Official WDW Marathon Weekend 2013 Thread

[Reep]

I think I need to at least sleep on this decision to move up to the full marathon. I do want to run one some day but I don't think I'm sure of doing it just yet. Its the long training runs that are making me doubt myself. I can do 10, 12, 14 miles to prepare for a half without much of a problem because that's only a little over 2 hours. Once I start training for a full marathon we're looking at 3-4 hours for long runs on the weekends week after week? I admire the commitment of those who do it and because of that I'm not sure if I'm ready to take it on yet.

Just something to consider. Many programs don't recommend running more than 3 hours for marathon training. After three hours the benefits are minimal and the chance of injury increases. Even if that puts your miles short, it is better for your body.

 

[lmb80129]

It's on the rundisney Facebook page

Thank you!! I love the medal but am really, really afraid to go Dopey!

 

[dreams91]

Just something to consider. Many programs don't recommend running more than 3 hours for marathon training. After three hours the benefits are minimal and the chance of injury increases. Even if that puts your miles short, it is better for your body.

For us slow people that will take 6 hours for marathon, I can't imagine only training for 3 hours. I wouldn't feel prepared.

 

[John VN]

Just something to consider. Many programs don't recommend running more than 3 hours for marathon training. After three hours the benefits are minimal and the chance of injury increases. Even if that puts your miles short, it is better for your body.

For us slow people that will take 6 hours for marathon, I can't imagine only training for 3 hours. I wouldn't feel prepared.

I agree with dreams91. Even at a 10mm pace, that means an additional 1hr and 22minutes time to complete a marathon and depending on overall physical conditioning, weird things can start to happen with the body.

Greater distances/longer times for training do not have to equate to more injuries when training wisely. Personally, I think longer is much better than shorter for us slower people.

 

[steves1019]

For those that have stayed on the monorail race weekend what time did you catch the monorail to the start and did you feel it was the right time? I'll be staying at the Contemporary and was thinking I catching the monorail at 4:15 for the ride to TTC transfer to EPCOT for the half on Saturday.

 

[randomiam79]

For those that have stayed on the monorail race weekend what time did you catch the monorail to the start and did you feel it was the right time? I'll be staying at the Contemporary and was thinking I catching the monorail at 4:15 for the ride to TTC transfer to EPCOT for the half on Saturday.

I got on right at 4 last yr and thought it was about right. 4:15 would probably be fine i just like to be there early and go through my warmups, stuff life that. Not sure it helps though ha

 

[Goofierunner]

2 -Ok now to the bigger more important question.. I am following the Galloway Goofy plan and there just happens to be some local half marathons on my scheduled long run days where I have to run 15 and 17 miles. I was thinking that since neither really have a pace requirement that I could sign up for those, get some additional medals and incorporate those with my long runs. Would that be a wise decision? I don't plan on doing an all out race but I of course would keep my pace under the 16 min mile as that is how I have to train to complete the Goofy and not get swept. Does this make sense? Any suggestions? Yea or Ney??

I'm doing this also. I have a ten miler coming up and then a half a couple of weeks after that. I've incorporated local 5ks, etc into my long runs in the past and just parked farther away from the start. Run to the start, race, run back to the car. It worked out really well and no parking or traffic hassles!

 

[Bephus]

For those that have stayed on the monorail race weekend what time did you catch the monorail to the start and did you feel it was the right time? I'll be staying at the Contemporary and was thinking I catching the monorail at 4:15 for the ride to TTC transfer to EPCOT for the half on Saturday.

On a related note, I am staying at the poly, should I get on he resort monorail or walk to the ttc? Same time frame as above?

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[cewait]

For those that have stayed on the monorail race weekend what time did you catch the monorail to the start and did you feel it was the right time? I'll be staying at the Contemporary and was thinking I catching the monorail at 4:15 for the ride to TTC transfer to EPCOT for the half on Saturday.

I got on right at 4 last yr and thought it was about right. 4:15 would probably be fine i just like to be there early and go through my warmups, stuff life that. Not sure it helps though ha

On a related note, I am staying at the poly, should I get on he resort monorail or walk to the ttc? Same time frame as above?

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We stayed at BLT a couple years back and Saturday I hopped the 4 am train. Seeing that Disney seems to run the monorail into the Contemporary empty then waits for either GF or Contemporary to fill (i.e. no waiting as full trains pass) I left for the race on Sunday at 4:15. Both mornings the We waited for a small amount of time at the contemporary station and I was able to walk onto the Epcot train with no waiting. Coming home was a little different story. Seems like we waited for maybe 4-5 trains prior to getting on.

With regard to the Poly, walk. it's less than a quarter mile to the TTC and one less mechanical thing to break. If you start walking from your room at 4:45 you should be fine.... I would try out the walk the day before to see how long it actually takes.

Note that the morning I left at 415, I walked off the train, went over to say high to a few friends, dropped my warmups, hit the head and made the corral as the National Anthem was starting. There is not a lot of time to waste. Also, over the last couple races seems like WDWM wants to drop a few extra porta potties on Woodpecker Lane (the small and narrow road we walk to the start on). This road is narrow and is surrounded by tram and other things. The added potties and associated lines really slows up the walk. This was not the case in 2010 when I stayed at the BLT.

 

[cewait]

Just something to consider. Many programs don't recommend running more than 3 hours for marathon training. After three hours the benefits are minimal and the chance of injury increases. Even if that puts your miles short, it is better for your body.

For us slow people that will take 6 hours for marathon, I can't imagine only training for 3 hours. I wouldn't feel prepared.

I agree with dreams91. Even at a 10mm pace, that means an additional 1hr and 22minutes time to complete a marathon and depending on overall physical conditioning, weird things can start to happen with the body.

Greater distances/longer times for training do not have to equate to more injuries when training wisely. Personally, I think longer is much better than shorter for us slower people.

I had a small paragraph on the 3 hour rule above and removed it. As a triathlete, we train for runs by Time and not Distance regardless of pace. I took it out because I think a person running their first few marathons should focus on miles and really needs to push the distance out to the 20 mile range. After a few marathons and when you understand the mental side of the game, I change my runners to a time plan. Those who know me know that I only run 3-3.5 hours as a training run - this usually results in a 16 mile long run going into Goofy. I caveat this with the understanding that we run hills and speed work during the week. there are no 'maintenance runs'

 

[steph0808]

I might be completely off my rocker, but I registered!

I have run off and on for a decade, but only seriously started running again in January and average 20-25 miles a week, so I hope I will be able to keep up with the training and be able to do the race!

 

[BigEeyore]

Possibly dumb question about Galloway method - is the run/walk/run thing designed more to help preserve energy and promote endurance, or is it also about preventing injury? I am finding as I am pushing up my mileage that things are starting to hurt, and wondering if I start doing the run/walk thing instead of just running straight thru if I will minimize risk of injury?

 

[WestPalmBucsFan]

DW and I are officially registered for the 1/2 Marathon. I ran the full marathon back in 2001. I wanted to do the full again this time BUT dw wasn't sure she could do a full SO we're halfing it. Since she has rheumatoid arthritis I think this is a huge accomplishment regardless.

 

[cobbler]

Possibly dumb question about Galloway method - is the run/walk/run thing designed more to help preserve energy and promote endurance, or is it also about preventing injury? I am finding as I am pushing up my mileage that things are starting to hurt, and wondering if I start doing the run/walk thing instead of just running straight thru if I will minimize risk of injury?

Both. If you look at some of his videos he says that you can run farther & with less injury. This is because walking uses different muscles & you are giving those running muscles a break every so often.

I've been using it after trying to run a solid 10k. I do a 4 min run, 1 min walk & I'm at my fastest avg pace & per min mile pace after just 6 weeks of using the plan. I'm in week 7 of Goofy right now. I think my time says I should be at a 9 min mile pace but I'm more like an upper 10 low 11 with that interval so I'm either walking too slow, not going as fast as I can or both. I'm happy with that time though as I feel I'm at a good pace when running.

HTH

 

[sunshine269]

Thank you!! I love the medal but am really, really afraid to go Dopey!

Me too. This will be my first marathon and I am still not to sure about it, but I plan on just walking the 5k with friends and I'm sure I'll walk a lot of the 1/2 as well. My only goal is to make it across the finish lines.

Jennifer

 

[cewait]

I might be completely off my rocker, but I registered!

I have run off and on for a decade, but only seriously started running again in January and average 20-25 miles a week, so I hope I will be able to keep up with the training and be able to do the race!

Off the rocker or not, WELCOME to the party

DW and I are officially registered for the 1/2 Marathon. I ran the full marathon back in 2001. I wanted to do the full again this time BUT dw wasn't sure she could do a full SO we're halfing it. Since she has rheumatoid arthritis I think this is a huge accomplishment regardless.

Huge indeed. I have a couple friends with RA and I am very impressed with this. Good luck and have a great time.

Possibly dumb question about Galloway method - is the run/walk/run thing designed more to help preserve energy and promote endurance, or is it also about preventing injury? I am finding as I am pushing up my mileage that things are starting to hurt, and wondering if I start doing the run/walk thing instead of just running straight thru if I will minimize risk of injury?

Actually kind of both; sort of.

First though lets look at 'pushing up miles"... How are you pushing up the miles? Asked another way, are you following a plan, or are you just adding miles? Ideally, there is at least one week out of every 4 where you pull back on the long run distances.

Next, what about your shoes? How many miles do you have on them? If the answer is I do not know how many miles, then yo may want to consider heading to a running store for a new pair.

Next what is hurting? Joints or muscle. If joints, take a week off and let the inflammation subside. Muscle would be normal, as long as it is only a hurt and not a pain (hopefully that makes sense).

Also, when does it hurt? If post run - like the morning after... normal. During, you may be suffering from an impending injury.



So now to the question

R/W is a great way to lower exertion during a run. In real simple terms, you are lowering the heart rate and allowing the metabolic system to pull back as the result of the walk. This lowers Kcal burn a bit, and generally allows the runner to go longer prior to depleting fuels. Jeff discovered this concept when running 10ks internationally on the track. The Scandinavian country runners would slow up just a bit then surge. This is the same concept.

R/W also lowers leg fatigue. Taking hills and other externalities out of the equation... Adding a frequent short walk into a run allows the smaller stabilizer muscle to be recruited differently during the walk. These small little muscles can be over worked and the break allows them time to flush waste and bring in fuel. Without this little break, they can fatigue and then possibly injure. Folks who train in a rolling hill environment then head to a really flat marathon often feel this same fatigue in the legs much earlier than they would training at home. The changes in grade due to the rolling hills does much of the same thing.

All this to basically say, look at the entire picture rather than just R/W. If all seems to be good, then try the R/W and see how it goes. Note that you will want to start the intervals as soon as you start the run... Do not wait 30 miles then start.

Good luck and let us know how it works out

 

[steves1019]

We stayed at BLT a couple years back and Saturday I hopped the 4 am train. Seeing that Disney seems to run the monorail into the Contemporary empty then waits for either GF or Contemporary to fill (i.e. no waiting as full trains pass) I left for the race on Sunday at 4:15. Both mornings the We waited for a small amount of time at the contemporary station and I was able to walk onto the Epcot train with no waiting. Coming home was a little different story. Seems like we waited for maybe 4-5 trains prior to getting on.

With regard to the Poly, walk. it's less than a quarter mile to the TTC and one less mechanical thing to break. If you start walking from your room at 4:45 you should be fine.... I would try out the walk the day before to see how long it actually takes.

Note that the morning I left at 415, I walked off the train, went over to say high to a few friends, dropped my warmups, hit the head and made the corral as the National Anthem was starting. There is not a lot of time to waste. Also, over the last couple races seems like WDWM wants to drop a few extra porta potties on Woodpecker Lane (the small and narrow road we walk to the start on). This road is narrow and is surrounded by tram and other things. The added potties and associated lines really slows up the walk. This was not the case in 2010 when I stayed at the BLT.

Thanks all! We'll do 4am just to be safe.

BTW, I finally got through all 131 pages of this thread. Great info and very impressed with the support everyone offers! It's great to know there are so many good people in the world and I'll be taking part in an event with them

 

[Bephus]

Thanks all! We'll do 4am just to be safe.

BTW, I finally got through all 131 pages of this thread. Great info and very impressed with the support everyone offers! It's great to know there are so many good people in the world and I'll be taking part in an event with them

I too like some extra time so I will most likely leave around 4 too. So much better than 3 for the buses like I am used to!

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[cewait]

I too like some extra time so I will most likely leave around 4 too. So much better than 3 for the buses like I am used to!

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I really would NOT have left at 415 but is was in the 20's that morning and I was willing to start at the very end in trade for a little extra time out of the weather

 

[butiflfeet]

First of all, most training plans incorporate some form of periodization... basically, not running long every week. The most elementary training plan is Galloway's beginner plan. Jeff's plan alternates the longest run with a recovery long run every other week. Then once in the 18 mile range, the plan pulls back to the longest run every three weeks and a shorter long run in the two weeks between. Note that if the 26 mile run is an issue, you can pull the 23 and 26 mile run back to the 20 range. That would give you 3 x 20 mile runs. Though I would suggest adding some intensity to the mid week runs if you choose to lower the miles.

You are not looking at 4 hours except for 4 training weekends (based on the little over 2 hour half distance). Still, it takes a commitment that some cannot make. Add that with family and the fact that this crazy race's longest training runs cover both Thanksgiving and Christmas weekends.... It can create stresses not planned for.

It's wise to think it over. In my early Disney days one could simply bail into the half finish if training was poor or race day was not going well. But since the races have been split, the decision seems more permanent.

One more late thought... your non-running friends really do not understand the difference between the half and full. They get lost on the word marathon. To them there is little difference between13 and 26 miles.

Either way... Good luck, train hard and have fun

Thank you so much for your insight! We are currently training for a half marathon on October 21 and we have been incorporating tempo runs and intervals in our mid-week runs since the beginning of June in hopes to decrease our time. So what you're saying is, with having the speedwork already in our plan, that should help with our fitness level and maybe super long runs like 23 and 26 miles aren't as necessary? That would certainly make training for the marathon a little easier to handle.