Becoming a Better Sarah ~ 2015 Journal (The End)

[LSUlakes]

Race Recap: Prospect Park Track Club Turkey Trot
​

The Details:
Race Date: Thursday, November 26, 2015 (Thanksgiving Day)
Race Start: 9:00 AM
Race Location: Prospect Park, Brooklyn, NY
Race Length: 5 Miles

Before The Race:
Registration: Based on a little research and some input from my awesome supporters/readers, I choose this race because it was a 5 mile race that could serve as a good “stepping stone” before my 10K in January. My biggest hesitation was that it was in Brooklyn (I’m Queens born-and-bred and Manhattan at heart, so to me Brooklyn is a place that shouldn’t exist), but I decided to just get over the existence of Brooklyn for a day.
Registration opened a few months ago, and I registered in mid-October. The race sold out about a month in advance, which is the earliest that it has ever sold out. My sister had considered registering, but with her injury, she wanted to wait, and it sold out before she was ready to make a decision (which is a good thing, because her recovery has been slower than she had hoped and she definitely would not be ready for a 5 mile race at this point).

Packet Pickup: There were 3 options for packet pickup – Monday at a running store in Union Square, Tuesday or Wednesday at a running store in Park Slope, or race day at the park. I didn’t want to do same day packet pickup because it meant being there a little earlier, and I didn’t want to go into Brooklyn before the race, so that meant Union Square on Monday.
The process itself was pretty easy. I walked into the store, and while they didn’t have any signs, I saw someone on line for what could only have been packet pickup. I gave them my name and they found my bib and gave it to me, then I went to someone else who crossed my name off a list. From there I went to a different table, where they took a tab off of my bib and handed me my hat. They also told me to take 4 safety pins if I needed them, which I did, because I forgot that my Fitletic belt has race bib toggles (spoiler alert … I would up using the safety pins because I was afraid that leaving the bib on the race toggles would annoy me). The whole process took less than 10 minutes (although when we passed the store on the way back from Whole Foods, there was a long line).

The Night Before: After finalizing a departure time with my dad (and confirming that he was bringing papers to grade in the car while I was running), all that was left was picking out my outfit and packing up my stuff for the race. I filled up my mid-run Jelly Belly bag (I was only short 4 jelly beans, so it was 2 buttered popcorn and 2 beer, which are the two I have the most of), grabbed a pack of Sport Beans (the plan was to have ½ of the pack before the race and ½ immediately after), put a little extra money in my belt, and charged up the Garmin. I had a good idea what I was wearing, but was ready to switch it up a bit if I woke up and it was colder than I had hoped. I packed a bag of stuff for the car, with a list on my computer of things that needed to be added day of (like my Uncrustables).
The alarm was set to go off at 5:50 AM (my usual Thursday morning alarm), so I wanted to be in bed before 11, setting myself up for about 7 hours of sleep. I actually didn’t end up going to sleep until a little after 11, which was okay, but not great. (I ended up having trouble falling asleep and waking up a few times in the middle of the night, but I don’t know if that was race-related or just my regular insomnia, so it doesn’t particularly concern me.)

Flat Sarah … at least as of Wednesday Night:

Race Day:
Pre-Race: My alarm went off at 5:50, and I was out of bed by 6:05 (which is pretty good for me), but it turns out I could have slept in bit … because I was ready to go 20 minutes early. I checked the weather and while the forecast was a little cooler than I had hoped, I decided to stick with the shirt I had originally planned to wear, but change from capris to tights.

Getting There: My dad drove me to the race, and the plan was to leave at 7:45ish. After checking Waze, I realized that it wouldn’t take that long, so we didn’t end up leaving until almost 8. We got there at 8:30. And I could have shown up later because I spent plenty of time just waiting around. But anyway … we used Waze to get into Brooklyn, and my father dropped me off by the entrance to the park … where I just followed the mass of people and the instructions from the staff.

The Course: The race was entirely within Prospect Park. I’m not at all familiar with the park, and there weren’t really a lot of signs directing you where to go. The staff was good about directing the runners, though, and I just followed the people in front of me.
In terms of elevations … there was a hill at the start, then another long hill towards the middle of the race, and the last mile was mostly flat. The hills were pretty gradual – nothing super steep.

The Race:
Mile 1 – The race started with a hill, which was a little discouraging for me. I realized partway into the mile that I had forgotten my pre-race snack (oops …), so I knew I had to take an early snack break. I went too fast and knew I was going to fast, but I had a hard time slowing down … not sure if that was the race excitement, the mass of people, the newness of my surroundings, or just my general problems controlling my pace. Oh, and early in the race, there was a lot of poop to deal with. CLEAN UP AFTER THE HORSES BEFORE THE RACE!
Mile 1 Split (per Sarah’s Garmin): 10:32

Mile 2 – After a fast mile 1, I thought I’d settle in a bit, but I was still struggling. I did take one snack break, but I did it during a regular walk break, so it didn’t affect my pacing. I was starting to feel really worn out, and wondering if maybe I wasn’t warmed up enough. But my pace was still pretty fast, so I was a little confused and wondering if/when my pace would catch up to how I was feeling.
Mile 2 Split (per Sarah’s Garmin): 10:58

Mile 3 – This was definitely my hardest mile. I struggled a lot and took a few extra walk breaks. There was a point during this mile where I really wasn’t sure if I’d be able to run the whole race. The bright side during this mile was getting a shoutout from a fellow skirt runner – I said running in a skirt is the best way to run (and encouraged a male runner to buy a skirt)!
Mile 3 Split (per Sarah’s Garmin): 11:40

Mile 4 – This was an interesting mile – I did struggle a bit early, but it was during this mile that I really hit my stride. I think it was also during this mile that the crowd support started to increase (it was mostly families cheering for their runners, but it was still nice to see people out there).
Mile 4 Split (per Sarah’s Garmin): 11:12

Mile 5 – I really felt like I was in my stride for this mile. I did have a few rough patches, but it was mostly pretty good, and I felt like I was really in my element. I was on a walk break when I heard that we were close to the finish, so I cut my last walk break short and ran to the finish. I started looking for my dad close to the end, but didn’t see him (he wasn’t able to find parking until pretty much when I finished, so he didn’t get to see me, which is the one problem with finishing as fast as I did).
Mile 5 Split (per Sarah’s Garmin): 11:10

Overall Stats:
Gun Time: 57:10
Garmin Time: 56:04 (for 5.06 miles – I started it a little early)
Chip Time: 55:50 (11:10/mile)
Overall Place: 1669 of 2315
Age/Gender Place: 176 of 227
Gender Place: 880 of 1355

Overall Thoughts:

• Very rough race. I finally hit my stride with about a mile and a half to go, but for most of the run I struggled. Definitely went out too strong and couldn’t recover, and I really didn’t feel like I had a good race (despite the good time). That said … the race was good, I just was never comfortable.
• Somehow there were people passing me throughout. Some of them going very fast. If you’re that fast, how are you still behind me in mile 4? I’m guessing it was either starting very slow and speeding up or some sort of slow/fast intervals, but still … that’s something that threw me off a bit.
• There wasn’t really a walking lane. I wasn’t sure how the run/walk transition would go, but since there didn’t seem to be many walkers around me, I just stayed to one side at all times and looked behind me before slowing to a walk so that nobody ran into me.
• I didn’t really feel like hanging around the post-race area. I don’t know if this was because I was alone, because there didn’t seem to be a ton going on (I didn’t even see bananas, but they had to be there somewhere, right?), because my dad was in the car waiting for me, or something else. If this is indicative of a general lack of interest in post-race areas … it could be a problem come Disney-time (when I was planning on hanging around the post-race area a bit).
• Um, I kinda like races now. As in, I would like to do more. What? Help!

And, last but not least … the medal:

ETA: I forgot to talk about post race. I wasn't really in the mood for anything, so I called my dad as soon as I finished (partially to see if he was there and I just missed him), then did my stretches by some checkers board thingies, then ate a whole pack of Sport Beans while walking back to the car. Once we were on the way home, I decided that I didn't want to bother looking for the nearest Starbucks, so no coffee. I finished my water bottle (didn't open the water bottle I had in my bag, even though I should have), ate an Uncrustable for breakfast (it's got carbs in the bread and protein in the PB!), and went home and showered. I did have chocolate milk after my shower, which was probably a little late, but whatever. And that's all you need to know about the day.

Glad to hear you ran the race and had a good race time, a PR! That's a nice looking medal as well! It's interesting how some races have a big party with tons of food and drinks while others seem to have almost nothing. The two marathon / half marathons that we have in town have tons of food and drink. They have your normal post race water and fruit and other snacks, but they also have good Cajun cooking! You can run a half marathon and then gain 5lbs from the food and beer. Congrats again on the race, and the feeling you have for finishing... Its priceless and it will draw you to sign up for more and more races! Enjoy the ride.

 

[SarahDisney]

Glad to hear you ran the race and had a good race time, a PR! That's a nice looking medal as well! It's interesting how some races have a big party with tons of food and drinks while others seem to have almost nothing. The two marathon / half marathons that we have in town have tons of food and drink. They have your normal post race water and fruit and other snacks, but they also have good Cajun cooking! You can run a half marathon and then gain 5lbs from the food and beer. Congrats again on the race, and the feeling you have for finishing... Its priceless and it will draw you to sign up for more and more races! Enjoy the ride.

Thanks!
I was looking at the official photos yesterday and apparently there was food ... like bagels and fruit and snacks (the water I saw) ... I just totally missed that.

 

[SarahDisney]

November Recap & December Schedule/Goals​

It’s officially December 1st, so it’s time to review November and discuss my goals for December. Woohoo!!
We’re going to do this a little differently than usual and break it down into goals met & goals not met.

November Goals Met:

• They Make Movies Shorter Than This Run – On November 15th, I ran for more than 90 minutes (92 minutes, in fact). Here's a link to my recap of the run.
• Save The Cheese, Save the World – I was able to reign in the cheese obsession and have no more than 3 servings of cheese every week. I also tried to be mindful about spacing out my cheese servings and omitting cheese from dishes where it wasn't really necessary. I don't think I did a perfect job, but it was good enough for me to call it a success.
• Run, Turkey, Run - 5 miles completed in 55:50, for a pace of 11:10/mile. Here's the recap.

November Goals Kinda Met:

• One Run, One Speed - Okay, I tried to focus on consistency. I picked one run (almost) every week to try to be consistent. I did a bad job of it. Consistency doesn't work for me. Which is not a great thing, but ... I'll have to keep trying.
• Discovering Exercises Other Than Running – I was pretty good about this - I got in 45 minutes of cross training every week except when I was sick. I lengthened most of my cross training sessions from 15-20 minutes to 20-25 minutes, so it's definitely an improvement. Now I need to work on sticking with it.

November Goals Not Met:

• Look, Ma, No Walk Breaks - Yeah, this didn't happen. I tried to increase my run intervals, but I never got to a point where I felt comfortable totally cutting out walk breaks. As much as I hate to admit it ... I think I might be okay with keeping walk breaks in my short runs. We'll see what I can do in December, but I may end up sticking with short walk breaks and just using a longer run interval.

December Goals:
My main goal for December is to stick to my schedule. For the past few months I've been working on gradually increasing my distance. That's not happening in December. From now until January 9th, my focus is on preparing for the Disney races. I'm using the runDisney/Jeff Galloway 10K training plan, but making some adjustments to prepare for my back-to-back races. I'm also incorporating 2 days of cross training per week, 1 day of lower intensity exercise (most likely a casual walk), and knee exercises every other day.

Here's the schedule for the month:

I have two race simulations planned. Both races simulations will be running on back to back days, using my planned race intervals (1:30/1:30 for the 5K with my sister and 4/1 for the 10K). Race Simulation #1 (12/6 & 12/7) is a "circumstance" simulation - I'll be waking up early and hanging around the house before going out for my run to simulate being up for a few hours before the race starts (usually I go out for my run within 2 hours of getting up, often less), trying the same nutrition I'm planning to use for the races, and trying to make a few stops during the run to simulate character stops. Race Simulation #2 (12/20 & 12/21) will be my "dress rehearsal" - aka running in (approximately) my full costumes, with some adjustments made for weather.

Other Goals:

• Lose 3 lbs - I want to be below 140 by Disney. Even if it's finding a scale that does smaller increments than mine and it gives me 139.9. So the goal to December is to get to 140 lbs.
• Run 48.6 miles - For obvious reasons, I think. The training plan/schedule should get me there, assuming I don't skip runs or slow down significantly. We shall see.

So … that’s December. We’ll see how it goes.

 

[SarahDisney]

Progress Update: 11/30 – 12/6
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Monday 11/30: Today I tried something new for cross-training … kickboxing ballet. I thought it would be something interesting to try, because I like kickboxing and barre. It was just alternating periods of ballet/barre and kickboxing. I was not particularly impressed. But I did manage to make it through all 28 minutes of the video!

Tuesday 12/1: I dislike rain. Thankfully, I was able to get my run in during a rain-free period … but I think rain in the area screws with the GPS on my Garmin. It took 15 minutes to find the GPS (usually takes closer to 5), and then it got messed up and I had to stop and restart it during my run (seriously … I knew that I hadn’t just run a 7:53 mile … more like a 7:53 ¾-mile. Whatever.
Run Recap: Approx. 3.81 miles in 47:00 minutes (12’05” pace) – Stats are an approximation based on post-run mapping and whatnot. Overall, it was a rough run and I wasn’t thrilled about any of it.

Wednesday 12/2: Today was a bit of a self-made mess. Plan was to walk to Starbucks/Kohl’s for shopping, but rain kinda forced us to take the bus. Once we got home from shopping, I kinda just let things fall apart.

Thursday 12/3: Overall, not a bad day. I started off with a decent run, and then had to go into the city later in the day, so I walked around a bit checking out the ice skating rink in Bryant Park and some of the Christmas windows. And that was my tourist hour (or two) for the year.

(Sorry about the weird angles on the pictures, but I hate being a tourist, so I kinda just quickly snap a picture from any angle and just go with it)
Run Recap: 2.59 miles in 30:00 minutes (11’34” pace) – I did intervals of 7:00 run/0:30 walk and they were fine … but I’m really starting to question the idea of removing walk intervals from my short runs. I’ll keep working on it for the next few weeks, but I’m thinking that if I don’t love it, after January, I may decide to keep the walk breaks in there for good and just work on finding the perfect run/walk interval for shorter runs.

Friday 12/4: And … it only took me until the 4th day of the month to get off schedule. I didn’t do my knee exercises. While I probably should have done them earlier in the day, I saved them for right before bed, and after a few weird things happening, I just couldn’t get into the right mood. I think the problem with my knee exercises is that I don’t enjoy them, so I push them off and then end up not doing them. I’ve always said that for me to stick with exercise, it has to be something I enjoy … so I need to figure out what I’m going to do about my knees.

Saturday 12/5: Rest day! And cleaning the bottom of my sister’s sneakers so that she can try to return them. I think we did a decent job, but we’ll see on Tuesday if they take them back (the receipt specifies that they need to be in sellable condition). Sigh…

Sunday 12/6: Today was day 1 of my 2-day race simulation. I don’t like waking up early. But once I got past the waking up thing, it went okay.
Run Recap: 2.79 miles in 36:00 minutes (12’55” pace) – Beth and I were heading out at the same time, so we did the first 0.75 miles of this run partly together (she was doing 1:45 walk/1:30 run and I was doing 1:30 walk/1:30 run, so we separated a bit, but generally caught up to each other). I was nervous about what my pace would be (I was afraid the significantly shorter run interval & longer walk interval would slow me down too much), but I was actually only about a minute slower than usual (this pace includes some “character” stops – but more on that later).

Weight Loss (as of 12/4): 1/3 lb (33%)
December Mileage To Date: 9.27/48.6 miles (19%)

General Comments:
1 – This was just not the best of weeks. It was a week with highs and lows. I had some moments which felt like the start of something good, but I also had moments where I felt like garbage. And this week was one of those weeks where I sometimes felt like I couldn’t find a balance. I really hate those weeks.
2 – Marathon Weekend Dooneys!!! Here’s the rule: IF I get offered (& accept) a job before preorders end AND it pays as much as (or more than) my last full-time job, then I can get the tote as a work bag (even though it’s about $250 more than I would like to spend on a work bag). IF I either get offered a job after preorders close OR I get offered a job that pays less than my last job, then I can take my chances when I get to the expo (and I’m not going any earlier than originally planned). No new job (which is definitely the most likely situation), no new purse.
3 – I wore the new shoes on Sunday. Remember the disaster that was the first run in the old shoes? This run was fine. My right heel hurt a little, but that was because my sock was folded underneath it (I knew the whole time that it was a sock issue, I just wasn’t sure exactly what the issue was until I took off the shoe). I guess it really just was a matter of getting used to stability shoes. I do still occasionally feel that my arches aren’t supported, so I will look into insoles with better arch support. But that’s not the hugest of deals.
4 – Since we’re only a month out, it’s time to double down on the runDisney costumes. What should be fun is turning into a nightmare. My 10K (Dumbo) is almost done (although it has made me hate sewing), but my 5K is a big question mark (my original idea didn’t work out), and Beth has nothing (and is understandably getting frustrated about it). I’m working on something now … but the “perfect” shirt (which, btw, is actually a volleyball jersey) is more than I want to spend, and I don’t know if the cheaper shirt will work as well because the color just doesn’t seem quite as vibrant.

Anyway ... next week:

Monday is the second part of my race simulation – the 10K simulation. Tuesday was supposed to be a total rest day to recover from the race simulation, but we’re headed to the running store to return Beth’s shoes and then going to a different running store to get new shoes, so I’ll likely end up with some low-intensity walking to get between the two stores. Sunday will be interesting, as we’re hosting a family brunch, so I don’t know if I’ll have time to go out running before brunch or if the run will have to wait until after everyone leaves.

 

[Ariel484]

That's disappointing about kickboxing ballet just being so-so...it sounds like it would be awesome!

Hey...if the walk intervals work for you, I would definitely keep them. Whatever keeps you feeling good during a run!

I have heard that people sometimes have really good success with the shorter intervals (i.e. 1:30/1:30). I could never figure out how to make them work for me - I remember I tried a run at 1:30/1:30 once and wanted to die by the end. Curious to hear about your "character stop" training! I hope day 2 of your simulation went well!

I SO hear you on the costume frustrations! I wouldn't say it was nightmare-ish for me to make them, but it wasn't fun. I can't wait to see your Dumbo costume though!!

Sorry that you had a rough week. I hope things are improving for you this week...but yay for new shoes and hopefully a new Dooney!

 

[SarahDisney]

That's disappointing about kickboxing ballet just being so-so...it sounds like it would be awesome!

Yeah, I really wanted it to be awesome, and it wasn't. Oh well.

Hey...if the walk intervals work for you, I would definitely keep them. Whatever keeps you feeling good during a run!

Thanks for the input. I think that I've just been trying for so long to be "without walk intervals" that it's hard for me to come to terms with the fact that I do better with the walk intervals. But like you said ... whatever keeps me feeling good.

I have heard that people sometimes have really good success with the shorter intervals (i.e. 1:30/1:30). I could never figure out how to make them work for me - I remember I tried a run at 1:30/1:30 once and wanted to die by the end. Curious to hear about your "character stop" training! I hope day 2 of your simulation went well!

I actually felt more exhausted at the end of each run interval yesterday than I did today (when I did my regular 4/1 interval). I think it's probably because I'm not used to it ... but it was definitely weird to me that I would feel better
Character stop training wasn't as exciting as it sounds ... but hopefully I'll post something within the next day or two about the simulation so you can see what it was all about.

I SO hear you on the costume frustrations! I wouldn't say it was nightmare-ish for me to make them, but it wasn't fun. I can't wait to see your Dumbo costume though!!

Yeah, the whole running costume thing sounds way more fun than it actually is sometimes...
I think my problem is that I bit off more than I can chew with the Dumbo skirt. I'm almost done with it, but I don't know that it will really scream Dumbo, and it was a lot of frustrating work sewing it all by hand.
And then finding matching clothing for other costumes hasn't been easy. I made a skirt a few months ago that I thought would be great for the 5K, but I bought the material because it was on sale and didn't take into account the fact that it wasn't going to be easy to match.
And the fact that we're working with tiny little budgets makes it even harder.
Sigh ...

Sorry that you had a rough week. I hope things are improving for you this week...but yay for new shoes and hopefully a new Dooney!

Thanks. So far no improvements, but the week is young, and the possibility of a new Dooney is keeping me excited!

 

[SarahDisney]

Recap: Race Simulation #1​

5K Simulation:
I had planned to wake up at 4:30 AM and head out around 7ish, but I went to bed later than expected, and ended up waking up at 5:30 and heading out just after 8. The plan was 2.75 miles with intervals of 1:30 walk/1:30 run, and I ended up doing 2.79 miles in 36 minutes.
I wasn’t sure how my pace would be, so I decided not to make any stops in the first mile, but just after mile 1 I made a 30 second “character stop” (aka stood around without going anywhere, pretending I was waiting in line for a character), and I did that again after mile 2. I also took two short picture stops, one at about 1.5 miles and the other around 2.5 miles (this was literally a stop to take out my phone and take a picture).

Pace Notes: Overall pace of 12:55, moving pace of approximately 12:28 – good pace!
My sister’s pace (using either 1:30/1:30 or 1:45/1:30) is usually somewhere around 12:20-12:40, so that’s what I wanted my pace to be for this run. I knew that the stops would make that pace slower, so I decided to look at my average moving pace instead of my overall average pace. Garmin said my moving time was 35:47 (average moving pace of 12:50), but I think it counted my “character” stops as moving (which is something to be aware of for the races – I didn’t think it would do that). If I take off a minute for the two stops, that gives me a time of 34:47 and an average pace of about 12:28 … which is pretty much where I needed to be. So I definitely feel good about my pace for the 5K.

Nutrition Notes: Nothing needed!
I wasn’t sure if I would be hungry because I was up for so long before the run, but I wasn’t hungry before the run, and I was also fine throughout and after the run. The plan is still to bring a gel for before the race, jelly bellys for during the race, and Sport Beans for after the race … but I don’t think I’ll end up needing them (I just want to have them in case).

10K Simulation:
I didn’t think that getting up for the races would be the biggest of problems, but I’m starting to get nervous now. Alarm went off at 4:30, but I didn’t get out of bed until almost 5 (left for my run around 7:25) … and I had gone to sleep at the much more sensible hour of 10:45 the night before. Once I was up I was yawning the whole time, so I thought about having a caffeinated pre-run fuel, but I decided to stick to the original plan, which was caffeine free.
The plan was 6 miles with my normal long run intervals of 4:00 run/1:00 walk, and I ended up with 6.06 miles in 1:16:00. I took a “picture break” approximately at every 0.5 mile mark (except for 4.5 miles, where I forgot), which was really just slowing to a walk to take a picture. Every mile I took a 30-40 second “character break” … but without the fun of the characters, just the waiting around. I actually did some stretching during my character breaks because I’ve been having some back pain lately, and it did hurt a little while I was running.

Pace Notes: Overall pace of 12:32, moving pace of approximately 12:08 – decent pace
Since I was using my regular intervals, I was hoping for a moving pace somewhere around 11:30-12:15, which is around where I’ve been on my last few long runs (I think). I was on the slower end of that range, but still in the range. Even with the “character” stops, my pace was a drop below 12:30 most of the run … I just kinda crapped out around the end. I think it was a combination of that part of the park always being harder for me and the fact that this was by far my longest run in about 3 weeks. But really, I think I’m in good shape for this race pace-wise.

Nutrition Notes: Clif Shot Chocolate (pre-run), 7-8 jelly bellys (mid-run), ½ pack Sport Beans
I used my general long run nutrition plan here, and it seemed to work out fine. The only thing I did “wrong” was when I ate my jelly bellys – I ate them at 49 minutes, which was around mile 4. Plan for the race is to eat them shortly after mile 3, and I forgot that when it came to eating on this run. I’m actually wondering if doing it at mile 4 is a better idea because then it’s not as big of a deal if I don’t have my Sport Beans right after I finish. Something to think about.

General Notes:
Obviously, this wasn’t a perfect race day simulation for various reasons. I woke up later than race day wake ups. On race day I’ll be hanging around the Epcot parking lot for most of the time between wakeup and race, not sitting in my room watching TV or browsing the internet. On race day I’ll be wearing my sneakers all morning, not comfy slipper booties. There are definitely a lot of differences between these runs and race day, but I think it gave me a good idea of how I can do with the back-to-back and what my nutritional needs are if I’ve been up for a few hours before the run (turns out … my nutritional needs are exactly the same as they always are, I just drink more water before the run).
Also, my “character stops” weren’t exactly as they will be, but really I just wanted to test if I could stop and then start up again (I never came to a full stop (except when I had to get a pebble out of my shoe), I walked in place a bit, but I’ll be trying to do that at the races too).

Things I’ve Learned From Race Simulation #1:
1 – I don’t think I need a water bottle for the 5K. I may not need it for the 10K either, but for that race I’ll bring it just to make me feel better. I’ll try my next 5K simulation without the water bottle, and if I find that I miss it too much, I really don’t mind carrying it.
2 – Stops don’t slow my pace down as much as I thought they would. Okay, I only took 30 seconds for my “character breaks,” and I know that on race day those will be closer to 5-10 minutes (meaning that my pace would be slowed down more than it was on these runs). I’ve always had a hard time figuring out how things affect my pace (I know it should be simple, pace is just time divided by distance, but for some reason the effect of things like walk breaks and stops always confuses me). Now I know that a short break barely affects my pace, and I think that even with taking a few 5-10 minute character breaks, I won’t have too hard of a time staying within the pacing requirements.
3 – My walking pace is about 19:30 min/mile. I don’t know why I’ve never bothered to calculate that before, but I sat down to calculate it on Sunday, and that’s what it came out too. (Don’t ask me how I calculated it, though, I can’t remember what I did … I think something about my warm up walk and cool down walk, which are done at fairly similar paces to my walk intervals). I know I can speed up my walk if need be, and I could probably walk the 10K with minimal stops and not get swept (especially since we’ll be starting in corral D, which should give us a 15-20 minute cushion). The 5K I can definitely walk, because I know I finished with a pace over 19:30 last year (it was somewhere around 22:45, I think … stupid really long Mickey line).

And … that’s race simulation #1. So far it looks like I’m in decent shape. We’ll see how things go in two weeks, when I do race simulation #2 … aka 3.5 miles and 6.5 miles in costume.

 

[rteetz]

I think you'll be fine. Waking up for a disney race vs. waking up for a training run is totally different. I was worried last year that i would wake up late but I actually woke up before my alarm went off probably because I was so excited yet nervous for the experience.

I am still relatively new to running but I have never carried a water bottle or anything with me while I run. On my longer runs I will leave a bottle on the curb outside my house so when I make the loop I grab a drink. On my shorter runs of 3-6 miles I don't leave anything out.

 

[Ariel484]

Overall it seems like your simulation was great!

One thing to think about with the 5K...they do have 2 water stops during that race. Just water, no Powerade (from what I remember from last year). So unless it gets really hot or you decide 2 water stops isn't enough for you, you may be good without your bottle.

Sorry about the back pain...maybe a heating pad or a hot shower would help? That's what helps me.

 

[Polkalaladots]

This has been very helpful info

 

[SarahDisney]

I think you'll be fine. Waking up for a disney race vs. waking up for a training run is totally different. I was worried last year that i would wake up late but I actually woke up before my alarm went off probably because I was so excited yet nervous for the experience.

Thanks for the insight. Last year we were okay, but because I had such trouble getting out of bed this week, I was getting nervous - but hopefully you're right and I'll be able to get up with no problems.

I am still relatively new to running but I have never carried a water bottle or anything with me while I run. On my longer runs I will leave a bottle on the curb outside my house so when I make the loop I grab a drink. On my shorter runs of 3-6 miles I don't leave anything out.

I sometimes take my water bottle when I go to the mailbox (which is a block away). I rarely go anywhere without water, and I've been carrying water with me since I started running. That said ... I've been drinking less and less water while I run lately, so I think that once the weather gets better and they turn the water fountains at my park back on, I may try to go out without my water bottle.

Overall it seems like your simulation was great!

Yup, it was pretty good!

One thing to think about with the 5K...they do have 2 water stops during that race. Just water, no Powerade (from what I remember from last year). So unless it gets really hot or you decide 2 water stops isn't enough for you, you may be good without your bottle.

I also remember water only from my 5K ... I know I stopped at the second one, but not the first one. I think I'll be okay with just those ... plus, there are always the water fountains around World Showcase.
But I want to try going out without my water bottle once just to make sure it doesn't feel too weird for me.

Sorry about the back pain...maybe a heating pad or a hot shower would help? That's what helps me.

Thanks for the suggestions. It's been getting a bit better, but if I'm not back to 100% soon, I may try a heating pad.

This has been very helpful info

Hi! I'm glad you found this helpful, and if you have any questions, feel free to ask!

 

[dancingtodisney]

Recap: Race Simulation #1​

5K Simulation:
I had planned to wake up at 4:30 AM and head out around 7ish, but I went to bed later than expected, and ended up waking up at 5:30 and heading out just after 8. The plan was 2.75 miles with intervals of 1:30 walk/1:30 run, and I ended up doing 2.79 miles in 36 minutes.
I wasn’t sure how my pace would be, so I decided not to make any stops in the first mile, but just after mile 1 I made a 30 second “character stop” (aka stood around without going anywhere, pretending I was waiting in line for a character), and I did that again after mile 2. I also took two short picture stops, one at about 1.5 miles and the other around 2.5 miles (this was literally a stop to take out my phone and take a picture).

Pace Notes: Overall pace of 12:55, moving pace of approximately 12:28 – good pace!
My sister’s pace (using either 1:30/1:30 or 1:45/1:30) is usually somewhere around 12:20-12:40, so that’s what I wanted my pace to be for this run. I knew that the stops would make that pace slower, so I decided to look at my average moving pace instead of my overall average pace. Garmin said my moving time was 35:47 (average moving pace of 12:50), but I think it counted my “character” stops as moving (which is something to be aware of for the races – I didn’t think it would do that). If I take off a minute for the two stops, that gives me a time of 34:47 and an average pace of about 12:28 … which is pretty much where I needed to be. So I definitely feel good about my pace for the 5K.

Nutrition Notes: Nothing needed!
I wasn’t sure if I would be hungry because I was up for so long before the run, but I wasn’t hungry before the run, and I was also fine throughout and after the run. The plan is still to bring a gel for before the race, jelly bellys for during the race, and Sport Beans for after the race … but I don’t think I’ll end up needing them (I just want to have them in case).

10K Simulation:
I didn’t think that getting up for the races would be the biggest of problems, but I’m starting to get nervous now. Alarm went off at 4:30, but I didn’t get out of bed until almost 5 (left for my run around 7:25) … and I had gone to sleep at the much more sensible hour of 10:45 the night before. Once I was up I was yawning the whole time, so I thought about having a caffeinated pre-run fuel, but I decided to stick to the original plan, which was caffeine free.
The plan was 6 miles with my normal long run intervals of 4:00 run/1:00 walk, and I ended up with 6.06 miles in 1:16:00. I took a “picture break” approximately at every 0.5 mile mark (except for 4.5 miles, where I forgot), which was really just slowing to a walk to take a picture. Every mile I took a 30-40 second “character break” … but without the fun of the characters, just the waiting around. I actually did some stretching during my character breaks because I’ve been having some back pain lately, and it did hurt a little while I was running.

Pace Notes: Overall pace of 12:32, moving pace of approximately 12:08 – decent pace
Since I was using my regular intervals, I was hoping for a moving pace somewhere around 11:30-12:15, which is around where I’ve been on my last few long runs (I think). I was on the slower end of that range, but still in the range. Even with the “character” stops, my pace was a drop below 12:30 most of the run … I just kinda crapped out around the end. I think it was a combination of that part of the park always being harder for me and the fact that this was by far my longest run in about 3 weeks. But really, I think I’m in good shape for this race pace-wise.

Nutrition Notes: Clif Shot Chocolate (pre-run), 7-8 jelly bellys (mid-run), ½ pack Sport Beans
I used my general long run nutrition plan here, and it seemed to work out fine. The only thing I did “wrong” was when I ate my jelly bellys – I ate them at 49 minutes, which was around mile 4. Plan for the race is to eat them shortly after mile 3, and I forgot that when it came to eating on this run. I’m actually wondering if doing it at mile 4 is a better idea because then it’s not as big of a deal if I don’t have my Sport Beans right after I finish. Something to think about.

General Notes:
Obviously, this wasn’t a perfect race day simulation for various reasons. I woke up later than race day wake ups. On race day I’ll be hanging around the Epcot parking lot for most of the time between wakeup and race, not sitting in my room watching TV or browsing the internet. On race day I’ll be wearing my sneakers all morning, not comfy slipper booties. There are definitely a lot of differences between these runs and race day, but I think it gave me a good idea of how I can do with the back-to-back and what my nutritional needs are if I’ve been up for a few hours before the run (turns out … my nutritional needs are exactly the same as they always are, I just drink more water before the run).
Also, my “character stops” weren’t exactly as they will be, but really I just wanted to test if I could stop and then start up again (I never came to a full stop (except when I had to get a pebble out of my shoe), I walked in place a bit, but I’ll be trying to do that at the races too).

Things I’ve Learned From Race Simulation #1:
1 – I don’t think I need a water bottle for the 5K. I may not need it for the 10K either, but for that race I’ll bring it just to make me feel better. I’ll try my next 5K simulation without the water bottle, and if I find that I miss it too much, I really don’t mind carrying it.
2 – Stops don’t slow my pace down as much as I thought they would. Okay, I only took 30 seconds for my “character breaks,” and I know that on race day those will be closer to 5-10 minutes (meaning that my pace would be slowed down more than it was on these runs). I’ve always had a hard time figuring out how things affect my pace (I know it should be simple, pace is just time divided by distance, but for some reason the effect of things like walk breaks and stops always confuses me). Now I know that a short break barely affects my pace, and I think that even with taking a few 5-10 minute character breaks, I won’t have too hard of a time staying within the pacing requirements.
3 – My walking pace is about 19:30 min/mile. I don’t know why I’ve never bothered to calculate that before, but I sat down to calculate it on Sunday, and that’s what it came out too. (Don’t ask me how I calculated it, though, I can’t remember what I did … I think something about my warm up walk and cool down walk, which are done at fairly similar paces to my walk intervals). I know I can speed up my walk if need be, and I could probably walk the 10K with minimal stops and not get swept (especially since we’ll be starting in corral D, which should give us a 15-20 minute cushion). The 5K I can definitely walk, because I know I finished with a pace over 19:30 last year (it was somewhere around 22:45, I think … stupid really long Mickey line).

And … that’s race simulation #1. So far it looks like I’m in decent shape. We’ll see how things go in two weeks, when I do race simulation #2 … aka 3.5 miles and 6.5 miles in costume.

Hey Sarah!!!

I've been pretty bad at posting lately but I'm still here and following your progress and I'm so happy to see how well you're doing!!

The simulations seem to have gone really well. I wouldn't worry about the early morning starts too much, you will be so excited when your alarm goes off I'm sure you'll have no problem getting up! I love that you've added character breaks, you really are taking the simulation seriously!

I'm a bit worried about character stops myself, we took a long break during our marathon and my muscles got really tight... I think it's good to keep your legs moving during your breaks.

You must be starting to get excited now about race weekend? I'm go from being super excited to being nervous and back again all the time!

Do you have a rough idea what coral you'll be in? I should be in B I think...

 

[SarahDisney]

Hey Sarah!!!

I've been pretty bad at posting lately but I'm still here and following your progress and I'm so happy to see how well you're doing!!

Hi Karen!! I totally get being bad at posting ... I'm like that too sometimes ... but I'm glad you're still following along!

The simulations seem to have gone really well. I wouldn't worry about the early morning starts too much, you will be so excited when your alarm goes off I'm sure you'll have no problem getting up! I love that you've added character breaks, you really are taking the simulation seriously!

As nervous as I am about the early wakeups, I'm sure it'll be fine on race day when I'm getting up for the race. Adding the character breaks was just an idea I had to see if I would be okay stopping ... because I don't want to get to the race and then realize that I don't want to stop!

I'm a bit worried about character stops myself, we took a long break during our marathon and my muscles got really tight... I think it's good to keep your legs moving during your breaks.

I definitely had to keep my legs moving during the breaks - I think that's a good idea for everyone, even if you're just walking in place or walking a few steps up and then back. When I do have to make longer stops during my runs (i.e. bathroom breaks), it's always really hard for me to get started again either because I'm too tight or because my head isn't in it.

You must be starting to get excited now about race weekend? I'm go from being super excited to being nervous and back again all the time!

I'm pretty much the same - excited, then nervous, then excited again, then nervous again. But I'm sure the weekend will be lots of fun for both of us!

Do you have a rough idea what coral you'll be in? I should be in B I think...

We're in D for the 10K, I think probably also D for the 5K. So we'll be a few corrals back from you, but if I see you, I'll definitely wave!

 

[SarahDisney]

Progress Update: 12/7 – 12/13​

Monday 12/7: Remember that Turkey Trot I did a few weeks ago? Well, the hat makes an excellent running hat. So now I’m really glad I did it.
Run Recap: 6.06 miles in 1:16:00 hours (12’32” pace) – I felt pretty okay through most of the run, except at the end, when I kinda felt like I was out of steam. But this was my longest run (by over a mile) in 3 weeks, so I think that was partially the reason. This run actually gave me some ideas that I want to incorporate for my half marathon training plan, which will probably start in mid to late January.

Tuesday 12/8: Today was running store day. The guy who was helping Beth with the shoes was not our favorite person in the world. But as long as the shoes work, we’re happy.
Also, waivers/corrals/event guide for January came out today. So exciting! We’re in Corral D for the 10K, and hoping to be in the same place for the 5K. Yay!! It’s all getting so real!

Wednesday 12/9: I woke up a little late this morning, and was behind schedule the whole day. At 10:30ish I realized that I hadn’t done my cross-training yet, but I knew I couldn’t get in a full session, so I just went with a 10-minute Pilates video. The good news is, Beth had some costume ideas, and we ordered some stuff online that hopefully will work out great!

Thursday 12/10: I hate waking up tired on run days. I definitely think it affected me a little during the run. Rest of the day went pretty decently, though … but I kinda fell behind schedule late at night, so I didn’t get to do any sewing.
Run Recap: 2.89 miles in 32:01 minutes (11’05” pace) – This started off with a speed run, followed by 11 minutes of “normal” running (5:00/0:30 intervals). For those of you who don’t remember, my speed runs consist of 5 miles of alternating slow, medium, and all-out intensity (30 seconds, 20 seconds, and 10 seconds, respectively), followed by a 2 minute walk break. The first few times I tried this I did two of the 5 minute sessions (as recommended by the original NY Times article), but for this run I added a third 5 minute session. It was okay, but I was worn out by the end. I’m thinking that in the future I may choose to do speed sessions on their own day and not do a “normal run” afterwards. We’ll see what happens after my next speed session run (currently planned for 12/24).

Friday 12/11: Weigh in this morning was the same as last week … not great, but it’s better than being up. I was planning to get in some low-intensity walking around my room after my shower, but I was behind schedule, so it never happened. I had also wanted to do some cross training to make up for the shorter session on Wednesday, but … no dice.

Saturday 12/12: I woke up from my nap super grouchy. Like, snapping at everyone grouchy. I was a little better after a few hours and managed to get in some cross training, but it was my second short session of the week. I also didn’t do my knee exercises. The only good thing about the day is that I finally finished my sewing project.

Sunday 12/13: I’m not a big fan of afternoon runs, but I am a fan of waking up at 7 AM instead of 5:50 AM. Breakfast before my run, though … not for me. I don’t know how people eat before they run.
Run Recap: 3.01 miles in 36:02 minutes (11’59” pace) – I went out in the afternoon because of a family breakfast. It was the perfect day for a walk … unfortunately, I had to ruin my walk with a run. My left leg and knee hurt a bit, but other than that, it was fine.

Weight Loss (as of 12/10): 1/3 lb (33%)
December Mileage To Date: 21.23/48.6 miles (44%)

General Comments:
Not a lot to say this week. I fell off the wagon at the end of the week. I’m not happy. Lots of crap going on and I let it get to me. Nothing I can do but write it off as a bad week and learn from my mistakes.

And now, for next week...

Next Sunday is part 1 of my second 5K/10K simulation. This one is my “dress rehearsal” … aka running in costume. I think I know what my costumes will be, but we’ll see how the dress rehearsal goes.

 

[LSUlakes]

I didn’t think that getting up for the races would be the biggest of problems, but I’m starting to get nervous now. Alarm went off at 4:30, but I didn’t get out of bed until almost 5 (left for my run around 7:25) … and I had gone to sleep at the much more sensible hour of 10:45 the night before. Once I was up I was yawning the whole time, so I thought about having a caffeinated pre-run fuel, but I decided to stick to the original plan, which was caffeine free.
The plan was 6 miles with my normal long run intervals of 4:00 run/1:00 walk, and I ended up with 6.06 miles in 1:16:00. I took a “picture break” approximately at every 0.5 mile mark (except for 4.5 miles, where I forgot), which was really just slowing to a walk to take a picture. Every mile I took a 30-40 second “character break” … but without the fun of the characters, just the waiting around. I actually did some stretching during my character breaks because I’ve been having some back pain lately, and it did hurt a little while I was running.


General Notes:
Obviously, this wasn’t a perfect race day simulation for various reasons. I woke up later than race day wake ups. On race day I’ll be hanging around the Epcot parking lot for most of the time between wakeup and race, not sitting in my room watching TV or browsing the internet. On race day I’ll be wearing my sneakers all morning, not comfy slipper booties. There are definitely a lot of differences between these runs and race day, but I think it gave me a good idea of how I can do with the back-to-back and what my nutritional needs are if I’ve been up for a few hours before the run (turns out … my nutritional needs are exactly the same as they always are, I just drink more water before the run).
Also, my “character stops” weren’t exactly as they will be, but really I just wanted to test if I could stop and then start up again (I never came to a full stop (except when I had to get a pebble out of my shoe), I walked in place a bit, but I’ll be trying to do that at the races too).[/QUOTE]

Getting in quality sleep is equally as important as getting in your training runs. Sleep for 8 continuous hours is ideal to be rested as well as allowing your body to recover. Sleep for less than 6 hours will more than likely have a negative effect on your performance. I do think its good you are doing these test runs, but as others have said there is a difference with struggling to wake up for a training run and the actual race. I know for me, I'm like a kid for Christmas on race morning, I also know I have to conserve that energy, so I try my best not to get to excited. Good job on the runs!

Progress Update: 12/7 – 12/13​

View attachment 139948
Monday 12/7: Remember that Turkey Trot I did a few weeks ago? Well, the hat makes an excellent running hat. So now I’m really glad I did it.
Run Recap: 6.06 miles in 1:16:00 hours (12’32” pace) – I felt pretty okay through most of the run, except at the end, when I kinda felt like I was out of steam. But this was my longest run (by over a mile) in 3 weeks, so I think that was partially the reason. This run actually gave me some ideas that I want to incorporate for my half marathon training plan, which will probably start in mid to late January.

Tuesday 12/8: Today was running store day. The guy who was helping Beth with the shoes was not our favorite person in the world. But as long as the shoes work, we’re happy.
Also, waivers/corrals/event guide for January came out today. So exciting! We’re in Corral D for the 10K, and hoping to be in the same place for the 5K. Yay!! It’s all getting so real!

Wednesday 12/9: I woke up a little late this morning, and was behind schedule the whole day. At 10:30ish I realized that I hadn’t done my cross-training yet, but I knew I couldn’t get in a full session, so I just went with a 10-minute Pilates video. The good news is, Beth had some costume ideas, and we ordered some stuff online that hopefully will work out great!

Thursday 12/10: I hate waking up tired on run days. I definitely think it affected me a little during the run. Rest of the day went pretty decently, though … but I kinda fell behind schedule late at night, so I didn’t get to do any sewing.
Run Recap: 2.89 miles in 32:01 minutes (11’05” pace) – This started off with a speed run, followed by 11 minutes of “normal” running (5:00/0:30 intervals). For those of you who don’t remember, my speed runs consist of 5 miles of alternating slow, medium, and all-out intensity (30 seconds, 20 seconds, and 10 seconds, respectively), followed by a 2 minute walk break. The first few times I tried this I did two of the 5 minute sessions (as recommended by the original NY Times article), but for this run I added a third 5 minute session. It was okay, but I was worn out by the end. I’m thinking that in the future I may choose to do speed sessions on their own day and not do a “normal run” afterwards. We’ll see what happens after my next speed session run (currently planned for 12/24).

Friday 12/11: Weigh in this morning was the same as last week … not great, but it’s better than being up. I was planning to get in some low-intensity walking around my room after my shower, but I was behind schedule, so it never happened. I had also wanted to do some cross training to make up for the shorter session on Wednesday, but … no dice.

Saturday 12/12: I woke up from my nap super grouchy. Like, snapping at everyone grouchy. I was a little better after a few hours and managed to get in some cross training, but it was my second short session of the week. I also didn’t do my knee exercises. The only good thing about the day is that I finally finished my sewing project.

Sunday 12/13: I’m not a big fan of afternoon runs, but I am a fan of waking up at 7 AM instead of 5:50 AM. Breakfast before my run, though … not for me. I don’t know how people eat before they run.
Run Recap: 3.01 miles in 36:02 minutes (11’59” pace) – I went out in the afternoon because of a family breakfast. It was the perfect day for a walk … unfortunately, I had to ruin my walk with a run. My left leg and knee hurt a bit, but other than that, it was fine.

Weight Loss (as of 12/10): 1/3 lb (33%)
December Mileage To Date: 21.23/48.6 miles (44%)

General Comments:
Not a lot to say this week. I fell off the wagon at the end of the week. I’m not happy. Lots of crap going on and I let it get to me. Nothing I can do but write it off as a bad week and learn from my mistakes.

And now, for next week...
View attachment 139949
Next Sunday is part 1 of my second 5K/10K simulation. This one is my “dress rehearsal” … aka running in costume. I think I know what my costumes will be, but we’ll see how the dress rehearsal goes.

Good luck this weekend with part two of the "dress rehearsal"! Hope things go well and the costumes do not cause any issues.

I have no idea what happened when posting, but it appears that I just reposted what you wrote, so below is the text that I meant to include on your last two updates.

First Post
Getting in quality sleep is equally as important as getting in your training runs. Sleep for 8 continuous hours is ideal to be rested as well as allowing your body to recover. Sleep for less than 6 hours will more than likely have a negative effect on your performance. I do think its good you are doing these test runs, but as others have said there is a difference with struggling to wake up for a training run and the actual race. I know for me, I'm like a kid for Christmas on race morning, I also know I have to conserve that energy, so I try my best not to get to excited. Good job on the runs!
Second Post
Good luck this weekend with part two of the "dress rehearsal"! Hope things go well and the costumes do not cause any issues.

Sorry about the cluster.

 

[SarahDisney]

I have no idea what happened when posting, but it appears that I just reposted what you wrote, so below is the text that I meant to include on your last two updates.

Yeah, the DIS does weird things with quotes sometimes.

Getting in quality sleep is equally as important as getting in your training runs. Sleep for 8 continuous hours is ideal to be rested as well as allowing your body to recover. Sleep for less than 6 hours will more than likely have a negative effect on your performance. I do think its good you are doing these test runs, but as others have said there is a difference with struggling to wake up for a training run and the actual race. I know for me, I'm like a kid for Christmas on race morning, I also know I have to conserve that energy, so I try my best not to get to excited. Good job on the runs!

8 continuous hours is not an option for me (insomnia issues) ... maybe if I took a sedative, but I won't do that before the race. I am going to try to be in bed for 6.5-7 hours before each race, which I hope will give me enough sleep.

Good luck this weekend with part two of the "dress rehearsal"! Hope things go well and the costumes do not cause any issues.

Thanks! We'll see how it works out ... I did a short test run in one of my skirts today and it might be a problem, but I think I can figure out a way to make it work.

 

[SarahDisney]

Progress Update: 12/14 – 12/20​

Monday 12/14: My morning went really well and I did my knee exercises early than expected. But then I fell behind schedule, and didn’t end up getting to cross-training until very late in the day.

Tuesday 12/15: Mornings. Not only did I forget to do my Tuesday morning mid-week weigh in … I also forgot to fill up my water bottle in the morning so that I could have some water before my run. I haven’t been sleeping very well lately, and I think it’s really getting to me. Yay … not.
Run Recap: 2.60 miles in 30:00 minutes (11’32” pace) – I had no motivation for my run. None at all. Right after I started running, I regretted it, not because anything was wrong, but because I just had no interest in running. Something similar happened on Sunday. It’s really not a good thing.

Wednesday 12/16: Low-intensity exercise was supposed to be walking around Brooklyn before/after my job interview, but the interview got postponed until January. Thankfully, I had been to Modell’s/Kohl’s/Starbucks/CVS with Beth earlier in the day, and I got in plenty of walking going to that area and back.

Thursday 12/17: So ... on the one hand, Thursday’s run was my best run in a while (in terms of motivation). On the other hand, the rest of the day was not great. I know I spoke a few months ago about weeks when I get overwhelmed by life, and things look like they're going in that direction right now. So, yeah.
Run Recap: 2.83 miles in 32:00 minutes (11’18” pace) –Not the worst run, but not the best either. It was completely unexceptional. I was set up for intervals of 7:30 run/0:30 walk, and it was fine. I’m still not feeling motivated, but at least I made it through the run without feeling like running was the worst decision I’ve ever made. Oh, and I wore my Dumbo-inspired skirt … it stuck to my capris the whole time. So … it looks like I’ll be using lots of Static Guard for the costume test run (if that doesn’t work, I’ll just wear a slip under the skirt … it’s a little awkward, but I’ve done it before).

Friday 12/18: I started off the morning okay – I got out of bed, did my morning stretches, and got ready to do my cross training. But my head wasn’t in the game, so I stopped after 10 minutes of cardio kickboxing with the intention of doing another 20 minutes later in the day. Well … I never got to that additional 20 minutes. On the plus side, I did do (most of) my knee exercises earlier in the day, which is something I’ve struggled with a bit lately. On the really negative side, my weight is up 3 lbs since last week (2 lbs since December 1st), and it’s now going to be almost impossible for me to reach my goal for the month. It’s kinda frustrating.

Saturday 12/19: This was scheduled as a rest day, and that’s what it was. I didn’t do any stretches, and I thought about doing some cross training to make up for the short session on Friday, but decided against it. So a true rest day it was.

Sunday 12/20: Nothing too exciting going on. The cold weather finally hit yesterday, so today’s run was probably my coldest one of the year. I survived … and didn’t even get any popsicle fingers (my new gloves are pretty great).
Run Recap: 3.56 miles in 45:00 minutes (12’39” pace) – Negative splits! Mostly because I was so slow in the first mile (12:59) that it would have been weird for me to get significantly slower on a short run, but I’ll take it. This was also my second run in a row that I didn’t hate myself for running … but I didn’t particularly enjoy the run, either. Oh well, I’ll take what I can get.

Weight Loss (as of 12/18): 0/3 lb (0%)
December Mileage To Date: 30.22/48.6 miles (68%)

General Comments:
1 – This week I discovered that I have zero motivation to run. Really, no motivation at all. Thursday and Sunday’s runs were okay, but Tuesday’s run (and a few runs before that) I regretted starting to run 5 minutes into the run. I remember struggling a little with motivation before my Disney race last year, but that was just 1 or 2 runs in the week before the race … this is 3 weeks before the races. I think that after January I have to sit down and figure out if I want to keep running. I hate to say it, but it’s really what I’ve been thinking lately. I actually confessed this to Beth … and she’s thinking along similar lines. We’ll see what happens in January.
2 – I wouldn’t say that I fell off the wagon this week … it’s more that I never got back on the wagon after falling off last week. Either way, not a great week.
3 – I didn’t want to do my knee exercises a few days this week. But I’ve noticed that if I skip the knee exercises, my knee hurts on my next run. So … it looks like I’m gonna have to find a way to do these stupid exercises while I’m at Disney.

And now, for next week’s schedule…

Monday is part 2 of the second 5K/10K simulation (today's run was part 1), followed by our pre-trip Target run (along with a trip to the mall), and then dinner with cousins. Tuesday is a religious fast day, so it really will be a true rest day after the race simulation. Rest of the week is business as usual.

 

[rteetz]

Its completely understandable. I did not have a huge motivation to run this week. The cold weather and not feeling 100% didn't help either. I haven't run since Wednesday which isn't good but this weekend was really crazy with a wedding on Friday, parties yesterday, my sisters birthday today, and another party. Tomorrow should be back to normal tho.

Hopefully we both get back to normal this week.

 

[SarahDisney]

Its completely understandable. I did not have a huge motivation to run this week. The cold weather and not feeling 100% didn't help either. I haven't run since Wednesday which isn't good but this weekend was really crazy with a wedding on Friday, parties yesterday, my sisters birthday today, and another party. Tomorrow should be back to normal tho.

Hopefully we both get back to normal this week.

Yeah, last week was not a good week at all. Hopefully we'll both be back to normal starting tomorrow! Only about 2.5 weeks until the races!!!!!

 

[stacy~**]

I don't think I've commented here in awhile but I do try and keep up.

I'm sad to see you struggling mentally with your runs (and running in general). I honestly go through this often but as soon as I give myself permission to quit/take a break I miss it. Maybe after the races you should just give yourself a few weeks off to see how you feel about it. My last run was Monday. Partly because I was having hip pain and partly because I needed a break. And just taking the week off has made me (dare I say) excited to get back out there this week.

Good luck tomorrow! and have fun shopping for the trip. This week is starting to feel like crunch time!