Training to Taste: A Wine & Dine 2016 Training Report

[CherieFran]

Week of 10/10 - 10/16​

This week proved why fall is my favorite season. The weather was absolutely perfect every day. I only wish the days were longer or my commute was shorter so that I could have done all my runs outside!

Meanwhile, in W&D weekend-related news, my pretty purple magic band arrived, the courses were leaked (super excited for the 10K, meh on the half), I found my bib number (guessing corral B for the half based on Dark Side), and I didn't get the email with information about the gift card that comes with registration (wonder if I'll get the email with the actual electronic gift card?).

Monday: 3 miles/26:29

On the treadmill at work, not outside in the pretty, pretty weather.

Tuesday: 3.4 miles/30:00

Tempo run

Wednesday: Rest

Thursday: 3.5 miles/30:42

Because of scheduling stuff this week, Wednesday was a rest day and not a work-from-home, run-outside day, so I had to do my "longer" mid-week easy run on the treadmill as well.

Friday: Rest

Saturday: 4 miles/34:09

Sweet, sweet outdoor running perfection. High 40s for the morning run felt great. My easy run pace picked up by about 15 seconds/mile just based on the ideal conditions. Level of effort still felt the same.

Also enjoyed gorgeous fall weather for the afternoon out in the country. I just wanted to bottle this day up.



Sunday: 0.85 miles/7:15

My long run was a big bust. I had 9 miles on the schedule but I was out way past my bedtime visiting with some friends from high school who were in town. I also did not drink nearly enough water on Saturday. I woke up in the morning feeling yucky - sleepy and dehydrated. Hoping it's just that and not coming down with a cold or something. I forced myself out of bed and got dressed to run, but as soon as I started to run, my body was like, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" So I did a U-turn and went home (and in the afternoon took an almost 2-hour nap). If I had more time, I probably would have walked or (walked/run if I started feeling better) the 9 miles, but I had to go pick up the dog from an overnight at daycare when it opened in the morning so I didn't have time to really slow down the pace much. And I just really, really wasn't feeling it. This is the first long run I have missed in 5+ months, so I'm not terribly concerned from a training perspective, I just can't let it be a habit, especially a month or so from now when marathon training starts.

Mushu enjoyed all the great weather this week, too (much better than the rain)!

 

[CherieFran]

Week of 10/17 - 10/23​

Two weeks until W&D weekend! Starting to stalk the weather. Right now it is looking pretty decent - I think about average for this time of year. It will still be warmer than I am used to for my WDW visits. I've only ever been in December - February, so I am used to wearing jeans. I think this is going to be more of a shorts trip.

Corrals, waivers, event guide, etc. for W&D came out this week. I'm in Corral C for the half (and I assume A or maybe B for the 10K, which they don't release in advance). My initial reaction to the corral assignment was slight disappointment since based on the Dark Side corrals I thought I'd be in B. My previous PR (which was about a month too old to use for POT) and my current PR (which was about a month too new to use for POT) would both have put me into B. After a few minutes, I realized that I was being silly about the whole thing. First, the early corrals are really small, so there's not that big of a difference between B and C. And, second, I am in no way planning on running for time. My first reaction was just a ridiculously competitive one. I need to keep reminding myself that the point of this race weekend is to enjoy the atmosphere, characters, fellow runners, etc and chill out about the "race" part of things.

So anyway, back to training, where I needed to redeem myself after skipping out on my long run last week...

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: 3.4 miles/30:00

Tempo run on the treadmill.

Wednesday: 4 miles/34:04

I thought I was done with warm runs for the year but after a full week of amazing fall weather last week, there was a big heat wave this week. I had a dentist appointment in the morning, so I had to save my run until after my work-from-home day. It was a nice, toasty 80+ degree day. Hopefully last one of those until at least April!

Thursday: Rest

Friday: 3 miles/26:29

Work treadmill. Boring.

Saturday: 4 miles/34:37

A cold front pushed through Friday afternoon, bringing back the fall temperatures. It was decent low/mid 50s for my morning run, but really windy! There were a few moments where a sudden sideways gust seemed like it would push me off of course.

Sunday: 10 miles/1:31:25

Nice solid long run after laying off last week. Totally perfect weather. About 46 degrees at the start and 52 at the finish. Sunny morning and only a very light breeze. Now that it's cooled down, I'm able to run north on my long-run trail (where there is less shade and fewer water fountains) instead of south. The trail going north runs past National Airport and eventually up to DC. I went far enough to pass about half of the airport (the trail runs along side it for several miles). It's been quite a while since I've been that far up, so the change of scenery was definitely nice.

In the afternoon, Mushu decided that he definitely needed a nap on my bed exactly when I was trying to change the sheets:

 

[CherieFran]

Week of 10/24 - 10/30​

Last full week of training before Wine & Dine weekend and I wind down my training journal! Feels like ages ago that I registered for Lumiere's Challenge and before I know it, it'll be over. I'll wrap it up next week and then I'm thinking about taking a shot at an actual trip report (which will hopefully be more interesting than just my week-to-week training).

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: 4 miles/34:53

My work-from-home day was Tuesday this week so I had a morning run at home. It was chilly enough to pull out capris, long sleeves, and gloves, but otherwise was pretty unremarkable.

Wednesday: 3 miles/26:29

Treadmill easy run.

Thursday: 3 miles/26:38

Treadmill tempo run. For my next training cycle (which kicks off right after W&D), my training plan doesn't technically call for any speed-work/tempo runs (except for some runs at race pace) because the focus is building to marathon distance. But I like tempo runs as a way to mix it up (especially on the super boring treadmill). So I think I'm going to make one of the shorter runs each week a tempo run. So this week, instead of 30:00 tempo, I did it based on distance at 3 miles, which I'll plan to do in my next training cycle.

Friday: Rest

Saturday: 5 miles/43:10

Really pretty weather for a morning run. There was a 5K happening at the popular, local 5K course, which has the starting line about half a mile from my apartment. I ran by just as the last folks were crossing the starting line. So I entertained myself on this run by trying to pick off runners as I went along the sidewalk parallel to the course. I was running 5 miles, so I had to go about half a mile past their turnaround point before I turned around, so I played the same game running back as well. The things we do for entertainment.

Since it was chilly in the morning and almost Halloween, I felt justified in pulling out Mushu's Mickey t-shirt for his morning walk:



Sunday: 12 miles/1:52:50

My long run today was a bit unusual as I woke up with the brilliant idea to try and spectate the Marine Corps Marathon during my long run. I checked out the map and decided to head up to the Mile 22/23 area. I ran the first 4 miles on my usual trail, then cut over to another trail. I thought it was then going to intersect with a third trail that would get me up alongside the course. Apparently my map-reading skills aren't very good because it turns out that third "trail" was actually a dedicated bus lane. That part of the race is in an area I'm not super familiar with (I've run through it during several races, but that's about it). I knew where I wanted to be but couldn't quite figure out how to get there in an area with lots of tall buildings and minimal sidewalks. So I had to stop a couple of times and consult Google maps but eventually I figured it out. I got to the southernmost point on the course and no runners had arrived yet so I ran a little further up until I hit the 6 mile point in my run. I found a good spectating spot just before the 35K mark and Mile 22. There's a turnaround shortly after, so I was also directly across the street from Mile 23.

After a few minutes, the leaders came running by. Amazing how they make going so fast look so easy:



The guy in front eventually won the race by about 30 seconds.

A little while later, the first woman came by:



She really looked like she was struggling. Even though she was still ahead at this point by a couple minutes, she was eventually passed by the woman who was in second at this point.

I stood and cheered for close to an hour. It was really fun watching everyone take their victory lap. Most of the people I saw seemed to be in pretty good shape, which was good, since it was pretty unseasonably warm for late October. As much fun as it was to see the leaders, I sort of wish I had timed it to see the back-of-pack folks instead. I really struggled when I ran this race two years ago, and I remember crowd support in the section being a big highlight, so I wish I was able to cheer for the folks who were out on the course for a much longer time. After about an hour, though, I needed to get back to the rest of my day, so I turned around and ran home. Thankfully, I didn't get lost going back. The hour standing by the course did make me very stiff and tight, and it took about a mile for me to warm up again. I'm telling myself that the extended long run with long standing break is good practice for W&D race weekend since I intend to stop and stand in picture lines!

On the way home, I stopped to take a picture of this super pretty tree:



And, in the last quarter mile of my run, I spotted these cuties on the opposite side of the street and, like the crazy pug lady I am , ran across the street and asked to take their picture:

 

[roxymama]

Squirrel pug!!!! Just wanted to stop by and say hi....but mostly wanted to say. OMG Squirrel out!!!

 

[ZellyB]

It's almost W&D time!!!! Sounds like your training has gone really well and I know you'll love doing the W&D race. So nice to be able to run over and spectate that race. I'm always just shocked by how fast those race winners are. And, seriously, those pug costumes are so cute!!! But Mushi is also quite fetching (get it? FETCHing) in his Mickey shirt. Can't wait to hear all about the W&D race.

 

[CherieFran]

Squirrel pug!!!! Just wanted to stop by and say hi....but mostly wanted to say. OMG Squirrel out!!!

The squirrel pug was so sweet, too! It was hard to get a picture of her because she wanted to jump up and give kisses every time I leaned down.

It's almost W&D time!!!! Sounds like your training has gone really well and I know you'll love doing the W&D race. So nice to be able to run over and spectate that race. I'm always just shocked by how fast those race winners are. And, seriously, those pug costumes are so cute!!! But Mushi is also quite fetching (get it? FETCHing) in his Mickey shirt. Can't wait to hear all about the W&D race.

Woohoo! Packing right now. So excited for all the running and all the eating!

 

[roxymama]

CONGRATS!

 

[Ariel484]

Hope you had a great race and a fun weekend!

 

[CherieFran]

CONGRATS!

Thank you!! I had so much fun at the races!!

Hope you had a great race and a fun weekend!

I did! And likewise! Also, I think I may have seen you walking around world showcase yesterday afternoon. You were walking the opposite way from me and it was crowded so I felt weird about shouting out or chasing after you to say hi.

 

[Ariel484]

I did! And likewise! Also, I think I may have seen you walking around world showcase yesterday afternoon. You were walking the opposite way from me and it was crowded so I felt weird about shouting out or chasing after you to say hi.

I was there! Maybe it was me, darn!

 

[ZellyB]

Can't wait to hear about your race!

 

[CherieFran]

Week of 10/31 - 11/6​

The main event has finally arrived! I'm planning on doing a full trip report once the dust settles (I'll link it here), but in the meantime, once last weekly training report update with a teeny preview.

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Rest

I was supposed to run 3 miles but my IT bands were a bit grumpy after my Sunday long run, so I decided rest was more important. I did extra foam-rolling and icing every day this week and they didn't give me any problems during race weekend.

Wednesday: 2 miles/17:53

One last easy training run.

Thursday: Rest

Flying to Disney!

Friday: Rest

Expo Day!

Saturday: Wine & Dine 10K/57:57

Ran hard and had a blast! I got really excited and ran maybe faster than I should have between character stops. I was a little nervous about whether that would negatively impact me for the half the next day.



Sunday: Wine & Dine Half Marathon/1:55:39

...And apparently it didn't! This race did not go at all how I had thought/planned, but in the best possible way! I'll leave the details for my trip report but I had so much fun and posted a crazy time. It makes me feel really good about the shape I'm in as I now turn to my next challenge - trying for a 4:00 marathon in March!



Thanks to all who followed along on my training journey. This journal went a huge way towards helping me stay on track with my training these last 6 months or so! Hopefully I can keep up with that dedication going forward.

And because we are heading into the holiday season, one last Mushu pic from last Christmas:

 

[CherieFran]

I was there! Maybe it was me, darn!

Aw, bummer! Sorry I didn't yell at you, then.

Can't wait to hear about your race!

I'm going to attempt my first trip report. I tried to take some notes along the way to remember things. I'm hoping it'll be a more interesting read than just training entries!

 

[DopeyBadger]

Congratulations! Way to go!

 

[cavepig]

Awesome job on the races!

 

[roxymama]

Woo Hoo! Those are impressive times. And you got two of my dream character pics REMY AND LUMIERE!!!
Looking forward to your report.

(PS nice tape matching fashion skillz!)

 

[CherieFran]

Congratulations! Way to go!

Thank you!!!

Awesome job on the races!

Thanks!!!

Woo Hoo! Those are impressive times. And you got two of my dream character pics REMY AND LUMIERE!!!
Looking forward to your report.

Thank you!! I was super excited about those character meets although it was a bit of a production to accomplish them. No surprise, they were popular!

(PS nice tape matching fashion skillz!)

Haha! Thanks! I saw the polka dot tape at the expo and just couldn't resist.

 

[CherieFran]

Trip report started! I have a lot of pictures from the weekend. A lot.
Run Hard, Stop for Pictures, Eat Everything: A 2016 Wine & Dine Race Weekend Trip Report

 

[Ariel484]

Yay! Congrats, definitely going to check out your TR!

 

[ZellyB]

Love Mushu-deer. So freaking cute. Those times!!! Way to go. Off to check out your trip report!!