, etc...) I worked a lot with my PT this off season to get stronger in the weight room and more mobile around the track. However, the biggest training change has been with regards to my mindset. I feel like a veteran for the first time in my running career, and more of a sense of maturity when it comes to training. I really feel like I just ticked box after box this fall, didn't get too high or low about any one session. Even if this illness continues to plague my running, I just want to keep moving forward with hope and a calm trust in the steady process. This feels like a sustainable mindset for me, and something I am taking with me into 2023 and beyond.

Head down; eyes focused on the track.

Life outside of running was *bonkers* in 2022. And part of maybe why my running was a little sluggish. Sometimes I would show up to the starting line and that would be the first time I thought about the race. Not ideal. Anyway, I wanted to highlight some things that happened off the track:

1. I got married to the love of my life in July. We had a tiny wedding right outside of Boulder and it was as magical as one could ever hope their wedding day is.

2. I became a Catholic in April. This has been something I have wrestled with (more than I would like to admit) over the last few years. Deo Gratias.

3. I bought a house with my wife. We're living in Longmont (15 min North of Boulder), and are currently doing renovations. I'll post before and after photos in a future newsletter if it looks okay!

4. I helped Hammer and Axe grow and started to work with RunDNA. Both of these side projects kept me busy but motivated in 2022.

5. I lived in Philadelphia for 3 months this fall which has been the longest I've been away from home in a few years. Let me tell you, I really missed Colorado and my teammates. S/O to the Wissahickon - ran there almost everyday.

6. I went to Hawaii for a little vacation before the Holidays. If you're stressed out, spend a week in Kauai and you'll be good.

7. Finally, I found out that I'm a dad. Our daughter will be here April this year. The most life changing news, but undoubtedly, the best news. Will write more on this in the future. Probably an entire newsletter, if you guys want.

I would LOVE to talk in more detail about any of this stuff, but I know you guys are probably here for the running stuff first, alas. For the next newsletter, I'll be grading my *not-so-great* indoor season and explaining what my plan of attack will be before outdoor. In the meantime, here is a youtube video of life these days.