2014 Princess Half-Marathon

[mikamah]

You can do it!!

I was where you are just 3 years ago. I started C25K in jan 2010 with the goal of princess 2011, and succeeded. C25k is an awesome program, and I did my first 5k that june.

I was also overweight and out of shape, and key for me was not overdoing it. I started at 215 lbs, and did the half at 205. I had hoped to lose more, but it was not to be that year.

In the beginning a runner I knew gave me the best advice. She said if I was dying, to just slow down. It takes time to build up your endurance, and it will come, but the c25k is really about building up your running endurance. After I ran 2.5 miles straight, I was so sore, and in pain that I decided to go to run/walk intervals, and did the princess and my training mostly run 5 min, walk 1 min.

I also set a goal in my head that by october 1st that year, if I could run/walk 7 miles in the 16min/mile pace, then I would register for the princess, and that's just what I did. I merged the training plans of Jeff Galloway and John Bingham, and sort of made my own plan after that.

Through the disboards, and that princess training and race, I met and have made some lifelong friends, and we are all planning and hoping to do the 2014 princess half. It is such an amazing experience.

My sil is also doing it for her first half, and is in the first weeks of c25k.

Good luck with your training! You will be amazed as how much you are truly capable of.

[mikamah]

oh and this years princess program just came out on line, and the date is 2/21-2/23/2014!!!

It's our school vacation week, so I was hoping it wouldn't be changed!! Whoo hoo!!

[gudrench3]

I was in the EXACT same place you are today!!! I am doing the Princess Half this year...in two weeks. Woooo Whoooo! I started with the C25k and didn't stick with it. I let myself put it off over and over and over again. I then picked up the Jeff Galloway 5k app on my phone follwed by the Jeff Galloway 10k app. There are enough long days in the 10k app to get me through the 1/2 marathon.

I am STILL overhweight and really haven't lost any weight to speak of. However, I am able to do this race. Yesterday, I completed 12.5 miles. Yay!!! The thing that really helped me was I found an "official" thread here on the boards and really go to know the ladies in there. And then, they created a Facebook group. We support and laugh together so much. Don't get me wrong, I do have support here at home from my family and friends, but it is so much more different when you have someone pushing you to do the same miles they are doing. Or, if you experieince something different, you can go there and figure it all out.

I hope you'll do a better job of sticking with the training early (now) and your race will be a piece of cake. It is quite amazing what your body can do (overweight or not) if you just work up to it.

Again, congrats on starting this journey. The 2014 Princess will be here before you know it. Oh, and I made a tutu to run in for this race...never thought I'd do that. ;-)

[dewingedpixie]

I'll be running this one with you ladies. Its the day before my wedding. Watch out for the crazy bride and bridesmaid on the run!

[rhonda_2003]

Originally Posted by dewingedpixie

I'll be running this one with you ladies. Its the day before my wedding. Watch out for the crazy bride and bridesmaid on the run!

You all need to go to thrift store and get cheap dresses that you can easily modify to run in! That would be awesome

[belle2211]

I just realized I never posted the link to my 2013 Princess Half recap. My blog is fairly new so I hope it looks okay!

[mikamah]

Originally Posted by belle2211

I just realized I never posted the link to my 2013 Princess Half recap. My blog is fairly new so I hope it looks okay!

I loved your blog, and its' great that you stopped for pictures and captured all those memories.

I know after I did the 2011 princess the pictures helped me bring back lots of memories along the route since my brain was rather foggy. And all my mile markers had people in them. Your's were great!! I am hoping next year to be faster than I was before, so I can wait in line and stop for pics that I'm in. Last time chip and dale had no line, so that was the only character stop I made, for fear of being swept.

Thanks for sharing!!

[Never to old]

Originally Posted by belle2211

I just realized I never posted the link to my 2013 Princess Half recap. My blog is fairly new so I hope it looks okay!

Thanks for sharing your experience. I can't wait to do this next year!

[tmanaster]

What I can tell you is that you are going to have a blast! I have never been with a more supportive and fun group of runners as I was with this years Princess Half. I LOVE this race!

I just wrote a race recap today for my blog at www.roadtriptheworld.com.
If you have any questions about logistics or such just let me know and I'll be happy to help.

Most importantly, HAVE FUN on this journey!

[tmanaster]

Originally Posted by belle2211

I just realized I never posted the link to my 2013 Princess Half recap. My blog is fairly new so I hope it looks okay!

I loved reading this! My daughter and I ran it this year and your post captured it perfectly. It was just so much fun!!

[rhonda_2003]

Thanks for all the replies and links! My daughter, who is just 6, and I did our first 5K last Saturday. It was a lot of fun. Color Me Rad races will definitely be a repeat for us. Since I had my daughter with me, my time was not good at all! We had to stop to pick flowers, rest her lil legs, etc. No biggie, because we still completed it in about an hour. They don't keep time and I didn't know that, so I'm not sure at all what my exact time was. Since they throw the color at you, I wouldn't bring my cell phone with my running aps on it to the race.

I definitely need to be doing more road training! That was where I could tell I had some issues, since I do most of my training on machines.

I just found out that I will be going to California this summer with one of my FBLA teams from school because they won our state competition. That may put a serious dent in my Disney plans for the Princess Half-Marathon Even if I do have to postpone for a year, it WILL happen and on the up side, I am going to get to go to Disneyland and I never thought I'd ever get to go there!