Every Wish That We Put Into Motion.... (comments welcome!)

[nancipants]

Attempt to do some strength training this morning crashed and burned. I had hoped that setting DD up with some Bluey while she ate breakfast would be adequate for me do get in like 20min of weights, but that idea went bad quickly.


And this afternoon it's snowing.

So that's how my day is going.

I feel you. Yesterday I was under the weather (still am today) and I kept putting on shows for my kid to watch and all he wanted was for me to play cars with him. I got away with closing my eyes on his bed while he played with cars on the floor.

 

[Herding_Cats]

There are not enough ramen-noodle-haired Justin Timberlake memes for today.

 

[Herding_Cats]

We managed a 30min run this morning (2.03mi with 3min/1min intervals at 4.3 and 3.5) Of course, DD woke up about an hour earlier than I wanted her to/she usually does. That means I was heading to the basement with DD to run, instead of knocking out most/all of my run before she woke up. She was quite cooperative this morning, and mostly stayed in "her" area instead of trying to climb all over the side and back of the tread. And what do you know, I feel more like a person today (even if it is 34 and rain/snowing still.)



One of my "coping" strategies is to plan things. I'm working on itineraries for our September trip, and also for January. Since we aren't planning park days I'm planning more table-service reservations. And at this point we've eaten at quite a few places in DS and some of the resorts. I'm debating between scheduling mostly places we know we like (Chef Art Smith's, Morimoto, Paddlefish, Boma, Sanaa, Olivias, as examples), or scheduling mostly new-to-us places (WBG and Jaleo are on my short list so far.) Anything outside the parks that aren't "signature" that I should take a hard look at? I may lobby DH to do MK medal pics on Monday morning and then DATW if they have removed the park hopping restriction by then.

Also, considering a character meal for September: Toppolinos or Chef Mickey's? Is there more interaction time at Toppolinos since there are fewer characters (and I'm assuming a smaller dining room?) Or whatever the character breakfast is at YC? We have done Chef Mickey's 2x, so we know what to expect there.


Oh yeah, and costumes. Do I want a theme or some sort of cohesion for those? Rapunzel is going to make a return (I already got the top for DH to be Flynn Rider) and possibly Donald/Daisy for the half. Is my theme purple? Does that mean Meg and something else? Feisty females?

Also, I have chicks hatching in my basement today. And if that can’t make a person happy, I don’t know what can.

 

[nancipants]

Jaleo was amazing.

I also love The Boathouse, especially if it's good weather to eat outside.

 

[michigandergirl]

I feel you on the seasonal depression. The fact that it is only 39 degrees right now on May 2 is maddening. It seems like we don't get actual spring anymore - it's just 3 more months of winter...

Hoping Mother Nature brings us some sunshine and warmer temps soon!!

 

[Herding_Cats]

Opinions welcome.

I've been digging around on RunSignup and RunningInTheUSA seeing if I can find a race that might be able to fit into our schedule for the fall. The biggest issue is that it has to be on a Sunday, so we don't have to miss a XC meet, and most of the month of September is unavailable. And also, that I'll be into Dopey training, so I don't want it to be too late in the year (late October, as an example) if I decide to make it an A race. I'm not fast enough to worry about POT (pretty sure I'm not going to knock 40min off my PR since I just took 4 months off) so that timing doesn't matter. If I could run a 2:35 I would be THRILLED.

Here's what I've come up with:
-Holland Haven HM on Sept 10th. I looked at this one last year, but the very local "trail" run won out based on historical temperatures (which were then warmer than usual, of course.) Currently $100.
-Ann Arbor [Marathon] HM on Oct1st. This looks OK, has a 5.5hr time limit, a walkers division, but it's already $110??? Also, this would be about a 4hr drive home, and we would be a at XC meet the whole day before the race (which honestly, will be the case for most, if not all, of these.)


These ones would probably have better weather, but where they would fall in the training cycle makes me wary.
-Grand Rapids [Marathon] HM on Oct 15th. I looked through last year's results and I definitely wouldn't be vying for last place at this one (there were some finishers that we over 4hrs) which honestly would be a nice change. Currently $105. *sigh*
-Detroit Freepress HM on Oct 15th. The International course seems neat. I do have some relatives sort-of in the area, so I could probably save on a hotel room. Not excited about a 5hr drive home post-race, though. Currently $115.


Honorable mention to Sleeping Bear HM, on Oct 7th (a Saturday, and if I ran this I would 100% be missing a huge meet that both of my kids set PRs at last year.) But I also feel a little bit like I might want to be around to support my SIL who is planning on making this an A race for the full, because there was nearly 0 crowd support when we ran this in 2021, and I know all the places that we could stage up at to crew for her. I should have enough time to run the half and then jump in my car and find her on at LEAST the last 10k so her family could go to the finish line. Plus, this is super close to home.

 

[michigandergirl]

I have run them all except for Ann Arbor. I think they are all solid choices and don't think you can go wrong with any of them.

Holland Haven is a smaller race and I remember feeling like there weren't many people around me in the later miles (half marathoners don't run with the marathoners), not much crowd support either, but overall a well run race. The course is pretty flat with a mix of neighborhoods, farm fields, and city streets, but surprisingly no view of the big lake for half marathoners. Aid stations were great with yummy offerings like blueberries, bacon, and popsicles. I remember they had a pretty good post race party too with pork sandwiches, beer, etc.

Grand Rapids is an all around great race. It's not as big as Detroit, but much bigger than Holland Haven. They have a "velocity challenged start" for people who want extra time to complete the course - I think they start an hour before? The course has a few rolling hills in the middle, but otherwise fairly flat, a mix of city streets and parks. Well run with great swag and post race party.

Detroit is definitely unique running to Canada and back. You'll need a valid passport (for registration and race). The course was very flat with the exception of the monster hill leading up to the Ambassador bridge. I didn't really like running through the Windsor tunnel, but I'm claustrophobic, so there's that, it's about a mile long. Cool medal with the American & Canadian flags.

 

[jmasgat]

You'll need a valid passport (for registration and race).

That is one option, but you can also use a Michigan Enhanced Driver's License or a NEXUS card.

 

[Herding_Cats]

Week 3 of my "plan" and I'm already missing days. Sheesh. You'd think that fitting in a couple of 30min runs wouldn't be a problem, but we all know that the "30min" doesn't include the getting ready, getting warmed up, and then all of the cleaning up after. *sigh* I've been significantly more active, just not getting out to *run.* I'm planning on getting out for a run on Saturday and Sunday.


It doesn't help that we are on track meet #3 this week. And on the other 2 days, we've had baseball games. And tomorrow there are 2 baseball tournaments. I'm SO ready for June and sports schedules to slow down. For those of you who don't know, HS track meets take approximately 8 hours to complete, and our team is usually the first one there, and the last to leave. Today I will be at one from noon-9pm, and then have about an hour drive home. With a 3 year old. I totally bought a beach umbrella and a wagon yesterday to haul all my crap in for meets since DD won't stay in the stroller. DS2 has managed to push his 4x400m relay split down to 56sec, but he hasn't managed (yet) to translate that speed into a good 800m run. We are hoping he runs 2:12 or faster today so he is an automatic qualifier for regionals. On Monday he ran a 2:16 split in the 4x800 relay, so it's definitely doable on a good day. His current PR is 2:21, and on Wednesday both of his hamstrings were cramping in the 2nd lap, and then an hour later he turned around and ran a 56 in the 4x400 relay (2nd time this week.) Oh to be young again!


Our greenhouse is completely set up minus about an hour of work on the irrigation side of things, but yesterday I managed to roll my ankle when I was walking past it (in a spot that I told DH earlier in the week that I would probably do that.) Of course it's on the side that I have issues with, and my whole calf/ankle/foot are angry at me now....not swollen, just irritated.

 

[NYC_MW]

Good luck to him!

 

[prncssjas]

-Ann Arbor [Marathon] HM on Oct1st. This looks OK, has a 5.5hr time limit, a walkers division, but it's already $110??? Also, this would be about a 4hr drive home, and we would be a at XC meet the whole day before the race (which honestly, will be the case for most, if not all, of these.)

Ann Arbor is a terrific town for running but it's HILLY. As all heck. So if you enjoy elevation, this is your race! Go get it! Ann Arbor has a large running community and it's very exciting.

The Detroit Half is also a great choice but I don't like tunnels much -- not a huge fan of heights either so the ambassador bridge is not great for me (not sure if this is an issue for you). The crowd on the Canada side is amazing and so much fun. The race is nicely organized and you can get decent deals of local hotels near the start/finish.

I am sorry about your ankle...I hope it's back to 100% soon.

 

[Herding_Cats]

Ann Arbor is a terrific town for running but it's HILLY. As all heck. So if you enjoy elevation, this is your race! Go get it! Ann Arbor has a large running community and it's very exciting.

The Detroit Half is also a great choice but I don't like tunnels much -- not a huge fan of heights either so the ambassador bridge is not great for me (not sure if this is an issue for you). The crowd on the Canada side is amazing and so much fun. The race is nicely organized and you can get decent deals of local hotels near the start/finish.

I am sorry about your ankle...I hope it's back to 100% soon.

Hills are definitely not my favorite thing. This is good to know.

 

[Herding_Cats]

I am alive. I'm ready for it to be next Wednesday already, because then things may return to somewhat "normal" around my house. Although, really thinking about that, it seems like normal for us anymore is just running around to all of the things all the time and eating dinner at 8 or 9pm and then falling into bed exhausted and repeating the next day.

Why is next Wednesday significant? Baseball season is highly likely to be done. We have a "pre-district" game on Tuesday (that's the state tournament.) Our team has under-performed all season, so we will probably lose, and that means DH (and DS1) won't be gone until 6pm every night and I might be able to run or something in the evenings.

Training-adjacent:
From my dr appt-- my iron is low again/still (not really surprised there), I should "try weight watchers or something for at least 6 months" in response to the fact that I've gained almost 30# since I started marathon training (I am 100% not thrilled with how much she blew me off about this), I'm waiting to hear back about labs for my thyroid that I had to request specifically again since hypothyroid could explain a lot of my current stuff, and I now have a bottle of zoloft sitting in my med cabinet. Woo.

Training: there hasn't been any. I did specifically ask DH to be on DD-duty in the mornings if I decide to get up at dark-thirty and do some workouts, since she usually gets up within about 15min of me, (this is usually DH's 'drink coffee in silence' time) and I have to be done by 7am. So that'll be a rough adjustment if I go that route.


On the track side of things, DS2 is headed to state finals on the 4x800m relay team on June 3rd, so that's exciting. He didn't get that 2:12 he was hoping for, but he's run a 2:13ish relay split, and PRed in the 400m last night at 57.22. It's been a great season, and I'm excited to see what the team will do in XC in the fall.

 

[The Expert]

Ugh, your doc's response is super frustrating and not at all helpful! Good for you for advocating for yourself and insisting on the thyroid tests. It may turn up nothing, but at least you'll know.

 

[Herding_Cats]

It's June yall. The garden is 80% in, almost all of the new drip line is installed (so I can quit working on that for 2 hours a day), and sports are almost done.


Health/wellness updates: my throid TSH numbers came back in the normal range, so she won't order the test for antibodies. *Sigh.* Also, I started intermittent zoloft for PMDD (and we talked about using it, and some other non-medication options, for seasonal depression next year) and it did help. On the weight side of things, I'm back to tracking all of the things in MFP and I'm going to try using macros. I found a youtube channel of a professional crossfitter who explains things really well and has a lot of practical tips on weighing things without dirtying a million dishes. Right now I'm focusing on trying to get my protein up (I need to get another ~40g/day in) and not on the ratios while I figure out how it all works. I'm also trying to not eat back the "activity" calories my watch tells MFP I've burned because I have a feeling that it's massively overestimating them. I'm down 3 pounds in 2 weeks, but since the last time I weighed this much I was very pregnant, I'm not super excited about it. It is nice to be trending down instead of up, though.

Training: Still none. But it's a new month, and the goal is to get started, because the clock is very much ticking on September and Dopey training. I'm taking solace in my spring failure to motivated that last year I didn't train at all while coaching baseball and things turned out just fine in January because I jumped back in to training in full force in June. It's time to hype myself up for that. A new calendar page is a good place to start.

Kids: since I talk about them too much. Our opponent's best pitcher for baseball districts apparently broke something in his throwing hand the week before we played them, and we managed to beat them 7-6 on Tuesday. That means we play on Saturday (and if we win, the season will continue.) DS2 got bumped to an alternate on his 4x800 relay time for state finals as one of the seniors on the team decided to drop almost 10 seconds off his splits in the last 3 weeks. So he's bummed about that, but also I think he's relieved (it's been a lot of pressure for a 15 year old to be running with 2 elite-level high school runners, even as awesome as those 2 boys' personalities are, and he's really handled it incredibly well.) He was considering "giving" his spot to this other runner at regionals because he feels like he has a good shot at making it back to finals in the next few years, and this is his teammate's last chance. However, he's really looking forward to taking a couple of weeks off from running to give his body a break. He did manage to run a 55sec 4x400 split in his last race of the season, which he was pumped about. It was nice for him to go out on a high note.

 

[garneska]

For protein, you can try and add lentils to your diet. My dr told me the same to add more protein.

 

[Herding_Cats]

Also, since there's nothing like avoiding training right NOW to plan for a potential race in the future....

I'm thinking I need some sort of race to train for post-Dopey, pre-summer (so I HAVE to exercise during the winter.) As we are going on a cruise for DS1's senior year trip, I started looking for races in FL.

Any chance any of you have heard anything about the Sunrise Half? The course looks a bit convoluted, but it's on the right day, in the right area. It's west of Ft Lauderdale, and our cruise is out of Miami. If we flew down on Friday, ran it on Saturday, and then our cruise is out of Miami on Sunday, so we would still be in the vicinity of where we need to be. I'm sure DH would not like this idea, but I will let it percolate nonetheless.

 

[The Expert]

I'm thinking I need some sort of race to train for post-Dopey, pre-summer (so I HAVE to exercise during the winter.)

I've ended up doing our local 10K every April for this very reason. Anything longer seems like too much but anything shorter and I won't train. Then we moved and I jacked it all up and haven't really run since Dopey this year. So YES, I think planning a race is a great idea!

When is your cruise? My worry about a Miami race would be weather (ie heat) but ymmv.

 

[Herding_Cats]

I've ended up doing our local 10K every April for this very reason. Anything longer seems like too much but anything shorter and I won't train. Then we moved and I jacked it all up and haven't really run since Dopey this year. So YES, I think planning a race is a great idea!

When is your cruise? My worry about a Miami race would be weather (ie heat) but ymmv.

it would be in the end of March. looking at their website, the race starts at 630 in the morning when it's still dark out. IDK. I just need SOMETHING, there's not a whole lot in Michigan (plus, it can still be winter and no thanks to running outside in the winter) and adding in a THIRD trip somewhere would be a very, very, hard sell.

 

[The Expert]

it would be in the end of March. looking at their website, the race starts at 630 in the morning when it's still dark out. IDK. I just need SOMETHING, there's not a whole lot in Michigan (plus, it can still be winter and no thanks to running outside in the winter) and adding in a THIRD trip somewhere would be a very, very, hard sell.

I'd feel good about that timing, actually. And since you're already there, it isn't THAT big a deal to add it. I think I'd go for it.