No Turning Back Now--Getting Ready for the 2009 Half Marathon (comments welcome)

[MomofCKJ]

Okay, I did it, took the plunge, clicked the button, made it official. I officially registered DH and I for the Disney 2009 Half Marathon today.

A little background... I have never been an exerciser, never. Sure I have had spurts where I have tried but they are short lived. I just don't like it and having never had a problem with my weight I have never been really motivated to follow through with it.

We have friends, best friends, who we made Life Lists with a few years ago. These are things we want to do, all 4 of us together, before we die. We each chose 5 things and have started working on our lists. Last year we did one of my items, attended a Rick Springfield concert together (I love him! Yes he is still around and sounds great btw). So now it was our friend Chris' turn to pick something. He and his wife run. They did a triathalon last summer, she did the Boston Marathone a few years back, etc. So they want to do some sort of race with us. Upon hearing this we and then we and then we . Dh and I don't run. But we agreed to this Life List thing and you can't pick and choose which ones to do.

However I can choose the location, they give me that. I knew right away it had to be the one at Disney. The only thing I think that can motivate me to do this is the fact that it is going to be at my Happy Place.

So we originally talked about this last summer, then at length this past New Years Eve. 2009 is the year that 3 of the 4 of us turn 40 (my DH turns 40 this year) and so that adds another element to this. It will be memorable to celebrate our birthdays, such milestone birthdays, by doing something like this.

The plan is to fly down Thursday, run Saturday, stay at Disney till Monday and then Mon-Thu go somewhere else to chill and relax and celebrate our accomplishment. I am pushing for Atlantis but we'll see. Truth be told I'd rather stay at Disney all week but I am outnumbered by folks who aren't so Disney Freakish as I am. We have word from MIL that she will come live at our house for the week to watch our kids (who will be 11, 9 and 6 by that time). All bases are covered.

Except that little issue of having to run 13.1 miles in a year!

So that is where I am so glad I found the WISH board here. I am excited to be joining the WISH team and looking forward to being inspired and encouraged on this journey. I thought this journal would be a good place for me to just write about how training is going, talk out loud to myself and document the year. I can be a bit wordy, can you tell?

So what training have I been doing you ask? I live in MA. It is COLD and at the moment quite snowy. So I have been using our Gazelle indoors. It is an elliptical type machine I think you would call it. I figured if I used this now it might help build up some strength and endurance for when I hit the pavement. I began with doing a mile on it, then I kicked it up to 2 miles and yesterday and today I did 3 miles. I started using it January 1st. I can do the 3 miles in about 31 minutes. Tonight my calves hurt, hoping DH will rub them later.

When the weather conditions improve I'll try running outside. I am anxious to see what I can do.

I love the saying I saw on the WISH board "Better to not finish than to never start" or something to that effect.

Until next time...

Allyson

 

[lisaviolet]

Allyson,

That is so exciting. How inspiring. And so nice to share with friends.

Good luck with everything,

Lisa

 

[hockeygirl]

Hey Allyson! First of Congratulations for signing up for the race!! That is the first and sometimes hardest part of this whole thing! I promise you that it will be an experience you will not soon forget! This weekend I ran my first full marathon at WDW and it was amazing. I kept a journal this past year to document my journey and it was the best thing I ever did! The encouragement that everyone gives on here is amazing and will keep you going even when you don't think you will be able to do it.

I look forward to reading your journal as you train over the next year!!

 

[momof2minnies]

Hi Allyson,
I am also thinking of doing the 1/2 or full next year. I never ran a race before and I am at 10 miles. I started in Sept. I am also from Ma. and it is very hard to stay motivated but every nice day I am home I am running.The roads are sometimes a mess, that makes it hard.

Where in Ma are you from?

People I know said that if I am already running 10 I could do the full but it sounds so scary!

Stay in touch,
Linda

 

[MomofCKJ]

Thanks for the encouragement ladies! I appreciate it!

Congrats to you hockeygirl for completing the full marathon! WOO HOO!

Linda, I went to Westfield State for a couple of years before transferring to USF in Tampa. Many moons ago it seems! I am in North Brookfield, center of the state. I saw your journal and how diligent you are with your training. You inspire me! If you are doing 10 miles now a year out I bet you certainly could go for the full! When do you plan to decide to register? It is hard with the weather so inconsistant, not to mention down right COLD at times.

Well yesterday was a very hectic and busy day. I just never got to hop on our elliptical. And you know what? I felt BAD. Usually I would just be like "Well, I'll do extra tomorrow" knowing full well I wouldn't. I have been down this road before and I knew if I started slacking this early in the game, well it wouldn't be good. So at 11pm I hopped on and did a mile. At least I did something and I felt good about it.

Today I did my 3 miles on there. I started New Years Day with one and am slowly increasing. I figure it is a start and getting my body used to moving and it has to be somewhat good for me right? It has to help in some way so when I do hit the pavement and actually run this will have gotton me in some bit of better shape for that right?

Next week I am going to aim to up it to 4 miles. I know I can do it. I am experimenting with music while I do this too, making mental notes of which songs I like so I can compile a good list. Tonight it was Bon Jovi and "It's My Life" was the inspiring song of the night:

It's my life
And it's now or never
'Cause I ain't gonna live forever
I just want to live while I'm alive
(It's my life)
My heart is like an open highway
Like Frankie said
I did it my way
I just want to live while I'm alive

 

[momof2minnies]

Hi Allyson,
Thanks for the comments on my journal.Nice weather today isn't it?We have a 2hr delay here, you probably have no school.

What is your plan next year? Are you thinking of doing the 1/2 or the full? I see your heading but time may change that because if you are already increasing by a mile at a time you may do better than you think right now.I want to register soon too.

North Brookfield, we bought most of our furniture from Richards.

And Jon Bon Jovi would motivate me any day. My high school classmate lives next to him in Somers,CT.(can't see his house of course!)

Have a great day and pray for SPRING!!!!!!!!
Linda

 

[momof2minnies]

Allyson it's me again , if you go next year is your family going or just you?

Linda

 

[MomofCKJ]

Hey Linda, yes a 2 hour delay here! Now it is sunny and warming up to 40 according to my deck thermometer. Crazy weather!

It is just DH and I meeting our friends there. My MIL is going to come stay out here with our kids. They are going to Disney in March (with me and my parents, DH has a work trip to Peru) so they aren't being too Disney deprived not coming on this trip.

I did 3 miles today on the elliptical and nothing yesterday, 1 mile the day before. So I am at 10 for the week. And yesterday when I didn't I felt guilty. Maybe this is starting to become a habit? They say 21 days for something to be a habit, its been 18 close right? I have fallen off the exercise wagon so many times before but this time I REALLY want it.

And I am anxious yet terrified to actually get outside and try to RUN. Elliptical is one thing, actually running, boy it kind of scares me!! I was looking at the Hal Higdon site on the recommendation of a friend, he has lots of training programs. I might try one.

Linda, definately the half. It will be a miracle that I can get through that I think!

Today I worked out to Def Leppard. Some good beats but not so much inspiring lyrics. Not sure they'll make my playlist. Pour Some Sugar on Me? Hmmm, maybe Pour Some Ice Water on Me!


Allyson

 

[postesf]

Hi Allyson! Congrats on taking on the half!!! I LOVE that list idea! How fun!!!

I just worked towards my first 5K. (Completed it this past weekend at WDW!) I used the Couch to 5K training program. If you've never run before, this is a great way to start. I was totally at the COUCH level! ha! So it worked suprisingly well for me. I've now looked into Hal Higdon's 15K training plan (for the Minnie in May). He also has one for half and full marathons as well as the book Marathoning for Mortals...there are training plans in the back.

Laurie--are you following any of those plans???

Sorry--didn't mean to hijack your journal!

So...I just wanted to say great job and congrats on signing up for the half! Maybe I'll see you there!

Stacie

 

[momof2minnies]

Hi Allyson,
Great job. When the weather improves it will definately be easier to get out there.

I was also considering just DH and myself but I have never flown without the kids,it makes me nervous just typing it

I have to get my butt in gear and make a decision and sign up though!

Have a good one,
Linda

 

[hockeygirl]

Hey Allyson!

First I want to say that you can totally do this in a year!! I started a little over a year ago and I could barely run a couple of miles without being exhausted. I slowly worked my way through a Hal Higdon plan and ran my first half marathon last April. then I worked on my base the whole summer and used the Hal HIgdon Marathon training plan for my full. I used the Novice plans for both, and I really liked them. The mileage is reasonable and I felt like I was properly trained for both races. So, you can so do this!!!! Definetely find a training plan that works for you, and I would also suggest trying a few local races, such as a 5k or 10k. When I was training for my half, Hal's plan had a 5k and 10k worked into it. I only did the 5k but it was great preparation for race day conditions.

As for getting into your training...i have found a few things work...one signing up for the race..that makes it all more real. When I had no official race I was training for, it was so hard to motivate myself to get out there. Since your 'official' training for the half will not start for a long while, I would suggest finding a local 5k that you can work towards this spring while building your mileage. That way, you will feel that you need to get that traiing in for that race. Also, posting on here tends to motivate me as well, I feel more accountable and the motivation on here is AWESOME!

Don't be scared to run outside, I have actually found that it is easier for me to run outside, I hate the TM. So, it may not be as hard as you think.

Sorry for the long post! You can definetely do this and remember it will be an incredible journey for you!!

 

[MomofCKJ]

Hi Allyson,
Great job. When the weather improves it will definately be easier to get out there.

I was also considering just DH and myself but I have never flown without the kids,it makes me nervous just typing it

I have to get my butt in gear and make a decision and sign up though!

Have a good one,
Linda

For our 10th anniversary in 04 we went on a cruise without our kids. We went out of New York because I did not want to fly at all. I was still post 9/11 terrified of flying.

This time DH suggested we fly seperately, kind of like the royal family does. It sounds at first kind of neurotic to me but then again if something did happen our kids would still have one of us. We haven't decided but it is definately something we are thinking about.

Allyson

 

[MomofCKJ]

Did 3 miles on the elliptical. Only had my shuffle to listen to and discovered there aren't a lot of kickin' tunes on there, more mellow. Did have a few good Rick Springfield songs to keep me moving and actually Build Me Up Buttercup just makes you feel happy and like you want to keep moving!

I really think that choosing to make this the race we do is going to make all the difference in the world. I am so EXCITED about it and I know the fact that it is at Disney is a HUGE part of it. I love seeing pictures from last weekend's races and imagining ME running through MK! That Mouse is really motivating!

Arctic cold arrives tomorrow. I don't think I'll be trying a run outside anytime soon. I did do a little running late last summer. I would do this route that was half a mile and I would do it twice. I would walk/run what I could and was at the last time I did it running just over half of it, so half a mile. Pretty pathetic eh? I am hoping that by using this elliptical for a while it will help with something!

I also browsed Amazon for the Marathons for Mortals (I think that was it) book. I am most likely going to get it as it looks pretty interesting and helpful!

Allyson

 

[MomofCKJ]

Stacie congrats on your 5K! That is great! Have you decided if you are doing the half next January?


hockeygirl, thanks for the tips and words of encouragement! I know there is a 5K in my town in October and I *think* one in June. I think I will set those as goals and try. I bet in addition to having them as motivation it will help to actually take part in a race before the one at Disney.

You know I have never been athletic. And it is more like I never thought I was so I never tried. Maybe I can be but I have never given myself the opportunity to try. I remember in high school planning to go out for track and then wimping out at the last minute. I was too afraid to fail so I didn't even bother to try. I have sort of told myself so many times "You can't do that, you aren't athletic at all" that I think I am my own worst enemy.

Reading these journals and the race reports are so inspiring and motivating. It is great to read about people who weren't super athletes at the start actually doing it and finishing these races. It makes me think that I can too if I really focus and actually put myself out there and TRY!

Allyson

 

[MomofCKJ]

The elliptical machine we have is a glider I think they call it, an elliptical glider. It has a display that tells you how far, your speed, your time and calories burnied. It kind of feels like walking or cross country skiing. I like that you can get going at a pretty good clip. Around the 2 mile mark I start feeling sweaty!

Anyway tonight I hit 3 miles and then decided to push to 3.5 miles. My thighs were hurting but not enough that I wanted or felt I needed to stop. I kept going and did the 3.5 in 38:20.

The best part is for 20 days now I have been consistantly exercising and this has NEVER happened.

Allyson

PS Pats won today! Superbowl and 19-0 here we come!

 

[tinkerbell of winter]

I'll be cheering for you at that 1/2 marathon because i'm signing up for the FULL!!! I have run a 1/2 marathon and it's not that bad once you get used to running the long distances. Work your way up to it by signing up for races around where you live, that is what I did! First I did a 5 mile, then a 15K (9.1 miles) and then I did a 1/2 marathon. I'm hoping to repeat the same type schedule, but maybe two 1/2 marathons and a couple 15 Ks to keep me straight this year. You can do it!!!

 

[postesf]

HI Allyson. Keep it up girl! I have committed (though not officially signed up yet) for the 15K in May. IF, no, I mean WHEN I complete it, I'm thinking I might as well go those extra 3 miles for the 1/2 in '09. DH has agreed to the 15K. Not sure if he will commit to the 1/2 though.

I've got to get some good music too!

Keep pushing! You can do it!!!

Stacie

 

[MomofCKJ]

Thank you for the encouragement Tinkerbell and Stacie! I love how everyone here at WISH is so genuinely encouraging and nice! Really what a wonderful bunch of people!

I picked up a copy of Marathoning for Mortals yesterday and am reading it. I like it, good stuff!

I didn't do anything yesterday and felt bad. I meant to, just didn't get around to it.

But I need to tell myself, that is OK. In the past that is what destroys me. I don't do anything today, then I feel bad, then I miss another day, then I figure once again I am not just cut out for this.

No More!

I got on the Gazelle and did 3.75 miles in 41 minutes. I watched Ellen (love that show!) while I did it and time literally flew.

Onward and upward!

Allyson

 

[momof2minnies]

Great job Allyson.Sounds like everything is going well.

Can you stand this weather for one more day? I need spring.

Don't worry about missing a day.Take everyday individually and look ahead.It all comes together in the end.

I love Ellen too, she is a nut!

Oh I also wanted to tell you that on April 6th there is a 1/2 here in town and we are not to far for you. It may be good practice for the big one

Have a great one,
Linda

 

[MomofCKJ]

Oh I also wanted to tell you that on April 6th there is a 1/2 here in town and we are not to far for you. It may be good practice for the big one

Have a great one,
Linda

Thank you for the encouragement Linda! I appreciate it! I don't think I'll be near ready for a half by then! However I am going to aim for a 5K here in June!

I did it, today I went outside and ran. It is not as frigid today and with mittens and ear warmers, wasn't bad at all. I decided today was the day I would start the Couch to 5K program. By the end of March I should be able to run 3 miles.

I did Day One Week One and get this, it wasn't bad at all! In fact I could have done MORE! But it stressed not getting ahead of yourself and so I decided to just stick with the program. But I did it and I wasn't as winded as I was last fall when I tried running. I really think the elliptical use has been doing something good for me.

I am really proud of myself, I KNOW I can do this.

Allyson