Marathon Weekend 2025

[WillRunForPizza]

SAFD: The thing I like most about running is that, unlike much of life, it's pretty straightforward and easy to measure. You do appropriate training, consistently, and overall you get better. I also enjoy learning about running and training, testing out ideas, and talking about running (mostly on here ). Basically it's a good match for how my brain works Side benefit: being in good shape means you can do things like jump up and down while screaming all the lyrics to "Mr. Brightside" at your friend's wedding and not even feel out of breath

Also I really like food and when I'm training I get to eat a lot more

 

[superchime]

I love that running makes me feel like a human again and not just a mom.

This is why I started running! It's just for me, and I think it's great for my kids to see that too.


I often say that I don't love running but I love having run. That's not entirely true, sometimes I do really love being out there, but sometimes I'm just getting through it. But unlike other sports or going to the gym or whatever, the barrier to start a run is very low. Put on shoes, open front door, step outside. Sometimes even that is a monumental challenge.

I love Disney races. I love what I've accomplished running. Now, when things get hard I tell myself "you've done more than this on less sleep."

 

[softballpooh]

SAFD: I think it’s okay to admit this, I don’t love running and probably never will. It’s hard work, it’s not particularly fun, and I’m not good at it and that makes me self-conscious.

But, I love life. I love my family. I want to be here with them as long as I can. I want to be able to sometimes eat bad foods. I want to have as much mobility as possible as pain free as possible for as long as possible. When I buy new clothes I want it to be because my old ones are too big or I found something I really like, not because my old ones are too small.

So I run, because it makes the rest of my life better.

SAFD: I hope it’s okay to copy/paste @Barca33Runner since I could have written this word for word. I will add that I’m a goal setter and have been my entire life. Running doesn’t come naturally to me and I’ve yet to master any part of it. So I guess I could add that I love the challenge it presents.

 

[Cabius]

SAFD:

I like how I feel when I run regularly. And of course, when I am running regularly I feel the itch to get out. For me, it's either never or seven-days-a-week and I can't really do anything in between.

I like having clear, measurable goals and working consistently toward them. So much of my personal and professional life is ambiguous and complex; running goals are simple and straightforward, with objective feedback.

I also enjoy having an hour or two by myself every day. I plow through podcasts (mostly Disney-related, some on the theology of the Orthodox Church), and audiobooks (anything I can find about Polynesian/Hawaiian history, and lately Lord of the Rings). Or I just let the world pass slowly by.

It's also just a really nice experience! I live on a fairly extensive greenbelt of running/biking trails. I get to enjoy nature -- flowers, streams, and trees, but also rabbits, ducks and geese, nutriae, and occasionally coyotes or bobcats. Since I am always on the same trails, I get to see some of the same strange-but-friendly faces every day. I don't know their names (unless I happen to run into @Let's Get Kronk) or life stories, but they feel like friends.

 

[The Expert]

SAFD: I hope it’s okay to copy/paste @Barca33Runner since I could have written this word for word. I will add that I’m a goal setter and have been my entire life. Running doesn’t come naturally to me and I’ve yet to master any part of it. So I guess I could add that I love the challenge it presents.

I was going to do the same as it pretty much sums it up for me too. I DO love the community that running brings me -- especially this one.

 

[DHSsenior007]

SAFD: I'm with a lot of you-- I don't always love running (though there are those rare training runs where everything just clicks and you feel you could run FOREVER) but I love how it makes me feel after. That I've accomplished something, that I've pushed myself, that I am strong. I am also fairly introverted so I like I can do it on my own, listen to podcasts, and be outside. Plus, I am very motivated to stay active and healthy to keep up with my daughter, so running is part of that formula. The mental health benefits are also important (especially postpartum...)!

 

[garneska]

SAFD: since I am currently not running, my answer is yes I love to run. I can do other things but it’s a chore. I could have gotten on the elliptical this morning but nope, only took the dog for a long walk. when I can run, getting up and getting it done, I can motivate myself for that.

update on running status: getting my first of three injections on Tuesday. See PT tomorrow but i should get my plan to start running by the end of the month. I am guessing it will look something like run for 2 minutes and walk for 3, start with 6 intervals. I will take it!

 

[Herding_Cats]

I love that running makes me feel like a human again and not just a mom.

This is a massive selling point for me. I've been a SAHM for most of 18 years, and being able to go out and run--ALONE--really helped pull me out of the mom-rut I was in. Running is my "me time" and one of the few times (outside of when I get into a good book series and am dead to the world) that I can completely turn my brain off for an hour or so. I don't really enjoy running on it's own; I very much prefer it to have a purpose other than getting from A to B. But running has opened up some other doors for me, and the community that surrounds running is pretty amazing.

I can't really say that running helped change my body in any way; I actually gained 25 pounds (and have since lost about 8 of those) since I started training, although there have certainly been some brain-chemistry events along the way that didn't help things.

I DO love the community that running brings me -- especially this one.

Yep. Trying to figure out a plan for MW2025 and trying to decide what races/when to fly down/how to fit in the HH meetup on Friday and DATW (because THAT was super fun!) on Monday and not be gone for 10 days. Because that is almost as much fun as the races and medals themselves.

 

[marty3d]

SAFD:
So many good answers so I'll keep mine short.
- Health
- Able to eat/ drink more of what I love without feeling guilty (Pizza!)
- Disney

 

[DIS-OH]

SAFD:

I love running because…it’s something that my husband and I do together; it’s something I have in common with my daughters and granddaughters; it gets me to WDW at least once a year; and…it’s brought me lots of RunDisney/Disboards friends over the past 15 years!

 

[Novatrix]

SAFD: Running for me is about the destination, not the journey.

As so many others have said, I don't "love" running. I need to actively trick my brain and keep it engaged with other things (audiobooks, podcasts, tv shows, games on phone) in order to keep moving forward during training runs. It's always a mental struggle to get out the door in the first place.

But I do love the feeling of accomplishment once I've finished a run and I am constantly amazed by what my body can do. I may not be a world class marathoner, or even ever qualify for Boston, but I will ever cease to be amazed and grateful that I can do the distances that I can do and get to experience the races that I do.

 

[JulieODC]

SAFD: I love running because it’s the only time I have to myself all day - without kids or work dictating my time. I’ve even stopped running with others because I really value my alone time - esp right now with an intense work project going on.

 

[disneyrunnergrl]

SAFD: I love running. The way I feel after a run, the accomplishment of putting in the work and reaching a goal, races, and especially running in Disney!

 

[3princesandaprincess]

SAFD: I love running, because it’s my time for me! I started when I had 4 young kids, and it was my only time alone many days. Now my kids are older, but it’s still stress relief, time to think, etc. I also love the accomplishment of running further/faster that comes with it.

 

[Scootin'By]

SAFD: I love running because of so many reasons. But usually just because it feels good!

I also like running because this community is amazing and you all get me!

On a different note, too, I lost a lot of weight 10-11 years ago and my body is constantly trying to put it back on.

This is me. It's a constant struggle and right now I'm on the losing end of it. Combination of stress, age and injury. But I'm going to keep putting up the good fight!

SAFD: I love the challenge & the reward of running

I love the sense of accomplishment running gives me.

So much! You set a distance goal and get to the end of that race and just feel so much accomplishment! But even on a daily basis, you set out for a 3 mile run and you get it done, it's like you can check that off your list for the day. Sometimes it's the only thing I get to check off before the kids are in bed

Put on shoes, open front door, step outside. Sometimes even that is a monumental challenge.

This is SO true! I once had an hour to go running and by the time I was out the door, there was only 30-ish minutes left.

SAFD: I love running because it’s the only time I have to myself all day

I really love alone time, but it needs to be when I'm trying to get something done. Running gives me a reason to be alone, pounding the pavement and listening to tunes.

Oh, and the Disney thing, and the hardware!

 

[PrincessV]

I love running because it's a massive stress reliever for me. Getting out into the fresh air helps me clear my head and shed the worries and anxieties of the day. I'm a very introverted, solitary person by nature and the "me" time that running provides is important to my mental well-being.

I’m quoting you @camaker because I don’t think I could express that part any better!

I really, truly, fully LOVE the act of running. As many of you have heard me say ad nauseum, I grew up in the ballet, where running was strictly forbidden… I ran anyway, any chance I got. Not formally, no tracking, just as life handed me any short opportunity to chase someone’s stray soccer ball, make it to a bus stop before a bus pulled away, chasing a friend playing tag. Once my ballet career came to a premature end, I ran a lot more.

I don‘t know how to explain it other than that the feeling of moving my body swiftly through space, especially outdoors in nature, is irreplaceable. Even if it’s hot, or cold, or parts of me scream with physical pain, running feels GOOD. I’m just coming off 4 weeks of no running and, while I kept up with other exercise in its place, and the break did absolutely nothing to relieve my chronic back and knee pain, I’m so happy to be back at it. I missed it terribly.

 

[dobball23]

SAFD: I love the accomplishment of running. I love going to work knowing I've already put in 6, 7,8,9 or more miles and my co-workers have only had a cup of coffee. I love looking at my stats and seeing improvement, whether that is more miles or more speed. I love the ease of running -- you can do it anywhere. I love seeing the same people out for runs each day, showing how we all catch this bug and can't let it go. And I love finding another runner and being able to talk about it. And it's great that it doesn't matter if someone is a 5-minute miler, a 20-minute miler or somewhere in between, we all have the same challenges, excitement and accomplishments while out running.

 

[GuinnessRunner]

I was going to do the same as it pretty much sums it up for me too. I DO love the community that running brings me -- especially this one.

+ 1

 

[pinkxray]

We are only traveling the Thurs-Sun for the 10k. I logged on the other day right at 8am and couldn’t get a standard view resort studio or regular studio at VGF. Was able to pick up the Thursday and Friday the next day. Logged on this morning and was able to grab a standard resort studio for the 3 nights we need. So weird how that works.

I didn’t want to book anything else with a view bc I am hoping to swap out at 7m and since I’m using borrowed points don’t want to use too many. Really hoping at 7m to do a one bedroom at Boardwalk, OKW or Kidani. Those are the only 3 dvc we have tried yet.

 

[pinkxray]

SAFD- I love that running is a large stress reliever for me. It is usually a time when I am alone with no one or nothing but my own thoughts. It usually helps me maintain my weight but since I took the last year off due to some back issues, I’m about 20-30lbs higher than I’d like. Hoping restarting running will help get back to my normal.

I also love Rundisney runs and that runnning has gotten me to Disney many extra times to do runs. I really enjoy Rundisney weekends and having the races helps me work towards a goal. There are time when I don’t want to leave my nice warm house in the cold winter but if I have a Rundisney training plan in progress I just go out and do it. And I am always grateful I did when I’m done.