In Training: Marathon Weekend 2013 (Dopey Challenge)! 1/17 - LINK TO TRIP REPORT!
- Thread starter Ariel484
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Ariel484
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OOH...4 dogs! 2 of them beagles?! We can barely handle the one beagle!
In all seriousness, I would LOVE to get another dog, but I know it's not practical...anyway, yes, he does like shoes. He doesn't destroy them or anything (though I'm not sure what he'd do if he got one while one of us wasn't around). I think he mostly grabs them just to get one of us to chase him, so I don't really get mad at him or anything (as proof by the photo, if I took it more seriously I probably wouldn't have stopped to take a picture). 
He loves running around the house and sort of playing "tag" or "hide-and-seek" (you know, as much as a dog can play that way, hence the quotes), especially with my husband. And he DOES love socks, but we both feel like if he really did get one of those he'd eat it, so we're a little more careful. I had to LOL at you saying your beagles were bad puppies. I'm not sure if I have said this before but Archie was rescued from a puppy mill and we adopted him from the rescue when he was 6 months old, so we didn't have him as a YOUNG puppy. He's not BAD, just likes to make mischief like I said in the post above (I keep using that same word, but that really is the best way to describe it!)...I can only imagine how he would've been as a puppy (if he wasn't in the puppy mill, I mean).
Ariel484
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Week 10: Rest Day
Friday, November 2, 2012
Very exciting day today - we finally had some stuff taken care of around the house that has been driving us both completely nuts for the entire almost 3 years since we moved in.
We tried to fix both issues before deciding to have professionals come in and finally get the jobs done.
The first issue was in our kitchen, where we had 2 lights replaced. One I just didn't like, the other we both HATED - it was one of those track lights. We both thought it LOOKED fine, but sitting under it was so uncomfortable because it would get super hot. It's hard to explain, and it probably doesn't suond like much, but after living with it for so long we grew to hate it. Plus, the light needed special bulbs, which I thought was annoying.
We've changed out almost every light fixture in our house ourselves, but the lights we picked for the kitchen proved too difficult for us (we tried our hand at one last weekend and it went terribly). Now they're in and look great! Just need to paint the ceiling now...ugh.
The second job was replacing the doors on all of our closets. They used to have slider doors, which we hated - they were inefficient, constantly squeaky and all had cracked handles. Now all of our closets have bi-fold doors! Again, this is something we tried to do ourselves, but apparently our closets are unusually short, so no standard-sized doors would fit. 
(That was a fun trip to Home Depot a year ago...when I'd measured the openings and told the HD guys I couldn't find the correct-sized doors and they looked at me like a stupid girl who didn't know how to use a measuring tape and convinced me that I'd measured incorrectly while making me feel like a total *ss...thanks, jerks. 
) Anyway, the guys we hired had to actually cut standard-sized doors down...$$$ 
That realization along with the thought of drilling into the wall to install the doors was enough to make us want to hire someone to do it.
All jobs were completed in 3 hours...so while we wish we could have done it ourselves, we know there's no way we could have done it as well or as quickly. So I think it was the right decision to spend the money. Both changes are HUGE improvements and we regret waiting so long to do it.
ANYWAY, while I'm so, so happy about these small changes to the house, my day was totally disrupted. I had to be home the entire time the guys were working (8:30-11:30), and once they left I spent the next few hours vacuuming (they'd tracked in leaves from the outside...most of it they'd cleaned up themselves but I went back over it anyway) and painting the doors in our master bedroom - we'd taken the monster pup to doggy camp for the day - better for all involved - so I wanted to get the doors painted as quickly as possible while he was gone. And thus my day was eaten up...no time for running, and really not much rest on my designated "rest day," which came back to haunt me, I think...
Continued in Next Post
Friday, November 2, 2012
Very exciting day today - we finally had some stuff taken care of around the house that has been driving us both completely nuts for the entire almost 3 years since we moved in.
We tried to fix both issues before deciding to have professionals come in and finally get the jobs done. The first issue was in our kitchen, where we had 2 lights replaced. One I just didn't like, the other we both HATED - it was one of those track lights. We both thought it LOOKED fine, but sitting under it was so uncomfortable because it would get super hot. It's hard to explain, and it probably doesn't suond like much, but after living with it for so long we grew to hate it. Plus, the light needed special bulbs, which I thought was annoying.
We've changed out almost every light fixture in our house ourselves, but the lights we picked for the kitchen proved too difficult for us (we tried our hand at one last weekend and it went terribly). Now they're in and look great! Just need to paint the ceiling now...ugh. The second job was replacing the doors on all of our closets. They used to have slider doors, which we hated - they were inefficient, constantly squeaky and all had cracked handles. Now all of our closets have bi-fold doors!
Again, this is something we tried to do ourselves, but apparently our closets are unusually short, so no standard-sized doors would fit. (That was a fun trip to Home Depot a year ago...when I'd measured the openings and told the HD guys I couldn't find the correct-sized doors and they looked at me like a stupid girl who didn't know how to use a measuring tape and convinced me that I'd measured incorrectly while making me feel like a total *ss...thanks, jerks. ) Anyway, the guys we hired had to actually cut standard-sized doors down...$$$ That realization along with the thought of drilling into the wall to install the doors was enough to make us want to hire someone to do it. All jobs were completed in 3 hours...so while we wish we could have done it ourselves, we know there's no way we could have done it as well or as quickly. So I think it was the right decision to spend the money. Both changes are HUGE improvements and we regret waiting so long to do it.
ANYWAY, while I'm so, so happy about these small changes to the house, my day was totally disrupted. I had to be home the entire time the guys were working (8:30-11:30), and once they left I spent the next few hours vacuuming (they'd tracked in leaves from the outside...most of it they'd cleaned up themselves but I went back over it anyway) and painting the doors in our master bedroom - we'd taken the monster pup to doggy camp for the day - better for all involved - so I wanted to get the doors painted as quickly as possible while he was gone. And thus my day was eaten up...no time for running, and really not much rest on my designated "rest day," which came back to haunt me, I think...
Continued in Next Post
Ariel484
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Week 10: Run #3 (15 miles)
Saturday, November 3, 2012
Weather: high 30s/low 40s, overcast
22 miles completed/29 miles planned for the week
192 miles completed so far in training
There's no other way to say it - this was not a great run for me. In fact, I think it was the worst long run I've had during training.
It was bound to happen eventually, I guess.
The entire time my legs just felt like they had no energy and it was hard to get them to move faster. I started feeling more sore than usual at some point (I forget when)...boo. The run as a whole wasn't horrible AT ALL, but it wasn't as good as my other long runs have been. I'm trying not to over-analyze it or anything - I'm sure doing all the stuff around the house on Friday didn't help, and I had to start/stop/change directions a lot to cross the streets around my community to avoid power lines that were still down and debris leftover from the storm (side-note: still feel very lucky that we didn't lose any power. It was nuts to see all of the work/clean-up going on).
I think the worst part of the run was how I handled it mentally. I think I've done a pretty good job of keeping a positive attitude throughout training, but that was gone on Saturday. I'm a faster runner this year than I was last year, and I didn't realize until Saturday how important pace has gotten for me. I realized early on in the run that my pace was not as good as it was compared to my other long runs and really started to beat myself up over it..."Why can't you keep the same pace you've kept during your other long runs?", "Why is this taking so long?" "Why did you sign up for this?" ("This" being the 5K/Goofy Challenge.) It made me realize that despite the fact that I am planning on running the Marathon Weekend races for fun, I've become very competitive with myself during training...and that really sucked any fun out of the run.
Splits:
Mile 1 - 10:26
Mile 2 - 10:27
Mile 3 - 11:05 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 4 - 10:37
Mile 5 - 11:41 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 6 - 10:42
Mile 7 - 10:54 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 8 - 10:41
Mile 9 - 11:48 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile...dropped one of my chomps on the ground. Sadness!
And I totally considered eating it for about half a second...don't worry, reason eventually won out and I did not eat it!
Mile 10 - 10:49
Mile 11 - 11:15 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 12 - 10:53 --> tripped at the end of this mile and almost fell flat on my face. We're talking full-out losing balance, arms flailing...how I caught myself, I have no idea, but I didn't fall. I'm sure passing drivers got a good laugh.
Mile 13 - 12:28 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile...I think this is where I was REALLY saying some horrible things to myself, hence the long split...most of that time was probably spent convincing myself to start running again.
Mile 14 - 10:50 --> walk/water break halfway through this mile
Mile 15 - 9:59 --> with 0.5 miles left I stepped on an acorn or something and almost rolled my ankle...yikes!
Total time: 2:44:29 for 15 miles
Average pace: 10:58/mile
I want to make it clear that my disappointment with my pace IS NOT a reflection on how fast anyone else runs (I hope that makes sense
)...it was just me looking back at my paces on my other recent long runs and wishing that the pace was this one was closer to what I did last week/2-3 weeks ago.
But really...why is that? Shouldn't the important thing be that I completed the distance and was healthy at the end, especially on a day where I was feeling less than 100% (legs feeling tired, etc.)? Does it really matter that my pace was 10:45 during earlier runs, and on Saturday it was a 10:58? Is that really worth making myself feel badly?
Clearly I turned this into a big THING (just look at how long this post is...) when it really doesn't need to be. What I'm choosing to take away from it is that this just wasn't a great run, but I finished it and now I'm just that much closer to marathon weekend. And I need to remember WHY I'm doing this training in the first place - not so I can be OMGSOFAST (I mean, it's not like I'll win the race or anything...
) but so that I can be healthy enough to have fun and fully enjoy myself during those 42.4 miles through the parks in January. That's what's really important.
Continued in Next Post
Saturday, November 3, 2012
Weather: high 30s/low 40s, overcast
22 miles completed/29 miles planned for the week
192 miles completed so far in training
There's no other way to say it - this was not a great run for me. In fact, I think it was the worst long run I've had during training.
It was bound to happen eventually, I guess.The entire time my legs just felt like they had no energy and it was hard to get them to move faster. I started feeling more sore than usual at some point (I forget when)...boo. The run as a whole wasn't horrible AT ALL, but it wasn't as good as my other long runs have been. I'm trying not to over-analyze it or anything - I'm sure doing all the stuff around the house on Friday didn't help, and I had to start/stop/change directions a lot to cross the streets around my community to avoid power lines that were still down and debris leftover from the storm (side-note: still feel very lucky that we didn't lose any power. It was nuts to see all of the work/clean-up going on).
I think the worst part of the run was how I handled it mentally. I think I've done a pretty good job of keeping a positive attitude throughout training, but that was gone on Saturday. I'm a faster runner this year than I was last year, and I didn't realize until Saturday how important pace has gotten for me. I realized early on in the run that my pace was not as good as it was compared to my other long runs and really started to beat myself up over it..."Why can't you keep the same pace you've kept during your other long runs?", "Why is this taking so long?" "Why did you sign up for this?" ("This" being the 5K/Goofy Challenge.) It made me realize that despite the fact that I am planning on running the Marathon Weekend races for fun, I've become very competitive with myself during training...and that really sucked any fun out of the run.
Splits:
Mile 1 - 10:26
Mile 2 - 10:27
Mile 3 - 11:05 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 4 - 10:37
Mile 5 - 11:41 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 6 - 10:42
Mile 7 - 10:54 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 8 - 10:41
Mile 9 - 11:48 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile...dropped one of my chomps on the ground. Sadness!
And I totally considered eating it for about half a second...don't worry, reason eventually won out and I did not eat it! Mile 10 - 10:49
Mile 11 - 11:15 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 12 - 10:53 --> tripped at the end of this mile and almost fell flat on my face. We're talking full-out losing balance, arms flailing...how I caught myself, I have no idea, but I didn't fall. I'm sure passing drivers got a good laugh.
Mile 13 - 12:28 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile...I think this is where I was REALLY saying some horrible things to myself, hence the long split...most of that time was probably spent convincing myself to start running again.
Mile 14 - 10:50 --> walk/water break halfway through this mile
Mile 15 - 9:59 --> with 0.5 miles left I stepped on an acorn or something and almost rolled my ankle...yikes!
Total time: 2:44:29 for 15 miles
Average pace: 10:58/mile
I want to make it clear that my disappointment with my pace IS NOT a reflection on how fast anyone else runs (I hope that makes sense
)...it was just me looking back at my paces on my other recent long runs and wishing that the pace was this one was closer to what I did last week/2-3 weeks ago. But really...why is that? Shouldn't the important thing be that I completed the distance and was healthy at the end, especially on a day where I was feeling less than 100% (legs feeling tired, etc.)? Does it really matter that my pace was 10:45 during earlier runs, and on Saturday it was a 10:58? Is that really worth making myself feel badly?
Clearly I turned this into a big THING (just look at how long this post is...) when it really doesn't need to be. What I'm choosing to take away from it is that this just wasn't a great run, but I finished it and now I'm just that much closer to marathon weekend. And I need to remember WHY I'm doing this training in the first place - not so I can be OMGSOFAST (I mean, it's not like I'll win the race or anything...
) but so that I can be healthy enough to have fun and fully enjoy myself during those 42.4 miles through the parks in January. That's what's really important. Continued in Next Post
Ariel484
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Week 10: Run #4 (7-mile loop)
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Weather: low 40s, overcast with some sun
29 miles completed/29 miles planned for the week
199 miles completed so far in training
Ooooooook. So after Saturday's disappointment I took an ice bath, had some waffles and went out to a nice dinner with Will. Very nice, relaxing evening. We both talked about my disappointment with the long run on Saturday and he was very encouraging and supportive...yay.
I floated the idea of doing on run per week without a watch, and he thought that was a good one - no pressure, running just to run. The issue now is that my other runs that aren't on a treadmill have gotten long enough that I need fuel/water during them, and I need to know when to take both. Hmm...I'll need to think about that.
So yesterday's 7-miler wasn't watchless, but I did make a concerted effort to not focus so much on my pace, and ended up having a nice run.
Splits:
Mile 1 - 10:25
Mile 2 - 10:17
Mile 3 - 10:41 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 4 - 10:12
Mile 5 - 10:58 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 6 - 10:20
Mile 7 - 10:16 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Total time: 1:13:10 for 7 miles
Average pace: 10:27/mile
The big take-away here is that I must be doing sometime right when it comes to recovering from my runs - my legs were a bit sore after the 15-miler the previous day, but a couple of miles into the 7-miler they felt pretty good. Today the soreness is almost gone. I'd say that's pretty encouraging for Marathon Weekend.
After the run I ran a few errands around town and was all "OMG, it's so late!"...as soon as I got home I realized that since I hadn't changed the clock in my car I spent all day thinking it was an hour later than it actually was, despite the fact that we changed the clocks in our house. D'OH! Ooooooh boy. Then we had our delayed trick-our-treat! Very fun to see the kids dressed up, and we had a great turnout despite the delay from the storm - 15-20 kids, which is about the normal amount we have. Yay!
Continued in Next Post
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Weather: low 40s, overcast with some sun
29 miles completed/29 miles planned for the week
199 miles completed so far in training
Ooooooook. So after Saturday's disappointment I took an ice bath, had some waffles and went out to a nice dinner with Will. Very nice, relaxing evening. We both talked about my disappointment with the long run on Saturday and he was very encouraging and supportive...yay.
I floated the idea of doing on run per week without a watch, and he thought that was a good one - no pressure, running just to run. The issue now is that my other runs that aren't on a treadmill have gotten long enough that I need fuel/water during them, and I need to know when to take both. Hmm...I'll need to think about that.So yesterday's 7-miler wasn't watchless, but I did make a concerted effort to not focus so much on my pace, and ended up having a nice run.
Splits:
Mile 1 - 10:25
Mile 2 - 10:17
Mile 3 - 10:41 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 4 - 10:12
Mile 5 - 10:58 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 6 - 10:20
Mile 7 - 10:16 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Total time: 1:13:10 for 7 miles
Average pace: 10:27/mile
The big take-away here is that I must be doing sometime right when it comes to recovering from my runs - my legs were a bit sore after the 15-miler the previous day, but a couple of miles into the 7-miler they felt pretty good. Today the soreness is almost gone.
I'd say that's pretty encouraging for Marathon Weekend.After the run I ran a few errands around town and was all "OMG, it's so late!"...as soon as I got home I realized that since I hadn't changed the clock in my car I spent all day thinking it was an hour later than it actually was, despite the fact that we changed the clocks in our house. D'OH!
Ooooooh boy. Then we had our delayed trick-our-treat! Very fun to see the kids dressed up, and we had a great turnout despite the delay from the storm - 15-20 kids, which is about the normal amount we have. Yay! Continued in Next Post
Ariel484
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Week 11: Strength training
Monday, November 5, 2012
Good morning, week 11!
Pretty good strength training session today - the leg stuff (plyometric jump squats and lunges) was tough after all of the mileage this weekend, but I got through and am feeling pretty good! I even added 5 seconds to each of my planks...and I really am terrible at those. Good start to the day!
Continued in Next Post
Monday, November 5, 2012
Good morning, week 11!
Pretty good strength training session today - the leg stuff (plyometric jump squats and lunges) was tough after all of the mileage this weekend, but I got through and am feeling pretty good! I even added 5 seconds to each of my planks...and I really am terrible at those.
Good start to the day!Continued in Next Post
Ariel484
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Thoughts at the halfway point
This post got a lot longer than I expected...if anyone reads it all the way through I'd be shocked!
Anyway...week 10 is complete&training is halfway over! (I guess technically it was halfway over sometime last week since the 20-week plan includes the races in week 20...but still...)
Total miles run so far in training: 199
Total miles remaining in training: If I complete the plan as scheduled, at least 298 (!)
Total miles run this year: 703.47&if I complete my training plan as scheduled Ill break 1000 for the year!
I thought Id do a little self-assessment (and by little I mean a long, rambling post&oops.): Where I am now, how I feel compared to this time last year (when I was training for the 2012 WDW Full Marathon), and whats coming up.
NOW
Im doing well in some areas. So far I have only missed one run (due to a sinus infection) and 4 strength training sessions (3 due to that same sinus infection, one a couple of weeks ago after an awful night of no sleep). I dont expect to complete the rest of the training plan 100% perfectly because, you know&life but I cant believe how well I have stuck to it so far. I like running more in general than I used to, so I dont find myself trying to make excuses for not being able to complete a run. I have definitely seen how much strength training has helped me from an injury-prevention standpoint, so while I dont LOVE doing it, I know it could literally hurt me to stop. And truthfully, even though Im not getting tons of page views or comments on this thread (and I GREATLY appreciate the ones that I do get!) I think it helps me a lot to post here because it makes me feel like I have a place that I need to report back to. It has definitely helped keep me accountable.
Im a bad yogi.
I mean&what can I say? I dont want to beat myself up over it because Im doing really well with the running and strength training, which I think are more important than yoga, so I wont. If I want to go to yoga, great&if I dont, thats okay too. I have definitely realized that I LIKE yoga, but I dont LOVE it.
(knock on wood) Im not too sore. This is part of the reason why Im not too upset with myself for missing yoga more often than not. Originally I built yoga into my plan because I thought it would help stave off inevitable soreness, but so far, in general, I feel pretty good even though I dont make it to class much. I get occasional soreness when Im running and after, but more often than not I feel pretty normal. I really credit this to:
1. Strength training - this has made a HUGE different for me. Ive been able to ditch the orthotics I used to put in my shoes, which were the only way to help with my Runners Knee. Now the knee pain is virtually non-existent, even in orthotic-less shoes. Woohoo!
2. Post-run ice baths not for everyone, and not fun, but I feel noticeably better afterward
3. Rolling with my foam roller/The Stick
4. Stretching at home in the evenings
5. Weight loss
Im sure this will change as the runs continue to get longer (Im looking in particular at my peak weeks of training: the weeks of December 3 and December 17
), but for now I am very pleased with how Im feeling.
Feed me!! Its not like Im starving all the time, but theres been a noticeable change in my appetite over the past few weeks. It makes complete sense since Im running more (until marathon training began I only had 3 weeks where I ran over 20 miles this year which Im very surprised by!)&but its still an adjustment and something Im trying to be careful with.
COMPARED TO TRAINING FOR THE 2012 WDW FULL MARATHON
I feel better mentally. This is a huge change in a few ways.
1. Last year Will was having some health problems, and that weighed on me SO much.
I felt overwhelmed and emotionally exhausted so much of the time&running should have been a release, but instead it felt like one more stressful thing I had to do. This year is different Will has completely recovered and we are so grateful for that.
2. I feel much more confident this year than I did last year. This makes total sense Ive done this (marathon training) before and know that I can do it. Whenever I go out to run Will asks me how far Im going so that he has an idea of when Ill get back. I remember never wanting to tell him last year because I was always unsure as to whether Id be able to complete whatever distance was on my schedule for that day (just my own weird thing&I know he wouldnt judge me or anything if I cut a run short). Almost every long run was a PDR (Personal Distance Record) and constantly venturing into the unknown was nerve-wracking. This year I know I can complete all of the runs and that has been very calming for me. I just go out and (for the most part) enjoy them, knowing that I am that much closer to my Dopey Goal in January.
Other peoples training is freaking me out. Admittedly this one is a bit silly.
Last year I didnt know anyone else that was training for a marathon at the same time I was except for my brother, who was barely doing anything (notice how I dont mention him much here? His training, as far as I know, is pretty&um& light so far 
). Anyway, I only knew what I was doing and no one else, so I didnt have anyone to compare myself to, if that makes any sense. Then I joined Disboards and now I regularly read and sometimes post on the marathon thread&and seeing how far other people are running sometimes makes me feel like Im not doing enough! Seriously, people on that thread are kicking serious booty and are already planning on running 20-milers next week! I just got up to 15 miles!...then I remember that theyre most likely using a different training plan than I am (Galloway specifically) and end up reminding myself that I know what I am doing works for ME&and has already worked once! This has happened maybe 3-4 times so far. Silly me.
I dont feel like training is taking over my life&and by that I mean that marathon training is not as overwhelming this year as it was last year. And I think a few things are contributing to it.
1. As I said above, Ive done it before and I know what to expect. Plus, I know what works for me now as far as what clothes/shoes to wear, what fuel I like, what helps me recover best (here and here), etc. I was still experimenting with all of this last year.
2. As much as it sucks, I really think getting up before work to get my runs/strength training done Monday-Thursday is helping a LOT. I do what I need to do early in the morning and dont think about it for the rest of the day. I could see myself skipping more workouts if I saved them for after work.
3. Im faster than I was last year. In looking back at my training log from last year, my long run paces averaged about 12:00/mile 13:00/mile...shorter runs were about 11:00/mile average. If I had a really great day I might see paces dip into the high 10s. Now my shorter runs average about 9:45-10:00/mile (closer to 9:30s if Im having a super speedy day), and Im seeing my long runs consistently averaging 10:30-11:00/mile paces. Somehow it just makes long runs seem not as scary knowing that they wont take quite as long as they did last year (okay, so last year it only took 10-15 minutes longer&but it seems like a lot to me!). Of course, the flip side to this is that I'm putting more pressure on myself to keep a certain pace, so I want to try to keep that in check.
Strength training! Have I mentioned strength training yet?! No?? So anyway, I didnt do this at all last year&well, thats not totally true. It looks like I did a grand total of 9 strength training workouts during my 18 weeks of training last year, totally abandoning it before Thanksgiving. I know part of the reason I didnt stick with it is because I hurt my back during one session (bad form while squatting)&but I think its also because I was using a different plan than the one Im using now that was NOT specifically for runners. Ironstrength is much more suitable for marathon training, and like I said before, I really think its been a huge help in keeping my knees (and, Im sure, the rest of my body) healthy.
Missing less runs. In looking at my log sheet from last year, I see quite a few DND (Did Not Do) entries my little code for a missed run. This time last year I was 8 weeks into training (using the same plan Im using now, but this year I have added 2 weeks) and had missed 9 runs&3 due to the weight lifting injury I mentioned above (it was ABSOLUTELY the right call to miss those runs), 2 due to traveling for work (the same conference I went to this year, except this year I kept up with training), 2 because I was so lazy (according to the notes in my training log), and 2 because&well, I have no idea why I missed those last 2, I didnt make any notes. Im also noticing more complaints about the weather in my 2011 notes&the first time I ever ran in the rain was my 9-miler on 9/23, so Id be willing to bet that some of those missed runs from 2011 were rainy days where I decided that it wasnt worth it to get out and run. Now I know that I can do it, so less-than-ideal weather isnt an excuse anymore (lightning or crazy amounts of ice on the road would be a different story). And lastly, I think another reason Im missing less runs is that I really want to ensure a great experience for myself in January. This was motivation for me last year, but I feel like its different this time. First of all, Im running the 5K and the half in addition to the full marathon, so things will be different from that perspective. However, Im also keeping in mind how I felt during the marathon (specifically the awful piriformis pain i.e. butt cramp from hell during mile 26 and the soreness/fatigue that set in during the later miles). Overall, I was, and still am, pretty happy with how that marathon went: I didnt hit the wall, I felt like I was in decent shape overall and I had a SO MUCH FUN&but Im sure I could have done more. My goal from the beginning has been to complete the Dopey Challenge successfully, and by that I mean to cross all 3 finish lines having thoroughly enjoyed myself throughout and with a smile on my face, and somehow I feel like Im a bit more committed to that this year compared to last year.
COMING UP
Challenges.
1. Weather: I live in Northeast Ohio...our winters are hard-core here. I hope I can handle it.
2. More miles: Im trying not to freak myself out about the month of December: my 2 peak weeks of training fall here, and while Im very aware that tough weeks are coming up I think Ive done a good job of just focusing on where I currently am in training - taking it one week at a time - and not panicking about whats next. Hopefully this trend will continue.
3. The holidays: A reason I DO have to occasionally look ahead Ill have to juggle my training here and there and be flexible. Its a hectic time of year, but so worth it!
4. Staying healthy: Along with more miles and colder weather comes the potential for burnout and getting sick. Ive read articles about runners getting concerned about catching bugs from others, and the advice Ive seen has been pretty common-sense stuff:
a. wash your hands (which I already do anyway)
b. get lots of sleep (I havent been great about consistently getting to bed early, so Im really going to try to be better about that)
c. drink lots of water (I do a pretty good job of this, so Im just going to try to keep at it)
d. take multi-vitamins (I have been HORRIBLE about this! Need to do better!)
e. avoid unnecessary human contact seriously! That one always makes me LOL. But yeah&I dont want weeks of training derailed by sickness (thats already happened to me once this year, though Im not sure it could have been prevented) and I feel like some of my co-workers arent super great about taking time off when theyre sick
&drives me NUTS. So Im going to try extra hard to be careful.
Taper. That magical time during training when the hard work is done and its time to start rest and recovery for race day. So the countdown is on&less than 7 weeks left until its Taper Time!!
Shopping list before January:
1. New shoes. Im a numbers gal (in case you havent noticed
) and I keep careful track of how many miles I have on my shoes. I have 251 miles on my current pair and Im hoping theyll last me through the peak of my training. Brooks just put out a new version of their Adrenalines (the 13s), so I'm hoping to score 2 marked down pairs of the now-outdated version (the 12s). They aren't discounted yet, so I'm going to keep a close eye on that. Either way (full price or marked down) Im going to retire my current pair of shoes and start breaking in the 2 new pairs the week of Christmas . Ill wear one pair for the 5K and half, the other for the full.
2. Whatever clothes I want to wear for the races. I have this planned out for the most part I know what I want to wear for the full marathon and already have everything, and I know what running tops I want to wear for the 5K and half, but I want new shorts for the 5K and a new running skirt for the half. I have my eye on a few things, just need to order both in time to test everything out before getting to Disney.
3. Gu chomps I think I have enough to get me through training but Ill probably need to re-stock my supply for race weekend.
Motivation. I know the next few weeks are going to be challenging with upping the miles while the weather gets colder, it gets darker out and the holidays begin, so Im going to keep reminding myself WHY Im doing this. Completing any running race is an amazing feeling running through the parks and crossing the finish at Disney is even better, and I am so grateful that I get to do it again. If I work hard over the next almost-10 weeks, itll be SO worth it. I cant wait!!!
Happy running!
Continued in Next Post
This post got a lot longer than I expected...if anyone reads it all the way through I'd be shocked!
Anyway...week 10 is complete&training is halfway over! (I guess technically it was halfway over sometime last week since the 20-week plan includes the races in week 20...but still...)
Total miles run so far in training: 199
Total miles remaining in training: If I complete the plan as scheduled, at least 298 (!)
Total miles run this year: 703.47&if I complete my training plan as scheduled Ill break 1000 for the year!
I thought Id do a little self-assessment (and by little I mean a long, rambling post&oops.): Where I am now, how I feel compared to this time last year (when I was training for the 2012 WDW Full Marathon), and whats coming up.
NOW
Im doing well in some areas. So far I have only missed one run (due to a sinus infection) and 4 strength training sessions (3 due to that same sinus infection, one a couple of weeks ago after an awful night of no sleep). I dont expect to complete the rest of the training plan 100% perfectly because, you know&life but I cant believe how well I have stuck to it so far. I like running more in general than I used to, so I dont find myself trying to make excuses for not being able to complete a run. I have definitely seen how much strength training has helped me from an injury-prevention standpoint, so while I dont LOVE doing it, I know it could literally hurt me to stop. And truthfully, even though Im not getting tons of page views or comments on this thread (and I GREATLY appreciate the ones that I do get!
) I think it helps me a lot to post here because it makes me feel like I have a place that I need to report back to. It has definitely helped keep me accountable.Im a bad yogi.
I mean&what can I say? I dont want to beat myself up over it because Im doing really well with the running and strength training, which I think are more important than yoga, so I wont. If I want to go to yoga, great&if I dont, thats okay too. I have definitely realized that I LIKE yoga, but I dont LOVE it.(knock on wood) Im not too sore. This is part of the reason why Im not too upset with myself for missing yoga more often than not. Originally I built yoga into my plan because I thought it would help stave off inevitable soreness, but so far, in general, I feel pretty good even though I dont make it to class much. I get occasional soreness when Im running and after, but more often than not I feel pretty normal. I really credit this to:
1. Strength training - this has made a HUGE different for me. Ive been able to ditch the orthotics I used to put in my shoes, which were the only way to help with my Runners Knee. Now the knee pain is virtually non-existent, even in orthotic-less shoes.
Woohoo!2. Post-run ice baths not for everyone, and not fun, but I feel noticeably better afterward
3. Rolling with my foam roller/The Stick
4. Stretching at home in the evenings
5. Weight loss
Im sure this will change as the runs continue to get longer (Im looking in particular at my peak weeks of training: the weeks of December 3 and December 17
), but for now I am very pleased with how Im feeling.Feed me!! Its not like Im starving all the time, but theres been a noticeable change in my appetite over the past few weeks. It makes complete sense since Im running more (until marathon training began I only had 3 weeks where I ran over 20 miles this year which Im very surprised by!)&but its still an adjustment and something Im trying to be careful with.
COMPARED TO TRAINING FOR THE 2012 WDW FULL MARATHON
I feel better mentally. This is a huge change in a few ways.
1. Last year Will was having some health problems, and that weighed on me SO much.
I felt overwhelmed and emotionally exhausted so much of the time&running should have been a release, but instead it felt like one more stressful thing I had to do. This year is different Will has completely recovered and we are so grateful for that. 2. I feel much more confident this year than I did last year. This makes total sense Ive done this (marathon training) before and know that I can do it. Whenever I go out to run Will asks me how far Im going so that he has an idea of when Ill get back. I remember never wanting to tell him last year because I was always unsure as to whether Id be able to complete whatever distance was on my schedule for that day (just my own weird thing&I know he wouldnt judge me or anything if I cut a run short). Almost every long run was a PDR (Personal Distance Record) and constantly venturing into the unknown was nerve-wracking. This year I know I can complete all of the runs and that has been very calming for me. I just go out and (for the most part) enjoy them, knowing that I am that much closer to my Dopey Goal in January.
Other peoples training is freaking me out. Admittedly this one is a bit silly.
Last year I didnt know anyone else that was training for a marathon at the same time I was except for my brother, who was barely doing anything (notice how I dont mention him much here? His training, as far as I know, is pretty&um& light so far ). Anyway, I only knew what I was doing and no one else, so I didnt have anyone to compare myself to, if that makes any sense. Then I joined Disboards and now I regularly read and sometimes post on the marathon thread&and seeing how far other people are running sometimes makes me feel like Im not doing enough! Seriously, people on that thread are kicking serious booty and are already planning on running 20-milers next week! I just got up to 15 miles!...then I remember that theyre most likely using a different training plan than I am (Galloway specifically) and end up reminding myself that I know what I am doing works for ME&and has already worked once! This has happened maybe 3-4 times so far. Silly me. I dont feel like training is taking over my life&and by that I mean that marathon training is not as overwhelming this year as it was last year. And I think a few things are contributing to it.
1. As I said above, Ive done it before and I know what to expect. Plus, I know what works for me now as far as what clothes/shoes to wear, what fuel I like, what helps me recover best (here and here), etc. I was still experimenting with all of this last year.
2. As much as it sucks, I really think getting up before work to get my runs/strength training done Monday-Thursday is helping a LOT. I do what I need to do early in the morning and dont think about it for the rest of the day. I could see myself skipping more workouts if I saved them for after work.
3. Im faster than I was last year. In looking back at my training log from last year, my long run paces averaged about 12:00/mile 13:00/mile...shorter runs were about 11:00/mile average. If I had a really great day I might see paces dip into the high 10s. Now my shorter runs average about 9:45-10:00/mile (closer to 9:30s if Im having a super speedy day), and Im seeing my long runs consistently averaging 10:30-11:00/mile paces. Somehow it just makes long runs seem not as scary knowing that they wont take quite as long as they did last year (okay, so last year it only took 10-15 minutes longer&but it seems like a lot to me!). Of course, the flip side to this is that I'm putting more pressure on myself to keep a certain pace, so I want to try to keep that in check.
Strength training! Have I mentioned strength training yet?! No??
So anyway, I didnt do this at all last year&well, thats not totally true. It looks like I did a grand total of 9 strength training workouts during my 18 weeks of training last year, totally abandoning it before Thanksgiving. I know part of the reason I didnt stick with it is because I hurt my back during one session (bad form while squatting)&but I think its also because I was using a different plan than the one Im using now that was NOT specifically for runners. Ironstrength is much more suitable for marathon training, and like I said before, I really think its been a huge help in keeping my knees (and, Im sure, the rest of my body) healthy.Missing less runs. In looking at my log sheet from last year, I see quite a few DND (Did Not Do) entries my little code for a missed run. This time last year I was 8 weeks into training (using the same plan Im using now, but this year I have added 2 weeks) and had missed 9 runs&3 due to the weight lifting injury I mentioned above (it was ABSOLUTELY the right call to miss those runs), 2 due to traveling for work (the same conference I went to this year, except this year I kept up with training), 2 because I was so lazy (according to the notes in my training log), and 2 because&well, I have no idea why I missed those last 2, I didnt make any notes. Im also noticing more complaints about the weather in my 2011 notes&the first time I ever ran in the rain was my 9-miler on 9/23, so Id be willing to bet that some of those missed runs from 2011 were rainy days where I decided that it wasnt worth it to get out and run. Now I know that I can do it, so less-than-ideal weather isnt an excuse anymore (lightning or crazy amounts of ice on the road would be a different story
). And lastly, I think another reason Im missing less runs is that I really want to ensure a great experience for myself in January. This was motivation for me last year, but I feel like its different this time. First of all, Im running the 5K and the half in addition to the full marathon, so things will be different from that perspective. However, Im also keeping in mind how I felt during the marathon (specifically the awful piriformis pain i.e. butt cramp from hell during mile 26 and the soreness/fatigue that set in during the later miles). Overall, I was, and still am, pretty happy with how that marathon went: I didnt hit the wall, I felt like I was in decent shape overall and I had a SO MUCH FUN&but Im sure I could have done more. My goal from the beginning has been to complete the Dopey Challenge successfully, and by that I mean to cross all 3 finish lines having thoroughly enjoyed myself throughout and with a smile on my face, and somehow I feel like Im a bit more committed to that this year compared to last year.COMING UP
Challenges.
1. Weather: I live in Northeast Ohio...our winters are hard-core here. I hope I can handle it.
2. More miles: Im trying not to freak myself out about the month of December: my 2 peak weeks of training fall here, and while Im very aware that tough weeks are coming up I think Ive done a good job of just focusing on where I currently am in training - taking it one week at a time - and not panicking about whats next. Hopefully this trend will continue.
3. The holidays: A reason I DO have to occasionally look ahead Ill have to juggle my training here and there and be flexible. Its a hectic time of year, but so worth it!
4. Staying healthy: Along with more miles and colder weather comes the potential for burnout and getting sick. Ive read articles about runners getting concerned about catching bugs from others, and the advice Ive seen has been pretty common-sense stuff:
a. wash your hands (which I already do anyway)
b. get lots of sleep (I havent been great about consistently getting to bed early, so Im really going to try to be better about that)
c. drink lots of water (I do a pretty good job of this, so Im just going to try to keep at it)
d. take multi-vitamins (I have been HORRIBLE about this! Need to do better!)
e. avoid unnecessary human contact seriously! That one always makes me LOL. But yeah&I dont want weeks of training derailed by sickness (thats already happened to me once this year, though Im not sure it could have been prevented) and I feel like some of my co-workers arent super great about taking time off when theyre sick
&drives me NUTS. So Im going to try extra hard to be careful. Taper. That magical time during training when the hard work is done and its time to start rest and recovery for race day.
So the countdown is on&less than 7 weeks left until its Taper Time!! Shopping list before January:
1. New shoes. Im a numbers gal (in case you havent noticed
) and I keep careful track of how many miles I have on my shoes. I have 251 miles on my current pair and Im hoping theyll last me through the peak of my training. Brooks just put out a new version of their Adrenalines (the 13s), so I'm hoping to score 2 marked down pairs of the now-outdated version (the 12s). They aren't discounted yet, so I'm going to keep a close eye on that. Either way (full price or marked down) Im going to retire my current pair of shoes and start breaking in the 2 new pairs the week of Christmas . Ill wear one pair for the 5K and half, the other for the full.2. Whatever clothes I want to wear for the races. I have this planned out for the most part I know what I want to wear for the full marathon and already have everything, and I know what running tops I want to wear for the 5K and half, but I want new shorts for the 5K and a new running skirt for the half. I have my eye on a few things, just need to order both in time to test everything out before getting to Disney.
3. Gu chomps I think I have enough to get me through training but Ill probably need to re-stock my supply for race weekend.
Motivation. I know the next few weeks are going to be challenging with upping the miles while the weather gets colder, it gets darker out and the holidays begin, so Im going to keep reminding myself WHY Im doing this. Completing any running race is an amazing feeling running through the parks and crossing the finish at Disney is even better, and I am so grateful that I get to do it again. If I work hard over the next almost-10 weeks, itll be SO worth it. I cant wait!!!
Happy running!
Continued in Next Post
Ariel484
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Dec 27, 2011
- Messages
- 11,911
I know...we're almost at the 2-month mark!!
My brother is signed up to do Goofy, yes...I think his training is pretty non-existent right now. I always text him at the end of my long runs ("15 miles in 2:44!") instead of nagging him about whether he's running or not (because I know him, and I know if I did that he'd just get annoyed and angry), and he'll write back like "Wow, that's crazy, you're kicking *ss, I'm so lazy..." etc. He was able to complete the 2011 Princess Half on zero training and the 2012 marathon on almost zero training, so I'm not sure if he thinks he can do the same with Goofy or what.
I don't want to bad-mouth him because I know he's super busy with work/school, but...it'll be interesting.
In reality he should probably defer to next year but I think he's too stubborn to do that. 
butiflfeet
I drink and I know things
- Joined
- Jul 29, 2008
- Messages
- 1,397
Yay for your 15 mile long run! I think all of us runners beat ourselves up over our pace. Its our competitive nature to be competitive with ourselves 
Its hard to believe that October is over and here we are in November already! Not too much longer before we're running in Disney World in January
Its hard to believe that October is over and here we are in November already! Not too much longer before we're running in Disney World in January
Ariel484
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Dec 27, 2011
- Messages
- 11,911
Yay for your 15 mile long run! I think all of us runners beat ourselves up over our pace. Its our competitive nature to be competitive with ourselves
I think you're totally right about this.
Competitiveness and the desire to improve is a good thing...to a certain point. I think I was toeing that line a bit this weekend. Lesson learned! Running long distances is hard enough without me saying bad things to myself, ya know?Its hard to believe that October is over and here we are in November already! Not too much longer before we're running in Disney World in January
I KNOW.
Like, seriously...WHERE did October go??
Ariel484
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Dec 27, 2011
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- 11,911
Week 11: Run #1 (4 miles on the treadmill)
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
4 miles completed/32 miles planned for the week
203 miles completed so far in training
Same ol', same ol' today. Pretty typical treadmill run...
Total time: 39:36 for 4 miles
Average pace: 9:45/mile or something
I do think these 4-mile treadmill runs are getting more tolerable...which is good since I have another one coming up tomorrow, and next week one of these 4-milers becomes a 5-miler! Training is really flying by.
IN OTHER NEWS...
No voting for me today. Will and I filled out and mailed our ballots in a couple of weeks ago. I got a text from my mom that she was standing in line this morning for 45 minutes...yikes!
Also, I did some impulse buying last night...signing up for 3 races!
Sunday November 18, 2012: Fall Classic (half marathon)
This race is about 40 minutes from my house in a portion of the large parks system we have up here. I ran this race last year and got a nice, long-sleeved tech shirt and really adorable finisher medal (in the shape of a maple leaf, to keep with the fall theme). I could probably use a change of scenery for my long run, and it fits in decently well with my training schedule (I have a 12-miler scheduled for that weekend).
Having said that, I think there's a good chance that I'll regret signing up for this one. Perhaps it was stupid of me to sign up for this because last year I HATED it: the race didn't have chip timing (which I thought was sort of lame since we paid $45 and it is put on by a running club - luckily I read that they WILL have chip timing this year), I didn't like the course all that much (it was two loops around the same area) and because we were in the parks it smelled like horse poo the entire time. Plus it was just one of those days where I had an awful run...and to be honest I think that's another reason why I actually signed up to do the race again. I want to give it one more try, and if I hate it again then this race is definitely off the table in the future. If nothing else at least it'll force me to get the run done early in the day and I'll get a shirt and medal out of it. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't also hoping for a PR...my current PR for the half is 2:18:56 (2:35:32 on this course), and the 2:18 was on a day where there was a heat warning on the course, so I'm hoping to shave a few minutes off next weekend, but I'm going to try not to put too much pressure on myself since I haven't been doing any speedwork.
Thursday, November 22, 2012: Turkey Trot (5-miler)
I've wanted to run this race for a few years now and this is the first time I'll actually be able to do it. Not sure what to expect of the course, but I think I have a decent chance of getting a PR here. My current 5-miler PR is 51:33...that's from a race I ran in my community on July 4th, and it was SO HOT that I kept stopping to get sprayed by neighbors' hoses and dump water over my head. I even stopped to talk to Will for about 30 seconds at one point because I just needed a break. I think I have a decent chance of getting my time under 50 minutes during the turkey trot, but again, I don't want to put too much pressure on myself.
Saturday, April 27, 2013: 10-miler
My 4th time running this race...I signed up because it's my favorite race in our area and I wanted to beat the price increase. This will be right at the end of training for my 3rd marathon (first one not at Disney!) and I am sure I won't beat my PR of 1:39:07 (probably the best race I've had at this point).
So after that flurry of activity I realized I'm signed up for 8 races!...
The Fall Classic
The Turkey Trot
WDW 5K
WDW Half
WDW Full
10-miler
Non-Disney Full
A Rock & Roll Half
(Clearly I like to sign up early to beat price increases...)
I hope I don't forget to go to these things!
Continued in Next Post
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
4 miles completed/32 miles planned for the week
203 miles completed so far in training
Same ol', same ol' today. Pretty typical treadmill run...
Total time: 39:36 for 4 miles
Average pace: 9:45/mile or something
I do think these 4-mile treadmill runs are getting more tolerable...which is good since I have another one coming up tomorrow, and next week one of these 4-milers becomes a 5-miler!
Training is really flying by.IN OTHER NEWS...
No voting for me today. Will and I filled out and mailed our ballots in a couple of weeks ago. I got a text from my mom that she was standing in line this morning for 45 minutes...yikes!
Also, I did some impulse buying last night...signing up for 3 races!
Sunday November 18, 2012: Fall Classic (half marathon)
This race is about 40 minutes from my house in a portion of the large parks system we have up here. I ran this race last year and got a nice, long-sleeved tech shirt and really adorable finisher medal (in the shape of a maple leaf, to keep with the fall theme). I could probably use a change of scenery for my long run, and it fits in decently well with my training schedule (I have a 12-miler scheduled for that weekend).
Having said that, I think there's a good chance that I'll regret signing up for this one. Perhaps it was stupid of me to sign up for this because last year I HATED it: the race didn't have chip timing (which I thought was sort of lame since we paid $45 and it is put on by a running club - luckily I read that they WILL have chip timing this year), I didn't like the course all that much (it was two loops around the same area) and because we were in the parks it smelled like horse poo the entire time.
Plus it was just one of those days where I had an awful run...and to be honest I think that's another reason why I actually signed up to do the race again. I want to give it one more try, and if I hate it again then this race is definitely off the table in the future. If nothing else at least it'll force me to get the run done early in the day and I'll get a shirt and medal out of it. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't also hoping for a PR...my current PR for the half is 2:18:56 (2:35:32 on this course), and the 2:18 was on a day where there was a heat warning on the course, so I'm hoping to shave a few minutes off next weekend, but I'm going to try not to put too much pressure on myself since I haven't been doing any speedwork.Thursday, November 22, 2012: Turkey Trot (5-miler)
I've wanted to run this race for a few years now and this is the first time I'll actually be able to do it. Not sure what to expect of the course, but I think I have a decent chance of getting a PR here. My current 5-miler PR is 51:33...that's from a race I ran in my community on July 4th, and it was SO HOT that I kept stopping to get sprayed by neighbors' hoses and dump water over my head. I even stopped to talk to Will for about 30 seconds at one point because I just needed a break. I think I have a decent chance of getting my time under 50 minutes during the turkey trot, but again, I don't want to put too much pressure on myself.
Saturday, April 27, 2013: 10-miler
My 4th time running this race...I signed up because it's my favorite race in our area and I wanted to beat the price increase. This will be right at the end of training for my 3rd marathon (first one not at Disney!
) and I am sure I won't beat my PR of 1:39:07 (probably the best race I've had at this point).So after that flurry of activity I realized I'm signed up for 8 races!...
The Fall Classic
The Turkey Trot
WDW 5K
WDW Half
WDW Full
10-miler
Non-Disney Full
A Rock & Roll Half
(Clearly I like to sign up early to beat price increases...
)I hope I don't forget to go to these things!
Continued in Next Post
steph0808
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 25, 2012
- Messages
- 1,161
Wow your schedule is packed! I don't have anything between now and WDW Marathon - thinking I should sign up for something (there is a half marathon that falls on a scheduled 13 long run) but not sure I want to!
What non-Disney full are you doing next year? I am thinking about Pittsburgh in May (Pittsburgh girl all the way!) - will probably wait until after Disney to sign up to see how I feel!
What non-Disney full are you doing next year? I am thinking about Pittsburgh in May (Pittsburgh girl all the way!) - will probably wait until after Disney to sign up to see how I feel!
Ariel484
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Dec 27, 2011
- Messages
- 11,911
Yes it is.
I hope I don't regret it later!My non-Disney full is the Cleveland Marathon (http://www.clevelandmarathon.com/). I really like the half course - I've run it the past 2 years and it's the first half of the full course, if that makes any sense - so I decided to bite the bullet and go for the full. They had an early-bird registration rate of $50 right after this year's race so I jumped on that. It's close to home and I really like the finisher medals (it has a spinning guitar)...unfortunately I've heard that the second half of the full course is not as good as the first half, so that'll be a challenge.
But since it's sort of my hometown race I have wanted to do it at least once for awhile now. I haven't heard anything about the Pittsburgh Marathon, but I totally understand wanting to do a race close to home! I think you're smart to wait until after running at Disney to decide. For me, in the hours after I finished last year I vowed to never run another marathon, and then when I was waiting for my flight home in the airport I was googling Goofy training plans and contemplating trying a marathon in Ohio (Cleveland, Akron or the Flying Pig in Cincinnati).
So who knows what you'll decide! 
Ariel484
DIS Legend
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Week 11: Run #2 (4 miles on the treadmill)
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
8 miles completed/32 miles planned for the week
207 miles completed so far in training
So I definitely stayed up a wee bit later than I planned watching the election coverage last night. I was in bed by 11 but I'd really like it to be more like 10:15 or 10:30...like I haven't written that in this thread approximately 714 times already.
Anyhoo, it was back to the treadmill this morning for another 4-miler (the only week in training where I'll have two 4-milers...Tuesday's run is a 5-miler!). I mentioned yesterday that I think these 4-milers are getting more tolerable, and that was definitely the case this morning - the run seemed to go by incredibly quickly. I don't know if it's just because I'm getting more used to the treadmill, or if my putting a towel over the panel thing (you know, where they display the mileage/time) helped, OR if it was the fact that the TVs in the cardio room are now 1000x more watchable without constant political ads airing (I mean...I actually ENJOYED car dealership and grocery store ads. Who knew?!)...at any rate, pretty nice run this morning.
Total time: Well crap...I forget! 39:25 I think.
Average pace: 9:54ish/mile
Other news...
In what sounds like a "just to be safe"-type move, my yoga buddy's doctor has recommended that she stop yoga for the rest of her pregnancy, meaning that I now have no one to hold me accountable to go to class. It was eye-opening to realized how relieved I was about this. Of course I feel bad that my yoga friend has to stop yoga (probably smart - she had a bit of a scare at the end of her first pregnancy, so here's hoping for a better experience the second time! I'm relieved that she doesn't have any problems yet, just sounds like the doc is erring on the side of caution given her history) but I'm also glad that I don't have to go anymore. Clearly I am not a dedicated yogi, but I think I'd already figured that out.
The week's halfway done, yay!! And less than 64 days until the start of Marathon Weekend!!
Marathon Weekend-related pictures...first stop during Marathon Weekend is bib pick-up and the expo at ESPN Wide World of Sports! (Shoppppiiiiinnnnggggg!
)
Bib pick-up and B-tag activation last year in the HP Field House...if the crowds are this light when I arrive I'll be thrilled.
And last year's expo in the Josten Center!
WOO!
Continued in Next Post
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
8 miles completed/32 miles planned for the week
207 miles completed so far in training
So I definitely stayed up a wee bit later than I planned watching the election coverage last night. I was in bed by 11 but I'd really like it to be more like 10:15 or 10:30...like I haven't written that in this thread approximately 714 times already.
Anyhoo, it was back to the treadmill this morning for another 4-miler (the only week in training where I'll have two 4-milers...Tuesday's run is a 5-miler!
). I mentioned yesterday that I think these 4-milers are getting more tolerable, and that was definitely the case this morning - the run seemed to go by incredibly quickly. I don't know if it's just because I'm getting more used to the treadmill, or if my putting a towel over the panel thing (you know, where they display the mileage/time) helped, OR if it was the fact that the TVs in the cardio room are now 1000x more watchable without constant political ads airing (I mean...I actually ENJOYED car dealership and grocery store ads. Who knew?!)...at any rate, pretty nice run this morning.Total time: Well crap...I forget! 39:25 I think.
Average pace: 9:54ish/mile
Other news...
In what sounds like a "just to be safe"-type move, my yoga buddy's doctor has recommended that she stop yoga for the rest of her pregnancy, meaning that I now have no one to hold me accountable to go to class. It was eye-opening to realized how relieved I was about this. Of course I feel bad that my yoga friend has to stop yoga (probably smart - she had a bit of a scare at the end of her first pregnancy, so here's hoping for a better experience the second time! I'm relieved that she doesn't have any problems yet, just sounds like the doc is erring on the side of caution given her history) but I'm also glad that I don't have to go anymore. Clearly I am not a dedicated yogi, but I think I'd already figured that out.
The week's halfway done, yay!! And less than 64 days until the start of Marathon Weekend!!
Marathon Weekend-related pictures...first stop during Marathon Weekend is bib pick-up and the expo at ESPN Wide World of Sports! (Shoppppiiiiinnnnggggg!
)
Bib pick-up and B-tag activation last year in the HP Field House...if the crowds are this light when I arrive I'll be thrilled.
And last year's expo in the Josten Center!
WOO!
Continued in Next Post
Ariel484
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Dec 27, 2011
- Messages
- 11,911
Week 11: Strength Training
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Same ol', same ol' this morning. I listened to the Innoventions Plaza loop during my workout though, so that was pretty awesome. I was also thinking about how to handle strength training during the taper period of training - the last 3ish weeks where I'm going to cut back on mileage to start resting up for Marathon Weekend. I think normally it's recommended to just stop strength training all together during this time, but I'm not sure that's the best route for me just because I feel like when I take a week off here or there I really lose a lot of the benefits that strength training gives me - not doing it for 3 weeks might literally hurt me. I'll have to think about that. 
In other news, I realized yesterday afternoon that I never added Magical Express to our reservation after booking our flights to Disney. I booked my flight in July and Will's in August and just completely forgot to add ME, which is important since we don't rent cars in Disney. So I called and got that taken care of yesterday...and now I'll just start to no-so-patiently wait by my mailbox, even though I know that the packet won't come for a few weeks yet. But still, yay!
Continued in Next Post
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Same ol', same ol' this morning. I listened to the Innoventions Plaza loop during my workout though, so that was pretty awesome.
I was also thinking about how to handle strength training during the taper period of training - the last 3ish weeks where I'm going to cut back on mileage to start resting up for Marathon Weekend. I think normally it's recommended to just stop strength training all together during this time, but I'm not sure that's the best route for me just because I feel like when I take a week off here or there I really lose a lot of the benefits that strength training gives me - not doing it for 3 weeks might literally hurt me. I'll have to think about that. In other news, I realized yesterday afternoon that I never added Magical Express to our reservation after booking our flights to Disney.
I booked my flight in July and Will's in August and just completely forgot to add ME, which is important since we don't rent cars in Disney. So I called and got that taken care of yesterday...and now I'll just start to no-so-patiently wait by my mailbox, even though I know that the packet won't come for a few weeks yet. But still, yay!
Continued in Next Post
Ariel484
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Dec 27, 2011
- Messages
- 11,911
Week 11: Run #3 (8-mile out-and-back)
Friday, November 9, 2012
Weather: mid-high 40s, sun with some clouds
16 miles completed/32 miles planned for the week
215 miles completed so far in training
GREAT run today!
Not sure exactly why I felt so good out there today. I think the weather had a lot to do with it...it's amazing what a difference 5-10 degrees makes. I didn't have to bundle up as much: I wore capris instead of long pants and sunglasses instead of a hat. Somehow that just made me feel so much...lighter, I guess? Not sure if that makes any sense. One thing I did not wear that I probably should have was SUNSCREEN. I don't think I'm burned or anything, but being a wee Irish lass I need to not skimp on that.
During this run I really made an effort to keep my pace more relaxed. I realized on the weekends where I do my 2 long runs back-to-back I need to do a better job of practicing holding back on the shorter one, since that's what I plan on doing for the WDW Half. That's going to be a challenge for me during marathon weekend, I think - finding a balance of slowing down enough to where I don't trash my legs before the marathon the next day, but still finishing fast enough so that I'm not on my feet for a necessarily long time. Anyway, my legs really wanted to go faster today, so it felt a little weird, yet good, to keep things more relaxed.
Splits:
Mile 1 - 10:21
Mile 2 - 10:26
Mile 3 - 10:54 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 4 - 10:16
Mile 5 - 11:13 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 6 - 9:52
Mile 7 - 10:10 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 8 - 9:33
Total time: 1:22:45 for 8 miles
Average pace: 10:21/mile
Bam. Happy Friday!
Continued in Next Post
Friday, November 9, 2012
Weather: mid-high 40s, sun with some clouds
16 miles completed/32 miles planned for the week
215 miles completed so far in training
GREAT run today!
Not sure exactly why I felt so good out there today. I think the weather had a lot to do with it...it's amazing what a difference 5-10 degrees makes. I didn't have to bundle up as much: I wore capris instead of long pants and sunglasses instead of a hat. Somehow that just made me feel so much...lighter, I guess? Not sure if that makes any sense.
One thing I did not wear that I probably should have was SUNSCREEN. I don't think I'm burned or anything, but being a wee Irish lass I need to not skimp on that.During this run I really made an effort to keep my pace more relaxed. I realized on the weekends where I do my 2 long runs back-to-back I need to do a better job of practicing holding back on the shorter one, since that's what I plan on doing for the WDW Half. That's going to be a challenge for me during marathon weekend, I think - finding a balance of slowing down enough to where I don't trash my legs before the marathon the next day, but still finishing fast enough so that I'm not on my feet for a necessarily long time. Anyway, my legs really wanted to go faster today, so it felt a little weird, yet good, to keep things more relaxed.
Splits:
Mile 1 - 10:21
Mile 2 - 10:26
Mile 3 - 10:54 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 4 - 10:16
Mile 5 - 11:13 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 6 - 9:52
Mile 7 - 10:10 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 8 - 9:33
Total time: 1:22:45 for 8 miles
Average pace: 10:21/mile
Bam. Happy Friday!
Continued in Next Post
Ariel484
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Dec 27, 2011
- Messages
- 11,911
Week 11: Run #4 (16 miles - one 10.3-mile loop + one 5.7-mile loop)
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Weather: mid-60s, sunny with a few clouds
32 miles completed/32 miles planned for the week
231 miles completed so far in training
What a great way to close out my 11th week of training!
This run was pretty much the polar opposite of last week's long run. I really enjoyed it...similar to Friday's run, I'm not sure if the nicer weather had anything to do with it or if it was just a GREAT RUN as opposed to last week's no-so-great run...but I'll take it!
Splits:
Mile 1 - 10:36
Mile 2 - 10:35
Mile 3 - 10:55 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 4 - 10:30
Mile 5 - 11:06 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 6 - 10:27
Mile 7 - 10:53 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 8 - 10:31
Mile 9 - 11:12 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 10 - 10:31
Mile 11 - 11:07 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 12 - 10:29
Mile 13 - 11:45 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 14 - 10:58
Mile 15 - 10:46 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 16 - 10:05
Total time: 2:52:24 for 16 miles
Average pace: 10:47/mile
VERY pleased with this run. It's also funny that, except for mile 14 (no idea what was going on there) all of the miles I ran without a walk break were SUPER consistent. Maybe I'm getting a hang of pacing?
I think taking it easy on Friday's 8-miler definitely helped me. I also made sure to drink tons of water after that one in preparation for Saturday, something that I think I slacked on last weekend. I had aches here and there, but everything was SO much better overall...except that I had a random spot of my back that has chafing (??? so weird, maybe from the Camelbak?) and I came away with a pretty decently-sized blister on the inside/bottom part of my left big toe. I could feel it right around mile 14 (hmm, maybe that explains the slower split there) and luckily it didn't pop before I finished. I almost never get blisters, so I'm probably overreacting about this one...but I want it to go away already!
Here's something fun though - I only have 3 runs that are longer than 16 miles left!! Getting closer!
Oh, and here's what I wore for the run, along with my black running skirt that I plan on wearing for the WDW Full (LOVE this skirt):
Yay!
Continued in Next Post
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Weather: mid-60s, sunny with a few clouds
32 miles completed/32 miles planned for the week
231 miles completed so far in training
What a great way to close out my 11th week of training!
This run was pretty much the polar opposite of last week's long run. I really enjoyed it...similar to Friday's run, I'm not sure if the nicer weather had anything to do with it or if it was just a GREAT RUN as opposed to last week's no-so-great run...but I'll take it!Splits:
Mile 1 - 10:36
Mile 2 - 10:35
Mile 3 - 10:55 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 4 - 10:30
Mile 5 - 11:06 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 6 - 10:27
Mile 7 - 10:53 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 8 - 10:31
Mile 9 - 11:12 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 10 - 10:31
Mile 11 - 11:07 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 12 - 10:29
Mile 13 - 11:45 --> Gu chomp/walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 14 - 10:58
Mile 15 - 10:46 --> walk/water break at the beginning of this mile
Mile 16 - 10:05
Total time: 2:52:24 for 16 miles
Average pace: 10:47/mile
VERY pleased with this run. It's also funny that, except for mile 14 (no idea what was going on there) all of the miles I ran without a walk break were SUPER consistent. Maybe I'm getting a hang of pacing?
I think taking it easy on Friday's 8-miler definitely helped me. I also made sure to drink tons of water after that one in preparation for Saturday, something that I think I slacked on last weekend. I had aches here and there, but everything was SO much better overall...except that I had a random spot of my back that has chafing (??? so weird, maybe from the Camelbak?) and I came away with a pretty decently-sized blister on the inside/bottom part of my left big toe. I could feel it right around mile 14 (hmm, maybe that explains the slower split there) and luckily it didn't pop before I finished. I almost never get blisters, so I'm probably overreacting about this one...but I want it to go away already!
Here's something fun though - I only have 3 runs that are longer than 16 miles left!! Getting closer!
Oh, and here's what I wore for the run, along with my black running skirt that I plan on wearing for the WDW Full (LOVE this skirt):
Yay!
Continued in Next Post
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