Marathon Weekend 2025

[Disney at Heart]

i am, not helping. being a loser sucks

yeah, this equates to 17 to 20 miles per day. it takes me all day of moving because my running endurance is shot right now. The challenge is only 4 weeks though, once per year.

I've done this for 2 years now and I've either been #1 or tied for top spot. other people get steps by converting other activites to steps so in pure steps i probably beat everyone. i usually end up with about 1 million steps and 500+ miles in that 4 weeks.

its a challenge ,like Dopey, which is why I'm going for Dopey #10 - clearly I have mental issues (as we know) or I'm just a masochist. Unlike Dopey though, there is no medal, no award, just self gratification that i "won"....but dang this year is super hard because running is difficult right now with the horrible conditioning.

Just coming to say that we all know you are not a loser! You do 35,000 steps a day, you work for NASA, you run Dopey, you are a good-looking man. Now, if only YOU can figure out that you are not a loser. Glad you are seeking help. I’m cheering you on!

 

[Z-Knight]

Just coming to say that we all know you are not a loser! You do 35,000 steps a day, you work for NASA, you run Dopey, you are a good-looking man. Now, if only YOU can figure out that you are not a loser. Glad you are seeking help. I’m cheering you on!

Thank you - I do appreciate, it means a lot to me. And I appreciate ALLLLL of you. I've been doing runDisney for 10 years now and from day 1 this was the best choice and the best group I've been a part of. Be it from keeping each other motivated, to uplifting each other, to cheering each other on, helping each other with registrations - I'm glad to be a part of it. I look forward to every race weekend to see you all and I am so glad I can call each of you my friend.

btw, I live in Houston, so if any of you are in the area and want a tour of NASA, we can do it again after a couple of years of Covid limitations. Just message me.

 

[The Expert]

if any of you are in the area and want a tour of NASA,

WOW that would be amazing! Huge space nerd here and veteran of several shuttle launches and NASA Tweetups (remember those??). I will 100% do this if I ever end up in Houston!

 

[Z-Knight]

WOW that would be amazing! Huge space nerd here and veteran of several shuttle launches and NASA Tweetups (remember those??). I will 100% do this if I ever end up in Houston!

definitely msg me...if im not available then i can have friends give tours too...weekends or weekdays are ok, but sone things are open during business hours so weekdays usually allow to see bit more

 

[superchime]

btw, I live in Houston, so if any of you are in the area and want a tour of NASA, we can do it again after a couple of years of Covid limitations. Just message me.

That would be so awesome! We're a huge space nerd family. My son is going to Space Camp this summer!

 

[GreatLakes]

Good morning RunDisney All-Stars! Registration week is in the books now and I hope everyone was able to get registered for the races they wanted. If not, stalk those monitoring sites and may the odds be ever in your favor!

Now that we're registered, let's talk training in Sundays Are For Disney (SAFD). What type of training plan do you follow and when will you start? Is there anything notable that leads you to your particular plan? We've got a lot of newer folks and some may be training plan shopping.

SAFD: I never really stop training, so it's hard to put a finger on a starting point. I've got the New River Marathon next month, then will start focusing on a 24 hour race in October shortly after that. Once I'm past that race, I'll have Wine & Dine and then look to bridge over to Dopey at Marathon Weekend.

As far as training plans go, I tend to recycle and modify @DopeyBadger plans for just about everything. What I love about those plans is they they're capped at 14-16 mile long runs depending on the pacing I'm using. I really like being able to run longer/more often during the week so that I don't have to deal with the 20+ mile mega long runs. They really work well for me.

The Pan-American Masters Games are in Cleveland in July so I'm signed up to do the always popular 100m and 10K road double. I used to love sprinting but have never done it with track spikes or from starting blocks so I just purchased a set of both to practice.

I ordered Joel Smith's Speed Strength to figure out the 100m training and I think I'm going to use an 8 week plan from Mark Coogan for the 10K. I'm not sure yet how exactly I'm going to wed the two but I have a better chance of doing well in the 100m I think so that will be the focus.

 

[Jason Bryer]

So weird that y’all had this happen. I booked my reservation and both my kids will be a year older and I had no problem.

I think it might be because he is turning 18 and therefore an adult in between.

 

[SimbaMufasa321]

How often do you all do strength and do you do it on days when you run or days you don't? I did not do the best job at balancing runs and strength during my first marathon training plan. I find it difficult to do strength on run days (my legs feel tired and also time) but I also realized that by doing strength on my cross days I had little to no full rest days. Trying to sort this out before I start the NYC marathon training season!

 

[RuntheMouse]

How often do you all do strength and do you do it on days when you run or days you don't? I did not do the best job at balancing runs and strength during my first marathon training plan. I find it difficult to do strength on run days (my legs feel tired and also time) but I also realized that by doing strength on my cross days I had little to no full rest days. Trying to sort this out before I start the NYC marathon training season!

My schedule typically is:
Sunday: long run & strength training
Monday: cross train
Tuesday: speed work
Wednesday: run
Thursday: run & strength training
Friday: off
Saturday: run

I prefer this schedule with strength training on tired legs, it gives me good recovery days.

 

[Zutroy]

How often do you all do strength and do you do it on days when you run or days you don't? I did not do the best job at balancing runs and strength during my first marathon training plan. I find it difficult to do strength on run days (my legs feel tired and also time) but I also realized that by doing strength on my cross days I had little to no full rest days. Trying to sort this out before I start the NYC marathon training season!

I lift 3-4 days a week, and I run 4-5 days a week. For my longer lift sessions (chest, arms, abs/ back, arms, abs) I don’t run. I’ll double up shorter runs with shorter lift days (squats and deadlifts/ shoulders). I have a home gym with a half rack, Olympic plates, bumper plates, dumbbells, etc. so it is super convenient to get a workout in. I will also try to throw in a yoga session to help with mobility and get a good stretch in.

 

[DisneyMountainWoman]

SAFD: I do Galloway Customized Training program. I did it for my first marathon. I love it. Chris Twiggs the coach works around my schedule. My normal schedule is 3 days running. Sat my long run day. And I try and fit in two days of other workouts like walking/strength/yoga.
I am training for 10 miler Colfax in May... we shall see if I can get a POT for dopey... probably not. I am just slow... but I feel myself getting better endurance. So yeah on that. Right now most of my long runs around 10 to 14 miles. So I have kept up my endurance from Disneyland half marathon. After the Colfax 10 miler. I will start focusing on Dopey.

 

[Waiting2goback]

I stayed at Kidani for this past MW and really enjoyed it. I’ll be at All-Star Sports next year because I am trying to do Dopey on a serious budget. I will be alone so I don’t think Sports will be too bad. And I like how it matches the race theming in a way.

I’ll see you on the buses. I’m at Sports for Dopey too!

i am, not helping. being a loser sucks

You aren’t a loser for all the reasons others have mentioned. I have dealt with depression in the past and I get how hard it is.

How often do you all do strength and do you do it on days when you run or days you don't? I did not do the best job at balancing runs and strength during my first marathon training plan. I find it difficult to do strength on run days (my legs feel tired and also time) but I also realized that by doing strength on my cross days I had little to no full rest days. Trying to sort this out before I start the NYC marathon training season!

I never used to do strength training and I always got injured. Now I do 5 days a week and I feel much better when running. Although two days after I signed up for Dopey I got pain in my right ankle in the same spot I had in my left ankle before I needed surgery. Still hurts 5 days later.

SAFD: I do my own training plans. I mix in a lot of bike to get in cardio without having the impact on my back. Hopefully my ankle feels better soon and I will start out running three days a week and work my way up over the summer. My plan is to be at 5-6 days a week by October. So far I’m hitting the gym for strength training at 4:00am and doing my runs and rides after work. That’s my life until January.

 

[WillRunForPizza]

How often do you all do strength and do you do it on days when you run or days you don't? I did not do the best job at balancing runs and strength during my first marathon training plan. I find it difficult to do strength on run days (my legs feel tired and also time) but I also realized that by doing strength on my cross days I had little to no full rest days. Trying to sort this out before I start the NYC marathon training season!

I always double up, and I have one day completely off (walking the dog/running errands and maybe some very light yoga at most). Right now I'm running about 40 mpw and do 1h 30m - 2h of strength training/mobility total.

M: easy run/upper body strength
T: easy run/lower body strength + HIIT
W: easy run/core
T: off
F: speedwork/total body strength
S: easy run/core
S: long run/yoga

 

[Z-Knight]

That would be so awesome! We're a huge space nerd family. My son is going to Space Camp this summer!

nice...ive done Space Academy along time ago myself ..it was great

 

[runwithperseverence7]

SAFD:

Thanks for this question! Since this will be my first Dopey and RD event, I don’t have much to go on other than what others have used.

I have done 3 marathons and I’ve used Hidgons plans. I started with beginner and moved to intermediate. I loved the intermediate plan. 4-5 days is all I like. My body really needs those 2 rest days. I’m a month out from my last marathon and I took 2 weeks off of no running to get some much needed rest. I’ve been slowly adding more back in. I don’t follow any specific plan except for when I’m training for races, which is very few a year. I try to do 1-2 speed workouts a week depending on how much time I have and how I’m feeling. Easy runs otherwise(try to keep heart rate low) I like to strength train 2 times a week but always seem to drop off from it during marathon training. Trying to fit everything in is hard. I have Sally McRae’s app to use for strength and mobility. Loving it. Quick workouts that don’t take much time to do and you can always add on to them.
I have a 10 miler Labor Day weekend so I’ll go from that straight into Dopey training. So I’ll probably start training for that sometime June.

@Z-Knight I’m sorry you’re dealing with this. Just keep pushing and you’ll get through. Glad you are getting help.
Also, my grandad worked for NASA at Langley. Not sure what he did though.

 

[FFigawi]

SAFD: I follow whatever training and workouts my coach gives me. I have a roughly half-distance tri and the Oceanman world finals in November. I imagine my Dopey training will be a build up of a few weeks of long runs once those are done followed by a short taper.

 

[Cabius]

How often do you all do strength and do you do it on days when you run or days you don't? I did not do the best job at balancing runs and strength during my first marathon training plan. I find it difficult to do strength on run days (my legs feel tired and also time) but I also realized that by doing strength on my cross days I had little to no full rest days. Trying to sort this out before I start the NYC marathon training season!

I have never done strength training. 100% of my exercise is from running.

 

[GollyGadget]

How often do you all do strength and do you do it on days when you run or days you don't? I did not do the best job at balancing runs and strength during my first marathon training plan. I find it difficult to do strength on run days (my legs feel tired and also time) but I also realized that by doing strength on my cross days I had little to no full rest days. Trying to sort this out before I start the NYC marathon training season!

I'm not the best at strength training but currently committed to two days per week. I do this on running days so that I can have off day(s). There's a lot of literature out there about when to do it ( off days, easy days or hard days) but the best advice I ever heard was to do your strength training when you can. Sure, there might be more optimal times to pair running & strength but at the end of the day, something is better than nothing. Do your strength training when it fits your schedule and you'll reap the benefits.

 

[lahobbs4]

How often do you all do strength and do you do it on days when you run or days you don't? I did not do the best job at balancing runs and strength during my first marathon training plan. I find it difficult to do strength on run days (my legs feel tired and also time) but I also realized that by doing strength on my cross days I had little to no full rest days. Trying to sort this out before I start the NYC marathon training season!

I need help with this, too! Mainly because of the time aspect of running/ cross-training/ weights - plus I teach yoga 3-4 times a week. How do we get it all done?

 

[Dopey 2020]

I have never done strength training. 100% of my exercise is from running.

I need help with this, too! Mainly because of the time aspect of running/ cross-training/ weights - plus I teach yoga 3-4 times a week. How do we get it all done?

Yup, this is me
Other than an excessive amount of work on the yard and misc projects I have tried many times to start the habit especially focusing on core exercises as my back has problems that the abs could help support but always seem to end up at a day or two now and again when I think about it.
I’m always wondering how I got the running habit to stick so I can apply whatever it was to the workout habit…