2014: A Running Retrospective

How can we possibly be this close to 2015 already?! While there are some things about 2014 that I'm absolutely ready to close the book on (goodbye, stress fracture!) there were so many amazing running memories made with so many awesome people that I'm not quite ready to move on from just yet. After seeing Lauren's Running Retrospective post, I knew this would be the perfect way to wrap up my life-changing year of 2014.

Best Race Experience
This one is a tie between the Walt Disney World Marathon and the Pittsburgh Half Marathon. The WDW Marathon was my first 26.2 and I couldn't have asked for a better day. Even though he was sick, Matthew and I crossed the finish line smiling- and after having ran 22.4 miles in the three days before as part of the Dopey Challenge! And this race is where we first met Nathan, Steff, Jeff, Lauren, Dani, Justin, and a whole bunch of other cool people.

Being a marathoner is the absolute coolest.

The city of Pittsburgh- and the awesome friends we have there- totally stole my heart. The half marathon course was challenging but super fun. It was like all of Pittsburgh was having a party and there happened to be a race running through the middle of it. The crowds and spectators were incredibly encouraging. We also met Lauren H., Gloria, Chelsea, and some other amazing Pittsburgh peeps and got to spend lots of time with friends. It was such an inspiring and uplifting weekend.

Nothing but love. 

Runners-up:

• Shamrock Half Marathon
• Run, Swim, Run OBX
• Brigance Brigade 5.7k 

Best Run
I was lucky enough to PR lots of distances this year including a sub 2:30 half at Shamrock which I'm still super proud of and can't believe happened.

But none of those were my best run. My best run was the first one post-stress fracture. After almost four long, painful months of not running, when I was finally able to run, it was the most glorious feeling. If runner's high exists, I felt it on December 6, 2014.

It was cold, wet, and rainy but also glorious!

Best New Piece of Gear
Gymboss Interval Timer. If you run/walk, you NEED this timer. Affordable, easy to use, and works off its own battery so it won't drain your phone.

Best Piece of Running Advice
Listen to your body.

There's no reason to push yourself every run. Sometimes you've just got to back off when your body is telling you to.

Most Inspirational Runner
While all the runners I know inspire the heck out of me, this year's most inspirational runner title goes to my dad. We first started talking about him doing the 2015 WDW Marathon around Christmas last year- that was also when he started getting back into running thanks to the run/walk method.

Finishing the Sole of the City 10k together in April.

When he finally decided to do the marathon, he downloaded the training schedule to his calendar and started chipping away at it. Over the last few months, he's run in the pouring rain, freezing snow, and crazy humid heat- but he's stuck to the schedule. He's done all his long runs and in less than 10 days, he'll toe the line of his first marathon at age 58.

At the Mission 10 Miler earlier this year. Snow, hail, and freezing rain in March. Good times. 

To say I'm proud would be one hell of an understatement. This is a man who took a ten year hiatus from running and is now in marathon shape in just one year! He's my running hero and I cannot wait to watch him run in Disney. While I'm still sad that I can't run this one with him, it gives me great joy to think about him becoming a marathoner. His persistence and dedication to his training inspire me and I know I'll rely on that inspiration when I start training for distance running again.

In summary, my dad kicks ass and I'm just so damn proud of him.

After a particularly hot August training run.

Runners-up:

• Matthew
• Coach Jeff
• My speedy friends: Chelsea, Steff, Lauren, Dani, Nathan

Sum Up the Year in a Few Words
Not what I expected, but filled with friendship and love.

Seriously, this year was full of some of the most supportive and loving people I've ever known. I never would have made it through my injury if it weren't for my running ohana.


So there you have it, 2014 in a nutshell. Injuries, new distances, awesome friends- overall, pretty neat! Bring on 2015 :-)



QOTD: What's your favorite running memory from 2014?

AM: 12/29/14

Welcome to the last Accountability Monday of 2014! What a year it's been! Since I started doing these AM posts back in July, I've lost 18.6 pounds and have felt more in control of my eating/running habits than I ever have. So thank you, readers, for keeping me accountable!

I sincerely hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and got to spend lots of time with the people that mean the most to you. My holiday was fantastic and I'm really enjoying the time we've been able to spend with our family and friends.

Training:
Monday- 18.5 mile bike ride, 1.76 mile run, 13:01 pace, 1/1 intervals
Tuesday- Rest day
Wednesday- 2.97 miles, 12:09 pace, 1:30/1 intervals
Thursday- 3.0 miles with Matthew, 11:58 pace, 1:30/1 intervals
Friday-Rest day
Saturday- Rest day
Sunday- 3.33 miles with Dad and Matthew, 12:29 pace, 1/1 intervals

Even with all the hustle and bustle of the holidays, I'm really proud of getting my workouts in. There was a lot of running this week at faster paces and shorter intervals- I finally feel like I'm getting closer to where I was pre-stress fracture. I still haven't pushed on the distance yet but in the upcoming weeks as my training starts for the Shamrock Half Marathon, I'll start adding on the miles.

Nutrition:
Can we just skip this part and forget about all the Christmas cookies I ate? Please? But seriously, this was a tough week nutrition-wise. Being out of my own home (where I can control what's around) is really hard. Luckily, both Matthew's family and my family are super supportive of my healthy eating and filled their fridges with low-fat greek yogurt, skim milk, and plenty of fruit. Overall, I'm happy with the choices I made and I'm confident I can get through one more week of holiday traveling and eating successfully.

My new favorite holiday snack- a hot chocolate (made with the Kuerig) and two tablespoons of marshmallow fluff- only three PPV and absolute heaven in a coffee mug. Amazing.

Weight-loss:
144.4 as of 12/23/14 weigh in
-1.2 from last week
-46 since January 2013
-57.6 since HW

And the roller coaster ride continues! Let's hope it keeps going down. :-)


Enjoy the last three days of 2014 and I'll see you all in the new year!


QOTD: What's your favorite holiday treat?

2014: Finding Joy in the Miles

Now that we're three months into 2014, I thought I might actually make some public resolutions :-)

2013 was all about training and challenging myself. This was the year that I chased down some demons and finally proved to myself that I was a real runner. I made new friends, earned some new PRs, and ran hundreds of miles. 2013 was a great year.

2014 is going to be all about enjoying the moment. Enjoying each mile for what it is; not what I think it should be. Enjoying races with friends and family, spending quality time running together. 2014 is going to be awesome.

In the next few months, we've got the Shamrock Half Marathon, Pittsburgh Half Marathon, Akron Marathon Relay, and the fifth anniversary of the Wine & Dine Half Marathon. All of these races will be with friends and family and I can't wait to make new running memories this year.

There will still be PRs to chase and training goals to be accomplished, but above all, the most important goal will be to find joy in the miles.

Happy running.

Dopey Challenge: Parting Thoughts

It's now been three weeks since Matthew and I completed the Dopey Challenge in Walt Disney World. Let me start by saying this, I didn't know runner's high could last this long :-) If you want to read the recaps from all the races, you can find them here.

While I'm not quite ready to move on from all the awesomeness that was the Dopey Challenge, I know that all my friends and family and coworkers and people in the grocery store are tired of hearing me talk about it and/or trying to convince them to do it next year. It was probably the coolest experience of my life.

The most asked question- besides "Are you insane?!?"- has been "Would you do it again?" Without a doubt, my answer has been a resounding yes. Yes, it's expensive. Yes, it requires waking up at 2 am four mornings in a row. Yes, it means spending very little time in the parks. Yes, it requires hours and hours of training on the weekends. But it was worth it. 100% worth it.

Matthew and I have already talked about registering for next year. While I don't think we'd be able to do this every year, it would be kind of cool to be a legacy Dopey runner for at least one year. We have discussed the possibility of just doing the Goofy Challenge for 2015. We'd be able to spend more time in the parks and less money on races. We'll decide when registration opens in April.

There's also one more consideration- my Dad has decided to run his first marathon at WDW in 2015. How awesome is that?! Matthew and I can't wait to start planning and training together with him :-)

So, while I'll still be wistfully looking at Dopey pictures for the next few months, it's time to re-focus on my 2014 goals. The Shamrock Half Marathon is only five weeks away and I'm hoping this flat course will be a fun PR race for me. I've also been strategically thinking on how I can become a double agent- both a Half Fanatic and a Marathon Maniac- with two marathons in the fall (Wineglass and Baltimore). I'll post a more detailed plan for 2014 in the next week. It will probably still have some Dopey pictures in it :-)

Happy running, friends.

Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend 2014 Day 5- THE MARATHON!

Instead of a long, detailed post about the WDW Marathon, I wanted to tell the story of my first marathon the best way I know how- through Disney songs :-) I'll still cover the basics of the race and what exactly went down, but I feel the best way to capture this life-changing event is through some of my favorite Disney lyrics.

Marathon morning. 2 am wake-up call. Fourth day we've gone through this routine. We got on the bus, randomly met up with a twitter friend of mine (Andrea @andrea_820- she's amazing, by the way!), and went to meet up with the same tweeps we met yesterday for the half. Also, we got to meet up with Matt from Hokeyblog- I can't tell you how great it is to see familiar faces when you are insanely nervous.

1st time marathoners!

Andrea, Me, and Matt all looking chipper for 4 am!

To say I was nervous was an understatement- I was about to run THE BIG ONE. 26.2 miles. Unreal. Anyway, we'd pumped Matthew full of meds and he seemed ok. After chatting with friends for a bit, we went back to the corrals and found Dave. Since he and Matthew have done so many marathons, they were giving me last minute advice. While we sat there waiting for our turn to start, I kept thinking about all the reasons I had wanted to do this, all the reasons I trained so hard for this, all the reasons that kept me running.

Since I started running three years ago, I'd always wanted to be "Part of Your World"...

"Flippin' your fins, you don't get too far
Legs are required for jumping, dancing
Strolling along down a - what's that word again?
Street

Up where they walk, up where they run
Up where they stay all day in the sun
Wanderin' free - wish I could be
Part of that world"



You can't help but sing along to this one!

I've watched Matthew complete three marathons. Most of my running friends have a "26.2" sticker on their car. From the moment I completed my first 5k in June 2011, I had desperately wanted to call myself a marathoner. Through the years, the motivations to run a marathon have only multiplied but the first one was to belong. To belong to an exclusive club that only so many people will ever belong to. I felt just like Ariel.


Somehow, I look a little more nervous than my friend, Ariel.

Sooner than I thought, we were off! Though nervous, I felt like this was answer to the question "When Will My Life Begin?"...

"For like the first time ever, I'm completely free!
I could go running
And racing
And dancing
And chasing
And leaping
And bounding
Hair flying
Heart pounding
And splashing
And reeling
And finally feeling
Now's when my life begins!"

True story, this is exactly how I felt!

After a quick pit stop in the trees lining the first mile (corral L had a long wait and I have a small bladder!), we were headed towards the Magic Kingdom. There we got to run through the castle- it never gets old!- use a real bathroom, and briefly see Matthew's family. Matt and his wife Kim were able to get some fabulous pictures of us running down Main Street and with Matthew's family- thanks again!! :-)

Happy girl on Main Street, USA.

Cinderella Castle selfie!

Our awesome cheering section!!

From there we headed out to the Walt Disney World Speedway. The sun was coming up but the weather was perfect- cool and breezy. I felt so good, that I couldn't help but want to sing...

"Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah,
Zip-A-Dee-A,

My oh my, what a wonderful day!
Plenty of sunshine heading my way,
Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah,
Zip-A-Dee-A!

Mister bluebird on my shoulder,
It's the truth,
It's actual,
Everything is satisfactual!

Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah,
Zip-A-Dee-A!
Wonderful feeling,
Wonderful day!"

There might have even been cartoon birds :-)

By now, it was around mile 10 and we were both feeling awesome! We were keeping pretty even splits using the 2:1 method- walking for two minutes, running for one. We were averaging around 14:30- 15:00 minute miles. Highlights of this section included the Disney Water Treatment Plant (smells exactly like you'd think it would!), and running into Rafiki in Animal Kingdom! I also got to meet Kimberly Markey from Maker Mother Marathon Runner. She'd finished chemo six days before Dopey. She is the definition of strong- I am so glad I got to meet her!

The speedway.

First time we'd stopped all weekend for a picture!

Mt. Everest selfie!

Kim!

Taken just after we crossed the halfway mark.

At this point, we'd been out for around 3 1/2 hours, we were past the halfway point, and were making the trek to Wide World of Sports. The entire six months of training I'd told myself, "Just make it to WWOS and you're almost there. Single digits left after mile 17." Matthew and I both felt great physically, but this part of the course is where the mental toughness has to set in. There are some straight sections where you can see runners that are 3-4 miles in front of you- that can really mess with you mentally. Luckily, I was thinking about just the song to help us "Dig a Little Deeper"...

"You gotta dig a little deeper,
Find out who you are.
You gotta dig a little deeper,
It really ain't that far.

When you find out who you are
You'll find out what you need.
Blue skies and sunshine guaranteed!
You got to dig (dig)!
You got to dig (dig)!"

Mama Odie is a wise woman.

I can't begin to thank all of our cheering section for helping us get through these miles. We received countless texts, tweets, and facebook messages all pushing us on. From the funny to the sentimental- we loved them all. We got through the hardest part of the course and then headed towards Hollywood Studios.

My favorite!

Champion Stadium- mile 19ish

Tom Petty's "Runnin Down a Dream" played here. There was fist-pumping.

Really, how cool is that?!?!?

Right around this point, Disney was playing songs that fans had voted for- "Let It Go," "Don't Stop Believin'," and "Roar." Luckily for us, one of our favorites played during this part of the marathon and gave us the little pick-me-up we needed to "Let It Go"...

"It’s funny how some distance
Makes everything seem small.
And the fears that once controlled me,
Can’t get to me at all.

It’s time to see what I can do,
To test the limits and break through.
No right, no wrong, no rules for me.
I’m free!"

Yeah, that about sums it up.

If I could give one word to describe miles 21- 24, it would be unstoppable. It was during this time I realized that I was going to finish a marathon. And feel AMAZING while doing it! I literally had to keep checking the mileage because I didn't feel like we'd gone the amount of miles I knew we had gone. Maybe it was the magic of Disney, but I can't even describe how awesome I felt. Unfortunately, Matthew's cold began to rear its ugly head around these miles. My new focus became to get us both to the finish line so we could get him some more medicine.

Almost to DHS!

Sorcerer Mickey selfie!

We left DHS and were headed toward the Boardwalk. We knew we just had to get around the Boardwalk and take a quick lap around World Showcase to get to the finish line. I knew then that we'd both be able to "Go The Distance"...

"I will find my way,
I can go the distance.
I'll be there someday,
If I can be strong.
I know every mile
Will be worth my while.
I would go most anywhere
To feel like I belong."

Glorious.

We were so close! We'd just passed mile 24! In just a few short miles, I'd be a marathoner! I almost couldn't believe it. After rounding the Boardwalk, we entered World Showcase through near United Kingdom. There were a few characters out and we were able to get a few quick pictures. We also got to see Matt again and he snapped some great pictures for us.

"Hello complete stranger! I'm proud of you!"

Focused.

Weird faces.

Belle! Look at Matthew's smile :-)

Aladdin!

Spaceship Earth selfie! We are almost there!

We left World Showcase and ran through Future World. Then we saw the 26 mile marker and we were "Almost There"...

"There's been trials and tribulations,
You know I've had my share.
But I've climbed the mountain, I've crossed the river.
And I'm almost there, I'm almost there.
I'm almost there!"

You don't have to carry me across the finish, boys. I can run it :-)

The sound of that gospel choir has never sounded so sweet. I grabbed Matthew's hand and we ran those last .2 miles hand-in-hand. We finished what we'd set out to do. We'd run 48.6 miles in 4 days. I ran my first marathon. Nothing has ever felt so amazing :-)

Finish line Mickey!

We crossed the finish line. I danced all through the medal lines, getting our food, and then kept dancing while we met up with Matthew's family. I smiled from ear-to-ear. We did it.

However, Matthew wasn't feeling great (turns out he had an upper respiratory infection- ugh). We sat down and gave him some more medicine, snapped a few pictures, and then got back on the bus to our resort.

The best medal I've ever earned.

Our awesome fans!

Didn't they make us awesome signs?!?

Happy, happy Dopey finishers.

Crossing Dopey off our "bucket list"

So. Much. Bling.

My first marathon was an absolutely wonderful event. For as crappy as I had felt during the previous three races, I was on cloud nine the entire time during the marathon. I've never had so much fun and I really cannot wait to run another one.

The journey that brought me to my first marathon has truly changed who I am. I am so grateful to God, to Matthew, and to all my friends, family, supporters- thank you for getting me to the start line and pushing me to the finish line.

And to those who said I couldn't- who doubted me, told me I was an idiot to run with plantar fasciitis, that I'd never make it- here are some words from my good friend, Walt:

I'm still basking in the glory of being a marathoner. I hope it never goes away. And if it does, then I'll just have to chase another finish line to get it back :-)

Happy running, friends.

Dopey Challenge Finisher.

Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend 2014 Day 1- The Expo!

When we arrived in Walt Disney World last Wednesday, we checked into Art of Animation (AoA) and headed straight to the Walt Disney World Marathon expo. Matthew wanted to get a pair of the limited edition New Balance shoes (Goofy) and I wanted to check out the official Dopey Challenge and marathon merchandise.

Just as we were boarding the bus (when you stay at WDW Resort, you get free race weekend transportation to all events), runDisney tweeted that all the New Balance shoe appointments were given for the day and no more would be given out. This was 11am. New for this year, you had to wait in line to get an appointment time to then come back and try on the shoes. RunDisney and New Balance rolled out this new process in an effort to allow all runners a chance to get the shoes without selling out. Needless to say, since this was the only day we were visiting the expo, Matthew was pretty bummed.

2014 New Balance runDisney shoes

One of the advantages of staying at AoA is that you are just a few miles from ESPN's Wide World of Sports, where the expo is located. This year runDisney used several buildings to distribute packets, race shirts, and vendors. Because Matthew and I were doing the Dopey Challenge, we headed into HP Field House to pick up our race packets and all but one of our race shirts. Kid's races and the individual races had packet pick up in different areas. We picked up our packets including our two bibs (one for the 5k/10k and one for the half/full) and headed to the Josten Center to get our 5k shirt.



The Josten Center at approximately 12 pm on Wednesday, 1/8/14

 

We barely had to wait in line for the packets or the race shirts. I needed to exchange my 5k shirt for a different size and it was very easy. Then we went to check out all the official race merchandise. I bought an "I did it!" marathon shirt and a 2014 WDW Marathon Sweaty Band. Matthew bought a 2014 WDW Marathon Bondi Band and a coffee mug. I also picked up a few things for a friend who couldn't get to the expo until later. Overall, I wasn't that impressed with the Dopey merchandise. The "I did it!" shirts had a very busy design and I wasn't too crazy about the color. However, there were hardly any lines and it seemed like they had a great deal of merchandise in all different sizes. I think runDisney has fixed the majority of the issues that happened at the Disneyland Half Marathon Expo in 2013.

Back of Dopey "I did it!" shirt

Not a fan of this busy design on the front of the shirt.

After we checked out our favorite vendors and made our purchases, we headed back to the hotel. I ended up buying a Sparkle Athletic visor, a pair of Minnie-inspired "shwings" for my 10k costume, a Flip Belt, a few Sweaty Bands, and a 26.2 magnet for my car.

Not a bad expo haul :-)

Overall, the expo seemed to be much more organized and enjoyable than we expected, especially after some very long lines as the past few expos. Once we got home from the expo, we laid out each outfit for each race and were in bed super early - 7pm- because we had a 3am wake-up call the next morning for the Family Fun Run 5k!

Lots of #teamsparkle!