"Sometimes the right path is not the easiest one." - 1st Training Journal (comments welcome!)

[Livelovedance]

Friday, April 1, 2022 - Expo Day 2 and Disney Springs
After my 24 hour day, we made today a much slower and relaxed one. After waking up we drove to find a Target and a supermarket, did some grocery shopping and then headed back to the room to make breakfast. We were fortunate to be able to stay in a 1 bedroom again (due to an excess of unused points due to covid), and this might be my favorite 1 bedroom to date. I love being able to cook in our room, especially during race weekends because I can eat familiar foods. I don't have the money to succumb to addonitis, but after staying in 1 bedrooms two trips in a row it's going to be really hard to go back to studios!

After breakfast we headed back to the expo at 12:30pm to take pictures at the different photo opportunities that we skipped yesterday, and then headed back to the resort to relax and make something for lunch. I decided to try out the scavenger hunt since it was postponed, but I got distracted and never went back to it. Oh well.

I can't remember if we did anything inbetween at this point, but at 4:15pm we headed back to the main building by car to take the ferry to Disney Springs. I saw they had a photo setup for runners so I stopped for a photo on our way. A ferry was already there by the time we found the dock, so we got right on and made our way to Disney Springs. It was sooo nice to take the ferry and be dropped off right where we wanted to be (instead of all the way by Cirque when we drive and park). We walked around for a little while and then made our way back to the resort.

I think we ended up staying in for the rest of the day. I got my costume set up before bed and made sure to go to sleep early so I could wake up on time for the 10K.

 

[Livelovedance]

Saturday, April 2, 2022 - Race for the Taste 10K
After a restful day I was up early and ready to go for the 10K. I drove to EPCOT and ate my pre-race bagel and apple juice in the car before heading over to the start. I'm pretty sure I made it to the DIS meetup this morning, which has become a nice thing to look forward to. I don't know people in my personal life that runDisney, so it's nice to make brief connections with the runners I get to interact with here . I had planned to see if the pin and magnets I missed out on were at the merch tent, but it never opened before I headed to the corrals at 4:03am. I waited out the start of the race watching the attempts by the chef DJ to get the crowd going, and it was a nice little change from previous races. He used a lot of different songs, and a nice amount of people joined in the fun. I felt good this morning, and I don't know if it's because (a) I was well rested, (b) I wasn't rushed to get to the start, (c) I was in EPCOT instead of AK, or (d) all of the above, but I felt SO much better than I did for the 5K start. When Carissa asked if we liked having the day off yesterday, I wholeheartedly raised my hand in agreement. I started the race at 5:19am.

I didn't have any goals in mind for this race, I just wanted to enjoy it. I stopped and took pictures of:
- Clarabelle and Horace 5:27am
- Mile 1 marker 5:34am
- Mile 2 marker 5:48am
- Donald and Daisy 5:54am
- Mile 3 marker 6:03am
- EPCOT barges 6:06am
- Mickey and Minnie 6:17am
- Mile 4 marker 6:18am
- Chip and Dale 6:27am (I waited on line for this one since it wasn't too long and I hadn't stopped for any character photos yet)
- Mile 5 marker 6:39am
- Mile 6 marker 6:53am

It was very humid, but I had fun. I wanted to stop for more characters but I really just didn't want to wait in such long lines. I miss when POT was more attainable and I could get a better corral placement, but it is what it is.

Outdoor Run:
(Nike Run Club)
Focus: Springtime Surprise Challenge - Race for the Taste 10K
Distance: 6.45 mi
Total Time: 1:31:52
Avg. Pace: 14'14"
Splits:
1 = 13'42"
2 = 13'50"
3 = 14'45"
4 = 13'11"
5 = 17'56"
6 = 13'01"
0.45 = 11'59"

(Garmin)
Focus: Springtime Surprise Challenge - Race for the Taste 10K
Distance: 6.47 mi
Total Time: 1:36:07
Avg. Pace: 14'52"
Splits:
1 = 13'44"
2 = 13'53"
3 = 14'52"
4 = 13'50"
5 = 20'41"
6 = 13'22"
7 = 12'20"

WDW Tracking
Finish Time: 1:35:58

After taking my finisher photo and heading back to the resort, I took a shower, ate breakfast, and got ready to go back to EPCOT. I always wear the race shirt and my medal that day in the parks. This race shirt wasn't great, but the 10K medal actually ended up being my favorite out of all of them. It's shiny and looks more classy compared to the others. We walked around EPCOT for awhile, visiting the butterfly section and then watching Winnie the Pooh attempt to catch butterflies from afar. While I'm thrilled that real character meets are returning, I hope they continue cute things like this as well. I stumbled upon the Isabella Encanto magic shot without realizing it, which was a nice surprise. I wish I had known, I would've tried to get the Luisa one this trip as well! My mom's never ridden the Gran Fiesta Tour, so we went to check that out before heading out of the park.

We headed back to the resort for lunch, and then made our way to Magic Kingdom. We drove, and while we were driving in the parking lot it started pouring. Luckily we were still in the car, so we waited it out for a little while and then trudged on with our ponchos we had bought from the supermarket the day before. We took the monorail over, and stopped in the Emporium but it was too crowded. The rain was still on and off and people were waiting to see if the parade would run, but they ended up cancelling it. We got some fun photopass pictures on the sidewalk in our ponchos and then watched the Rainy Day Cavalcade. Afterwards it was still raining, and people were leaving the park, so we took advantage of a near empty Main Street to take some photos of the castle, and trudged along to find something to do. Unfortunately as we got towards Tomorrowland it started pouring, so we stopped into the Laugh Floor to try to wait it out. By the time that was over it had lightened up, but our shoes were soaked and we were done so we headed back to our resort and called it a night.

 

[Livelovedance]

Sunday, April 3, 2022 - The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror 10 Miler
Today I got a little bit of a later start. The merch tent did open up today, but the pins and magnets I missed weren't there. Today's pre-race show was a little strange because of the repetitive 1939 announcements and video (people are still joking about that on Facebook today lol) and the fact that the announcers were only dressed in polo shirts.

This was my first 10 mile race, but after running a marathon and a half marathon I didn't have that slightly anxious feeling I usually get before the long run of the weekend. I felt ready and was looking forward to what the course would bring. Spoiler alert: I loved the course! My group started at 5:27am, and I loved the fire effect with the fireworks at the start.

This race I took pictures of:
- Chip and Dale 5:42am (I stopped for this one)
- Mile 1 marker 5:45am
- Mile 2 marker 5:59am
- Mile 3 marker 6:19am
- Perry the Platypus 6:28am (such a unique one! If I was a Phineas and Ferb fan I would've stopped even though the line was super long, but I had no connection to the character to make me want to wait.)
- Galaxy's Edge 6:34am (I think it was an X-Wing? I don't know a ton about Star Wars but I've seen all of the old movies and some of the newer ones, and since it was the first race through Galaxy's Edge I had to stop for this photopass shot.)
- Stormtrooper 6:35am
- Mile 4 marker 6:35am
- Mickey and Minnie 6:53am (this line was long but I was willing to wait, it was worth it!)
- Tower of Terror 6:55am (I didn't wait in the photopass lines for this but there were two, one with characters and one without.)
- Mile 5 marker 7:03am (this was just a flag, not sure why)
- Pluto 7:08am
- Mile 6 marker 7:16am
- Mile 7 marker 7:31am
- Mile 8 marker 7:44am
- Mile 9 marker 7:58am

I loved that this course was so different. It was exciting that we were able to run through both Galaxy's Edge and Toy Story Land. Although I felt a little bit of overkill from the rush of doing three different race weekends back to back, I was so glad I did this one for this course alone.

Outdoor Run:
(Nike Run Club)
Focus: Springtime Surprise Challenge - The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror 10 Miler
Distance: 10.39 mi
Total Time: 2:31:23
Avg. Pace: 14'34"
For some reason the NRC app is missing this run, but it's listed in my Apple Watch activity app. If it comes back I'll update this post with the splits.

(Garmin)
Focus: Springtime Surprise Challenge - The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror 10 Miler
Distance: 10.31 mi
Total Time: 2:44:13
Avg. Pace: 15'56"
Splits:
1 = 16'58"
2 = 13'35"
3 = 18'46"
4 = 13'30"
5 = 29'56"
6 = 12'53"
7 = 14'08"
8 = 13'32"
9 = 13'53"
10 = 13'25"
11 = 11'40"

WDW Tracking
Finish Time: 2:43:59

After the race I took my finisher photo and then headed back to the resort for a shower and breakfast. My only goal was to get my last medal photos, so I went to see Mickey in MK for some distanced medal photos, and then took another set of photos with my medals on Main St. On our way out we caught a quick cavalcade, watched a little bit of a castle show, and then headed to Aloha Isle for Dole Whips.

With not much else we were looking to do in MK we park hopped to HS to walk around a little, and caught another cavalcade there before leaving to collect our bags and head to the airport. Our trip to the airport and check in were almost uneventful, except for the fact that my pins and magnets caused the TSA to need to pull and check my bag.

The crazy part came while we were sitting at the gate and waiting to go home. They overbooked our flight and kept announcing that they needed 12 people to take an offer to not fly. The offer started pretty high because they could only get you on a flight home on Wednesday, and you were on your own for lodging, etc. By the time we were ready to board the offer was $1,500 plus the price of your flight. So many people were angry, so many people were trying to find ways to make it work, but there really were no reasonable flight options to make it worthwhile. If I didn't have to go to work I definitely would've taken it, but that wasn't an option, so I was just thankful that we were able to get on the plane and fly home.

It was another fun race weekend, but to be completely honest I'm glad to have a runDisney break for awhile!

 

[Livelovedance]

What am I up to now? I've been taking classes more purposely and regularly through Peloton. I've been trying to balance strength, tread, cycling, stretching, etc. to keep myself in shape while I'm not specifically training for a run. I was considering a couple upcoming fall marathons, but I'm registered for Dopey 2023 and I think I'm going to keep my focus on that for now. Starting to train earlier for a fall marathon just doesn't align with my upcoming busy schedule in June.

I do have a group of runs lined up for the summer (one race per week in I think July and August), so I have to work those into my upcoming training plan, but I'm looking forward to it. I would like to try for a POT race, but I still think the requirements are out of my reach.

Scheduled upcoming races:
- Summer race series
- Dopey 2023
- Princess 5K 2023 (through charity)

Hopeful upcoming races (pending registration):
- Princess FTC 2023
- Springtime Surprise Challenge 2023

This is the last year I'll be able to get three race weekends in, and this time my time off aligns a little bit better so I shouldn't feel as rushed to get there each time. We'll see what next year brings! In the meantime, I'm looking forward to getting back into training this summer.

 

[lookingforsunshine]

Great trip report!!! I love how you note the time you took each picture— smart.

They overbooked our flight and kept announcing that they needed 12 people to take an offer to not fly. The offer started pretty high because they could only get you on a flight home on Wednesday, and you were on your own for lodging, etc.

That is crazy. They couldn’t get people on a flight for three days? When this happened to me once I just had to wait until the next day to fly and they did comp the hotel room (plus I got $900). The hotel was right across from Mall of America so it ended up being fun!

 

[Livelovedance]

Great trip report!!! I love how you note the time you took each picture— smart.


That is crazy. They couldn’t get people on a flight for three days? When this happened to me once I just had to wait until the next day to fly and they did comp the hotel room (plus I got $900). The hotel was right across from Mall of America so it ended up being fun!

Thank you! It was crazy, I wish it happened during a time that I could’ve taken the offer, but having to pay for a place to stay for 3 nights would’ve taken away from that $1,500 anyway.

 

[Herding_Cats]

Flights out of Orlando were absolutely bonkers that Sunday/Monday/Tuesday. We had to a of families at our school get stranded down there until Tuesday or Wednesday because their flights were either overbooked or the airlines just didn’t have enough people to staff the flights.

 

[azrivest]

Great recaps! Hopefully we get to see each other for the FTC again next year

 

[Livelovedance]

Great recaps! Hopefully we get to see each other for the FTC again next year

That’d be great! Fingers crossed that registration goes well for all of us!

 

[GollyGadget]

Wow! I can't imagine running a race at 10:30p after waking up at 2a unless I had a really really long nap in between.

Congrats on three great races!

 

[Livelovedance]

Making my way back to this journal after a little over 2 months of distance! Not too much running has happened between Springtime Surprise and today. I get very busy between May and June, so the dust is finally settling and I can start training for the upcoming race season. I'm going to come back and edit this post to add the occasional treadmill runs I did (if any, I don't even remember at this point) and the first summer race series run I did.

Right now I'm here with a question for @DopeyBadger. This year I'm registered for the Dopey Challenge (a most likely once in a lifetime experience due to my work schedule - the stars aligned this year but I doubt it'll ever happen again lol). My main goal for Dopey is to complete all 4 races feeling good and injury free. I was originally planning to use the marathon training schedule you created for me last year. Will that be sufficient, or will I need an updated plan to account for the back to back race days?

 

[DopeyBadger]

Right now I'm here with a question for @DopeyBadger. This year I'm registered for the Dopey Challenge (a most likely once in a lifetime experience due to my work schedule - the stars aligned this year but I doubt it'll ever happen again lol). My main goal for Dopey is to complete all 4 races feeling good and injury free. I was originally planning to use the marathon training schedule you created for me last year. Will that be sufficient, or will I need an updated plan to account for the back to back race days?

Is this plan #541? Starts at 4 days per week and moves to 5 days per week. Peak volume of 6.5 hrs. Questions:

-Are you doing at least 2-3 hrs of running per week right now?
-Do you feel your fitness is in a similar place right now? Could you run a 5k in 36 min (11:35 min/mile)?
-If the fitness is the same, you're going to be running closer to max level fitness than you will be a leisure pace in order to complete Dopey. I would estimate your marathon during Dopey at near maximal effort to be around 6:20. So a non-maximal effort is going to get you closer to the 7:00 hr cutoff (plus some extra time depending on corral buffer). How hard of an effort do you want to give during Dopey? The more training you do, the more improvements you might see, which means you would be able to take a more leisure pace during the races itself.

 

[Livelovedance]

Is this plan #541? Starts at 4 days per week and moves to 5 days per week. Peak volume of 6.5 hrs. Questions:

-Are you doing at least 2-3 hrs of running per week right now?
-Do you feel your fitness is in a similar place right now? Could you run a 5k in 36 min (11:35 min/mile)?
-If the fitness is the same, you're going to be running closer to max level fitness than you will be a leisure pace in order to complete Dopey. I would estimate your marathon during Dopey at near maximal effort to be around 6:20. So a non-maximal effort is going to get you closer to the 7:00 hr cutoff (plus some extra time depending on corral buffer). How hard of an effort do you want to give during Dopey? The more training you do, the more improvements you might see, which means you would be able to take a more leisure pace during the races itself.

Thank you for the quick reply! Yes, I'm looking at plan #541. I'm not running right now, but I'm planning to start again this week. Last year I was in the same place, I hadn't run since April (I did the virtual SW 10K on 4/17) and then started running again with the runDisney Galloway plan (3x week) on 7/6 until I started your plan #541 on 8/10. I'd definitely prefer to be able to run at a more leisurely pace during the races. I'm not as concerned about finding time to train this year because I have a lot of time in the summer, and I have the treadmill if I can't get outside on my busier days, so I'm comfortable with training more for better results in the end. After following your plan last year I took my time and stopped for photos during the marathon and I felt great during and afterwards, so I know it's worth it!

 

[DopeyBadger]

Thank you for the quick reply! Yes, I'm looking at plan #541. I'm not running right now, but I'm planning to start again this week. Last year I was in the same place, I hadn't run since April (I did the virtual SW 10K on 4/17) and then started running again with the runDisney Galloway plan (3x week) on 7/6 until I started your plan #541 on 8/10. I'd definitely prefer to be able to run at a more leisurely pace during the races. I'm not as concerned about finding time to train this year because I have a lot of time in the summer, and I have the treadmill if I can't get outside on my busier days, so I'm comfortable with training more for better results in the end. After following your plan last year I took my time and stopped for photos during the marathon and I felt great during and afterwards, so I know it's worth it!

So volume is similar in terms of the lead in, but is the fitness level the same (36 min 5k)?

Could you do something in the 8 hr range? Maybe something like:

M- OFF
T- 60 min max
W- 90 min max
R- OFF
F- 60 min max
Sa- 90 min max
Su - 180 min max (run/walk intervals)

Total - 8 hours

You've got about two months before I'd say the real training starts (Sept). So between now and then, I'd say just be consistent with the running. You'd want to be comfortable with doing about 4-5 hrs per week of running leading into September to feel good about peaking at 8 hours in Nov/Dec. If you did a little less at peak, then you could be comfortable with a little less in Sept. Aiming for something around 50-60% of peak.

 

[Livelovedance]

So volume is similar in terms of the lead in, but is the fitness level the same (36 min 5k)?

Could you do something in the 8 hr range? Maybe something like:

M- OFF
T- 60 min max
W- 90 min max
R- OFF
F- 60 min max
Sa- 90 min max
Su - 180 min max (run/walk intervals)

Total - 8 hours

You've got about two months before I'd say the real training starts (Sept). So between now and then, I'd say just be consistent with the running. You'd want to be comfortable with doing about 4-5 hrs per week of running leading into September to feel good about peaking at 8 hours in Nov/Dec. If you did a little less at peak, then you could be comfortable with a little less in Sept. Aiming for something around 50-60% of peak.

I feel like I’m in similar shape compared to this time last year, but I haven’t been running to know for sure. I did one 5 mile race a couple weeks ago but it was the worst possible timing and I honestly shouldn’t have ran it after everything I did the days prior. Even if I’m not currently there, I know I could definitely be back at a similar level before September, so I’m going to say yes and just get myself comfortably back into running in the coming weeks.

I think that schedule is doable. I won’t know my evening schedule until about mid July so I don’t know if the days of the week are definitely good, but even if it’s not great I can make it work. Worst case scenario I’m doing that day’s run on the treadmill before work or later that evening.

 

[DopeyBadger]

I feel like I’m in similar shape compared to this time last year, but I haven’t been running to know for sure. I did one 5 mile race a couple weeks ago but it was the worst possible timing and I honestly shouldn’t have ran it after everything I did the days prior. Even if I’m not currently there, I know I could definitely be back at a similar level before September, so I’m going to say yes and just get myself comfortably back into running in the coming weeks.

I think that schedule is doable. I won’t know my evening schedule until about mid July so I don’t know if the days of the week are definitely good, but even if it’s not great I can make it work. Worst case scenario I’m doing that day’s run on the treadmill before work or later that evening.

Sounds good. Let's touch base in late August. Between now and then focus on pacing in the 14:30s (and make it slower in the heat). The goal should be to get the volume up to about 4-5 hrs per week at the comfortably easy running pace. If at any point the volume increase is feeling like too much to get to 4-5 hrs, then swap out a run at 14:30s for a pure walk of the same duration. How does that sound?

 

[Livelovedance]

Sounds good. Let's touch base in late August. Between now and then focus on pacing in the 14:30s (and make it slower in the heat). The goal should be to get the volume up to about 4-5 hrs per week at the comfortably easy running pace. If at any point the volume increase is feeling like too much to get to 4-5 hrs, then swap out a run at 14:30s for a pure walk of the same duration. How does that sound?

Sounds great! I’m going to try to write something up for those 4-5 hours a week, because I learned during that time between Marathon Weekend and Springtime Surprise that I need a schedule to follow in order to stay consistent lol. Thanks!

 

[Livelovedance]

Finally back with an update! Yesterday I spent the better part of my day updating my running journal, so now I'm back to update here. I really didn't do much running until the end of June. I took some different classes on the Peloton Tread here and there, but nothing substantial. It's still a learning curve with treadmill miles. I try to keep it at an easy run pace, but I find my pacing to be slower than outdoor running. If I try to match my regular pace outdoors, I feel like I'm going too fast. I don't put much thought into it though and just focus on the time running. I do each run with my regular intervals (1:15 run/30 sec walk), which is slightly awkward on the treadmill but the speed knobs make it easy to manage.

April 2022:
4/25/22 - Treadmill - 20 min run; 1.13 mi; 17:39 pace
4/25/22 - 10 min cool down run; 0.57 mi; 17:20 pace

May 2022:
5/1/22 - Treadmill - 20 min run; 1.26 mi; 15:52 pace

June 2022:
6/1/22 - Treadmill - 20 min walk + run; 1.16 mi; 17:11 pace

6/13/22 - 5 mile race
Chip Time = 1:05:18
This was my first outdoor run since Springtime Surprise. It was a hot and humid race, which took place after a literal nonstop work weekend where I went home every night with throbbing feet. To top it off, I'm still masking out of concern for family at home, crowded races included. Needless to say, not the best conditions for a race. I was absolutely exhausted at the end, but I was so proud of myself for doing it.
Garmin:
Time = 1:05:04
Distance = 5.01 mi
Pace = 13:00
Avg Pace per mile:
1 = 13:23
2 = 12:59
3 = 12:45
4 = 12:52
5 = 13:02
6 = 10:26

 

[Livelovedance]

July 2022:
7/1/22 - Treadmill - 20 min run; 1.35 mi; 14:46 pace

I started trying to use the Nike Run app with the treadmill. It doesn't always play nice because both the Peloton app and the Nike app are trying to run at the same time. But I like to use it for consistency (I know it's overkill but I started running with it so I feel like I have to continue it!). I find the treadmill classes to say 20 min run, but that includes the warm up and cool down so it's not really 20 min of running. Sometimes I start and end the run on my own and ignore the warm up/cool down to get the full amount of time in. I also use my Garmin for the interval reminders, which also has it's own mileage and pacing differences. Each system gives completely different information, so I don't really bother with the stats. Posting here just to show the differences:

7/5/22 - Treadmill - 30 min run; 1.86 mi; 16:02 pace
NRC - 2.08 mi; 14:25 pace
Garmin - 2.23 mi; 13:43 pace

7/6/22 - Treadmill - 30 min run; 1.91 mi; 15:40 pace
NRC - 2.12 mi; 14:08 pace
Garmin - 2.24 mi; 13:29 pace

7/8/22 - Treadmill - 45 min run; 3.04 mi; 14:48 pace
NRC - 3.21 mi; 14:05 pace
Garmin - 3.32 mi; 13:37 pace

7/9/22 - Treadmill - 30 min run; 2.1 mi; 14:19 pace
NRC - 2.12 mi; 14:07 pace
Garmin - 2.26 mi; 13:19 pace

7/10/22 - Treadmill - 45 min run; 3.05 mi; 14:44 pace
NRC - 3.23 mi; 13:55 pace
Garmin - 3.30 mi; 13:40 pace

7/11/22 - 5K race
I was signed up for a summer series of races that I do every summer. The first was the hot and humid 5 mile run. This was the second one that I was able to attend. I don't remember much about this one, except that it was a lot easier than the first one! I started in the back and figured I'd see how I felt, but I did better than anticipated!
Chip Time = 0:36:51
Avg Pace = 11:52

7/13/22 - Treadmill - 30 min run; 1.92 mi; 15:37 pace
NRC - 2.12 mi; 14:09 pace
Garmin - 2.22 mi; 13:33 pace

7/14/22 - Treadmill - 45 min run; 3.03 mi; 14:48 pace
NRC - 3.28 mi; 13:45 pace
Garmin - 3.35 mi; 13:28 pace

7/15/22 - Treadmill - 30 min run; 2.11 mi; 14:15 pace
NRC - 2.28 mi; 13:11 pace
Garmin - 2.35 mi; 12:54 pace

7/18/22 - 1 mile beach run race
One mile race on the beach. I've done this once years ago, and I remember it was difficult, but this was even harder than anticipated. I ran in my Vibram toe shoes that I bought years ago and never wear (the last time I wore them was the last time I did a beach run). They were good for the sand because I felt like I was barefoot but I wasn't, and I didn't have to worry about having sand in my running sneakers for the rest of eternity. The sand was way too soft and so hard to run in for the first half of this mile. It was almost an out and back course, but not exactly. The turn around was shorter than the start. I struggled through the beginning in the sand, and then was able to run along the shore line for the rest. That was better because the sand was wet and compacted, but I did get splashed by other runners a few times. Definitely the second hardest run of the summer (the first being the 5 miler because of how exhausted I was).
Chip Time = 0:15:31

7/31/22 - Treadmill - 30 min walk + run; 1.88 mi; 15:57 pace

 

[Livelovedance]

August 2022:
8/1/22 - 4K race
This was also a hot and humid race. I remember pushing myself, and being disgustingly sweaty by the end.
Chip Time = 0:28:34
Avg Pace = 11:30

8/2/22 - Treadmill - 20 min run; 1.28 mi; 15:37 pace
NRC - 1.39 mi; 14:27 pace
Garmin - 1.41 mi; 14:11 pace

8/8/22 - 5K race
Nothing too memorable about this one. I pushed for a steady pace and had no complaints.
Chip Time = 0:36:54
Avg Pace = 11:53

8/12/22 - Treadmill - 30 min run; 1.75 mi; 17:05 pace
Garmin - 2.00 mi; 14:00 pace

8/14/22 - 10K race
I went back and forth about signing up for this race. I used to use this race for POT for Princess weekend. With the new POT cut offs, I knew I was no where close and considered skipping it. I ended up registering anyway because I do enjoy the race, and I figured I'd just use it as a baseline. I woke up the morning of feeling very strange about it. For the first time I was going into this race without a goal in mind, and it was almost unsettling. I started almost in the back and figured I'd just run how I felt and see where it took me. This was almost a mistake because I kept getting caught in the middle of a crowd with my intervals. Towards the middle of the race I was finally able to break away and had my own space. I pulled the mask down for most of the second half of this race, and completed it with a strong finish! Definitely my fastest time in this race, and could possibly be a 10K PR! (I will be going back to past stats to verify!)
Chip Time = 1:09:55
Avg Pace = 11:15

8/15/22 - 5 mile race
Another reason why I was hesitant to do the 10K was because the last summer series race was today. After pushing myself in yesterday's race, I decided to race, but take it easy today. Not much different from back-to-back Disney races! The first race of the series was also a 5 miler, so it was interesting to feel the difference between then and now. I felt good about my finish, and it felt like a kick start into my upcoming Dopey training.
Chip Time = 1:03:21
Avg Pace = 12:40

8/17/22 - Treadmill - 30 min run; 1.83 mi; 16:26 pace
Garmin - 2.20 mi; 13:41 pace

8/19/22 - Treadmill - 15 min run; 0.95 mi; 15:47 pace (I did this short run just to try one of their AFO Festival classes)
Garmin - 1.15 mi; 13:09 pace

8/20/22 - Outdoor Run!
Finally got myself out of bed early and outdoors to my favorite running spot for a 30 min run. It felt great! I took it nice and easy, and just enjoyed every moment.
T + D = 71 + 68 = 139
NRC - 2.15 mi; 0:30:16; 14:03 pace
Garmin - 2.15 mi; 0:30:08; 14:00 pace