The Long Road to Run Disney

[JAMIESMITH]

My mini-me celebrated her second birthday yesterday with an Aristocats party. Isn't her dress the cutest?!

I had an eight day streak going with my steps, but fell off that boat yesterday even with picking up the cake and pizza.

My run on Thursday was at a lovely 72 degrees. Perfect weather in my book. I bundled up today to finish up week 5, day 3 of couch to 5K. The high was 52, which I know would make some of you Northerners happy, but that's cold to me! Today's 20 minute run with no breaks was really more of a mental challenge than physical, but I got it done!

 

[evre13]

Following along - it's so fun to read about someone else from my part of the world! (I'm from Mobile) Your daughters are adorable, and I love hearing about your plans for future family trips.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

Following along - it's so fun to read about someone else from my part of the world! (I'm from Mobile) Your daughters are adorable, and I love hearing about your plans for future family trips.

Thank you! I've been enjoying reading your training log as well! It feels like we are in a different world than all these poor folks running in the snow.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

I'm on track to meet my March mileage goal (halfway there yesterday) and finish the couch 2 5k program (again) in time for my first 5k since August on March 30th.

I'm also super excited about our October trip to Universal Orlando. We have our room reserved at Royal Pacific (yay, Express Passes!) at a rate I'm very happy with for October 6th-11th. Southwest released their flight schedule for our dates on Friday and I had just enough Rapid Reward points to cover those. Our departure flight is earlier than I would have liked, but I'm otherwise very happy! I was also able to snag the 3 park, buy two day, get three more day park tickets from Undercover Tourist this morning. I am counting the days!

 

[JAMIESMITH]

This update has some good and bad to it. I FINALLY conquered my 25 minute run (no walk breaks) today at a very slow pace and after two failed attempts. Training this week has been a struggle. I know everyone has weeks like this, but it's still discouraging.

On a positive note, I am on track to beat my March mileage goal of 25.7 miles (based purely on last March's mileage, although I may have to adjust my goal for April to something a bit more challenging because I was such a slacker last April).

The worst news is that my husband's Saturday work schedule kicked in today and he also works next Saturday so I will be pushing a stroller during my first 5K of the year. Boo!

 

[JAMIESMITH]

New shoe day! I have a mild Zulily addiction, and as a result ordered these purple Saucony Kinavra 9s for $52. I have had good luck with Saucony so I figured for that price I would give them a try. I tried them on and they feel good. I will test them on a run tomorrow.

The yellow Hoka Tracers on the far left are my oldest pair still in rotation with 215 miles on them. I actually ran my one and only (so far!) half marathon in them. They are my favorites, but I am starting to feel the wear on them during my runs.

The orange pair of Saucony Fastwitch 8s in the middle round out my meager running shoe collection. They have 112 miles on them so they still have a long way to go.

 

[michigandergirl]

Love that purple!

 

[JAMIESMITH]

The 5K today was a lot of fun, but today was not a PR kind of day. This 5K is one of the closest to home for us. I usually have to drive at least 30 miles for a race, but this one is only about 15 miles away. We live in a very rural area.

Start line photo. I'm hidden in the back, but Madilyn is in orange in the front.

My finish time today was 38:10, which is more than 5 minutes over my current PR which was set at this same race last year. I have some thoughts on the huge drop in my pace, but I will get to those in a minute. I really like this course. It is a hilly out and back that starts downtown and runs into a nice residential area. My older daughter ran with me today and she placed second in her age group with a time of 35:19. This was not a PR for her, either, but she has been seriously slacking in training. After the awards ceremony, we checked out the car show and I was able to catch up with an old co-worker who had his antique Corvette there. We also split an order of cowboy nachos (tortilla chips, cheese, barbecue pulled pork, and jalapenos)

So why was I so slow today? I can say that I was pushing a 35 pound toddler in her stroller. My husband was able to watch her last year while I ran. I have ran a couple of faster races while pushing a stroller, but Scarlett was much smaller then. I also think that the extra 15 lbs I have put on since last year are slowing me down more than I like to admit. I am still (barely) in a healthy weight range for my height, but I think I need to concentrate more on my diet.

I'm finishing off March with 27.3 miles ran, which beats last year's mileage of 25.7. So that's one goal met today

I am struggling with setting a mileage goal for April. I was a serious slacker last year and only ran 18.3 miles. I'm not sure why that was because the weather here is always so nice in April. I don't want to set my sights that low. I think I'm going to go with a goal of beating this month's mileage of 27.3. That sounds like more of a challenge. There are no local 5Ks in April. The one I was looking at was canceled. I do have my sights set on two in May.

If anyone actually made it through all my ramblings, you deserve a medal!

 

[JAMIESMITH]

I am currently re-repeating (that's a word, right?) the last three weeks of Couch 2 5K. Nothing ambitious for me this month. I have a crazy couple of weeks coming up with finals at the end of my first semester of community college classes. Work is also insanely busy! I am just hanging on until April 25th.

My daughter and I are registered for the 10th Annual Run Forest Run 5K in Forest MS on May 11th. This is a fairly close race, but we have never ran in Forest before. Unfortunately this will be another stroller run for me. I am hoping to do better than the last one.

 

[michigandergirl]

Pushing a toddler is hard work. Congrats to you and your daughter!

 

[evre13]

Congrats on your 5k! I can't imagine running with a stroller, so wow!

 

[JAMIESMITH]

Pushing a toddler is hard work. Congrats to you and your daughter!

Congrats on your 5k! I can't imagine running with a stroller, so wow!

Thank you both! Running with a stroller is definitely a work out. It makes the EU without a stroller feel much easier.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

This post is made up of all the excuses of why I haven't run for a week straight

I ran last Monday, took Tuesday as a planned rest day, watched tornado warnings all day Wednesday (three touched down in our area), I slept funny Wednesday night at tweaked something in my back, and I have been fighting a U.T.I. since Friday.

I have three final exams this week, but plan to run tomorrow before tackling the first one. Last week was not my week, but this one will be better. Unfortunately, I may fall short of my mileage goal for April. At this point, I just don't want to lose the progress I have made so far this spring.

 

[evre13]

This post is made up of all the excuses of why I haven't run for a week straight

I ran last Monday, took Tuesday as a planned rest day, watched tornado warnings all day Wednesday (three touched down in our area), I slept funny Wednesday night at tweaked something in my back, and I have been fighting a U.T.I. since Friday.

I have three final exams this week, but plan to run tomorrow before tackling the first one. Last week was not my week, but this one will be better. Unfortunately, I may fall short of my mileage goal for April. At this point, I just don't want to lose the progress I have made so far this spring.

It sounds like last week was just one of those weeks - sometimes, those just happen! I'm sure you won't lose progress, and I hope this week is better.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

It sounds like last week was just one of those weeks - sometimes, those just happen! I'm sure you won't lose progress, and I hope this week is better.

Thank you for the encouragement! Today was a big improvement over last week. I made a 99 on my accounting final, and I am super proud of that! I also ran two ten minute intervals with a three minute walk break in between. It felt so good to run without a stroller! Maybe my unintentional week off wasn't such a bad thing.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

I didn't quite meet all my goals for April. I am finishing the month with a total of 23.8 miles ran, which is more than last April but less than last month. Considering I missed an entire week of running, I'm not unhappy about it. I did finish all of my college classes with an A and won't have to worry about school again until August 26th.

I just re-downloaded the My Fitness Pal app to keep track of the calories I'm taking in. I am on day two of my first experiment with intermittent fasting. I'm only eating between 8am and 4pm, which means I'm eating breakfast at my desk at work, taking a lunch break, and then something light as soon as I get home. I have a few friends doing very well with this strategy. My current goal is to stick with this for the entire month of May. Wish me luck!

I'm also hoping to run a total of 30 miles next month. I hit 21.8 last May. My older daughter and I are signed up for a 5K on May 11th. My husband is working that Saturday so I will have to push Scarlett in her stroller. I am looking at another one on May 25th. My husband is off that Saturday.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

I am doing better with watching what I eat, but intermittent fasting is not working out for me. I had a great 25 minute run on Sunday and a good stroller run yesterday with two 10 minute intervals. I also did the Iron Strength for Runners work out for the first time since last year. This is my favorite work out DVD!

I am looking forward to a 5K on Saturday, BUT the forecast is calling for rain. This wouldn't be a big deal if I wasn't planning to push Scarlett in her stroller. The run is at 7AM so I'm hoping the rain will hold off until later in the day. My other concern is that the check I mailed for this race, over a month ago, still hasn't cleared my bank account.

We are a little less than five months out from our Universal vacation I have put away $700 for our meals. My goal is to save $1000 to take with us and then I can start putting some money in a Disney fund for Princess 2021. My husband was approved for a Southwest Visa yesterday with a 60,000 point offer since we are using up my points stash for the Universal trip.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

Tomorrow's 5K has been cancelled because the forecast is predicting thunderstorms tomorrow morning.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

I had a great 25 minute run on Sunday and took a planned rest day on Monday. Unfortunately, I've had a pretty nasty stomach bug since Monday night so my training plans for Tuesday and today have been derailed. To make up for this, I broke out my credit card and registered for what I think will be the remaining three races I run this year.

The first one is a 5K on the Saturday before Memorial Day. It is benefiting Make A Wish. I actually get to run it solo without a stroller because my husband has a three day weekend! The second 5K is on June 8th. It is about an hour away, but it is in a lovely state park that I haven't been to in about fifteen years. This race is to raise money to repair some of the trails and bridges inside the park. The last race is the same half marathon I ran in 2017. It is in November. I have considered a few other races, but this may actually be it for this year.

It is already getting pretty darn hot outside so I've had to move my training runs to right at dusk. I really need to learn to be more of a morning person so I can get my runs out of the way first thing!

 

[JAMIESMITH]

Yesterday morning, I got up at 5:45 to get ready for the Dusty Social Club's Make a Wish 5K. My husband and our girls were still sleeping when I left an hour later.

I have a Triumph Bonneville that I very rarely get to ride. I bought it about a year before I got pregnant with Scarlett. I washed it, checked the tire pressure, lubed the chain, and let it run for a bit last week to make sure it would be good to go this weekend. I took a long route to Bonita Lakes Park for the 5K.

I was able to leave my helmet at the timing company's table when I picked up my bib and t-shirt, so I didn't have to worry about it getting stolen from my bike. My flip belt was so great yesterday, I was able to ride and run without carrying a bag.

Saturday was not a PR day, but this run was my second best time. I finished in 34:47.3 with an average pace of 11:13 per mile. I started out strong. My splits were: 10:31, 11:23, and 12:06, plus a sprint to the finish. Unfortunately, it was just plain HOT. The temperature at the start was 81 degrees with 85% humidity.

I'm wearing the screaming loud lime green tank. Better visibility while running and riding!

Since I was enjoying a kid free morning, I decided to get my nails done. This is something I haven't treated myself to since last summer. The place I had been going to was closed, so I tried a new place a few doors down and ended up liking it better!

I rode the bike home on different leisurely route and made it back in time to make lunch for my family. It was a pretty perfect day. The only possible improvement would have been the delayed arrival of a certain monthly visitor. I feel pretty good about my run. My summer goal is really just to maintain fitness, it's too hot to shoot for a PR, so I'm setting my sights on the fall half marathon.