Monday, March 31, 2014

I'm on Bloglovin', a Name Change, and Exciting News!

Hi!  I wanted everyone to know that I just signed up on Bloglovin' and you can follow me here.

Also, I'm changing the name of my blog from Will Run For Disney to Running the States.

I've found that my running focus isn't on Disney before, as it was first inspired by Princess Half Marathon, so Will Run For Disney doesn't seem appropriate anymore.  However, I do have a goal of running all 50 states eventually, so I figured that was a more appropriate name!  This also involves a change in URL to runningthestates.blogspot.com!

And the biggest news of all - I'm a half marathoner!! I'll post a full recap and info up soon, but I just wanted to let everyone know =)

Lauren

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Weekly Recap

This is totally Tuesday, right?  I wasn't staying up until one in the morning finishing a presentation that was due today and ignoring my blogging duties.

Weight: 150.8
Change: +1
Overall Loss: 9.4

My weight fluctuates really really easily, and we went out to dinner last night, so I think that's why.  We also got Hershey Spread and I may have had a spoonful...or three.

Last Week:
Wednesday - 11 miles - done!
Thursday - cross train - done!
Friday - 2 miles - not done =(
Saturday - 13k - 5k done!
Sunday - 3 miles - not done =(
Monday - cross train - done! + 0.5 miles (my pants wouldn't stay up!)
Tuesday - 4 miles - not done - I had to do the homework I ignored instead!

I feel better about this week than last week, but still need to be more consistent.  This week isn't off to the best start either - no activity today.

Wednesday - yoga/cross train
Thursday - 2 miles
Friday - travel day
Saturday - 13.1!!!
Sunday - rest
Monday - yoga/cross train
Tuesday - 45 minutes

We'll see how it goes!

How did your week go?
Lauren

Sunday, March 23, 2014

Beaufort Twilight Run 5k Recap

Last weekend, I decided to run the Beaufort Twilight Run 5k + 8k challenge.  Well, as I'm sure you guessed, the 8k portion just didn't happen.  My calves were tight and I just really wasn't feeling running at all that night.  But hey, I got the 5k done at least!

It started in a really cute little part of Beaufort called Habersham Village that I'd never been to before, and it had lots of little shops and restaurants.  I didn't get to look around too much because it was absolutely packed and we had gotten there a lot later than expected.  One thing I will note though - all of the restaurants either had their bathrooms blocked off or they were for customers only.  This kind of ticked me off because they had about 3 portapotties there, I had about 5 minutes till start, and there were at least 20 people in like (not doing the 5k), so it would have taken too long to get to the front.  I guess this is partially my fault for getting there late, but I feel like the restaurants should just be nice for that one day.  Anyway, rant over.

I got to the start line having to pee like a racehorse, and stressed out (we didn't have the best ride up there...).  I didn't do any stretching, and was in a bad mood overall.  I just wanted to get this race done!  Well, the first two miles that paid off.  They clocked in at 12:03 and 12:56.  I think I pushed it too much the first mile though, because after mile 2 I really started to overheat and I could barely push my run periods.  Mile 3 came in at 13:37 (around my normal pace), and the last 0.18 at 2:13.  I do know I hit 3.1 at about 39:55, because I pushed for a sub-40.  My official time was 40:47.

Usually, I run at a comfortable pace and fast-walk.  Yesterday, I pushed my runs, and just walked normally and it seemed to work better.  I think I just pushed the first mile too much (I thought I could PR it, which I was off by about 10 seconds), because the last mile I couldn't push the runs as much.  I was way too hot.  Granted, it was also hot out in general in the mid-70's and sunny the whole time, but I was starting to heat up in general anyway.

I ended up doing a lot of weaving in this race, for two reasons.  First, there were a ton of kids under 13-or-so and NONE of them knew race etiquette.  They were walking three across in the middle of the road, taking off running and zig zagging all over without looking around them, and other various things.  They actually had a big sign that said "5k Walkers Start Here" and walked them up after the runners started, yet there was a pair of 15ish year old girls casually strolling in the middle of the road in the first tenth of a mile.  Things like that kept happening, and maybe I only noticed it because I was in a bad mood already, but no one knew any etiquette.  Second, the roads seemed to be very narrow, maybe one and a half lanes at most.  It was a complete neighborhood run, and a gorgeous neighborhood, but you could tell it was a small one that didn't have a lot of traffic, and there just wasn't enough room with all the weaving I had to do.

So while my time was good (for me), my experience overall was not.  Like I said, maybe it was just because I was in a horrible mood already, but I probably won't do this race again.

Did you race this weekend?
Lauren

Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Weekly Recap

Hi all!

I was still slacking this past week.  I also don't have a weight because as of today, Ray and I are staying at my parents for about two weeks and we started packing up as soon as we woke up to get to the puppy!  She'd been alone since around 4:30 in the morning and we woke up around 9:30.

Last week's schedule:
Tuesday - 4 miles - was never done :/
Wednesday - yoga - I did weights instead (back day)
Thursday - 3 miles - done!
Friday - yoga - done!
Saturday - 5k + 7.9 for a total of 11 - only the 5k was done.  I ate lunch and was watching a tv show while that settled, and ended up falling asleep until dinner time instead.
Sunday - yoga - not done :/
Monday - 2 miles - not done :/
Tuesday - 4 miles - not done :/

So basically, I sucked this last week.  I'm hoping that putting this on my blog will make me more motivated so that I don't have to feel the guilt of posting all these not domes.

Next week's schedule:
Wednesday - 11 miles
Thursday - yoga/cross train
Friday - 2 miles
Saturday - 13k (5k + 8k challenge)
Sunday - 3 miles
Monday - yoga/cross train
Tuesday -  4 miles

I'm a lot more optimistic about this next week.  I really need to get in that 11 mile run to feel prepared for my half at the end of the month, then keep the mileage nice and easy.

Thanks for the encouraging words last week!  Anything specific to get me out for 11 miles tomorrow?
Lauren

Monday, March 17, 2014

Disney Picture Overload

These are all my additional pictures from the trip!  I know they're a bit late, and there's not too much to say about them, so here they are!

Back at the Expo after the 10k and Epcot!  Including playing following the Alice from her outdoor to indoor picture spots when it started to rain.  I'm slightly obsessed with Alice.
















Half Marathon day from my iPod and Ray spectating












How have things been for everyone else lately?  I've seen lots of great pictures and posts from St. Patrick's Day races!

Lauren

Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Weekly Recap

So, I've decided to start doing weekly recaps to keep myself accountable for a few things, and to make sure I post at least once a week.  And yes, they have to be on Tuesdays, because I feel like being different.

First thing to stay accountable for, even though I haven't talked about it much on here, is weight loss. I'm not happy with my weight and I've been trying to lose it for a while.  In high school I was around 120, but then when I moved out to Iowa for two years I got up to 160.  I'd like to be back to my high school weight, or at least to 125, which I'm making my current goal.  So, weight loss stats.

Highest weight: 160.2
Current weight: 149.8
Weight lost: 10.4

Upcoming Weekly Schedule:
Today - 4 miles (this may be moved to another day because today is lacking motivation)
Wednesday - yoga
Thursday - 3 miles
Friday - yoga
Saturday - 5k + 7.9 for a total of 11 miles
Sunday - yoga
Monday - 2 miles
Tuesday - 4 miles

This Past Week:
Monday (3/3) - sick
Tuesday - sick
Wednesday - sick
Thursday - sick
Friday - 5k
Saturday - rest
Sunday - hour and a half power yoga
Monday - 3 miles

Last week was a very inactive week as I just wasn't feeling well, and motivation overall has been lacking something fierce in my life.  Which is not good with my upcoming half.  That I'm very excited for, but I just can't seem to get myself up and out there running.  I'm trying to find ways to motivate myself, but nothing is clicking so far!

How do you keep yourself accountable?
How do you motivate yourself?

Lauren

Sunday, March 9, 2014

Princess Half Marathon 2014

Going in to the half marathon on Sunday morning, I knew something was wrong.  As I was walking to the bus, my right pinky toe felt like it was overlapping the toe next to it, and every step hurt.  I left it alone until I got in to Race Retreat, untied my shoe and loosened it as much as possible, then put my foot in and made sure all of my toes were flat.  Laced my shoe back up, and it still hurt just as much.  Damn.

I got my picture with the Alice crew, which I was super excited about.  Then was a stop at the restrooms, and I went outside to meet Rachel who introduced me to Karen and April.  I read both of their blogs (which you should check out) and it was exciting to meet them!  Rachel and I then went in search of her friend, who we didn't end up finding, but we did find this guy with a sign that said "I'm your Prince Charming"! It was so cute.  We took pictures, but I can't find them right now to post.  After that, we headed out to the corrals.  It is seriously a long walk, and I was just trying to ignore my toe hurting the whole time.  It was then I also realized how much my feet hurt, from doing the 10k and the park the day before.

Once I was finally completely locked in to my corral (M), I realized I had to go to the bathroom, but there was really no way out at that point in time.  I ended up stopping just before (or just after) the first mile, and waited in line about 7 minutes.  That put me way behind pace already.  I knew I wouldn't be able to stop for any pictures, but I knew that already.  I got to the 5k mark and really never got into a groove and never felt good about the race at all.

At this point, I was just upset and angry and every bad emotion.  This was supposed to be my race.  Princess Half Marathon is what first inspired me to run.  This was supposed to be the culmination of all my hard work, my destined race.  And it was just all falling apart, getting worse with every step.  Around mile 5, I texted Ray (who was waiting in the Magic Kingdom) that I was just going to walk the rest, and if I got swept then it was whatever.  By the time I got through the castle, I decided I was just going to turn myself in to the next medical station.  At the pace I was going, I knew I'd get swept eventually, and there was no point in putting myself through more pain.  I was crying, in a really bad place, and just wanted to be done.

I stopped in front of the castle and Ray took a picture of me trying to keep it together, and I finally got to a med tent.  I stopped my Garmin at 6.44 miles, but I'm not sure how much it was off from weaving and everything.  I got put on the "parade bus" and waited until everyone else was done.  We were the sweepers, and stopped to pick people up along the way.  There were a few tears, but most people had good attitudes.  Some people had injuries and knew they wouldn't make it the whole way, some didn't have a goal to finish, just to get as far as they could, etc.   I wasn't happy, but I wasn't crying anymore, and these other women were helping to lift my spirits.

To summarize my experience, this is what I put on Facebook:

While I'm still, of course, a princess (and have an amazing Prince Charming) and got a medal, I did not finish my half marathon today. My feet just had too much around mile 6.5 and I couldn't make myself go anymore. But in the past few days I've had an amazing time with Ray, who continues to be a wonderful motivator even when things like this happen, watched him experience Disney for the first time, ran a great 10k, gone 25.25 miles in two days according to my FitBit, seen and met great friends, and had a wonderful time. I'm disappointed that I didn't finish but I've decided it's ok and I have another half to try again next month.

So, we'll see how RunTheBluegrass goes at the end of the month.  I'll include the few pictures I have from Sunday in my picture dump post, along with pictures from Epcot Saturday afternoon.

Have you ever had a DNF?  This was my first.

Lauren

Sunday, March 2, 2014

Enchanted 10k

Saturday morning was an early wake-up call to get to the 10k.  I think our alarms were set for 2:45 and 3:00, but I didn't even need the second one!  I was up and getting ready while Ray fell back asleep until the last minute.  Thankfully I had braided my hair the night before, so I didn't have to worry about messing with that (I have temperamental hair).  We were on the busses by 3:45, and I hung out with him in the bleachers at the finish until about 5:00, then headed to the corrals for the 5:30 start.  Luckily I found some people to talk to most of the time, so it went by fairly quickly.  I do wish I'd gotten their names, or at least bib numbers, but they were very nice!  I was in Corral E, so I had a fair bit of time to wait since there were about 10 minutes in between corrals.  When we walked up to the start line, we were joking about how someone probably already finished.  I said it probably wouldn't be for another 10 minutes or so, since the first people usually come in around 45 minutes.  Not two minutes later, Ray texted me "First person just finished, 34:34" so there went that theory!  I was amazed.  That such a fast, unimaginable time to me!

Anyway, we got to watch the fireworks (which I have a video of but it won't upload) and then we were off!  

I ran for 8 minutes straight so I was happy about that!  And I'm pretty sure I only took about 5 extra walk break minutes, which means that overall I only took about 1 extra walk break, since I skipped 4 in the beginning.  After the White Rabbit I decided that I felt great running, and as much as I really wanted to get pictures with characters, I chose to just get pictures of them instead.  I also didn't want a repeat of ToT where I was racing the pacers.  Overall, this was a super super super amazing race.  According to my Garmin, I went 6.44 miles in 1:33, a 14:26 pace.  For some reason it shows that I was moving the whole time, even though I know I wasn't, but oh well!  I never expected a PR, but I'm happy that my time wasn't too off from my normal 10k time.  I would run this race again in a heartbeat if I had the chance, but from here I'm going to let the pictures do the talking.  I believe they're all in order so you can figure out what happens when!  You can click on most of the pictures to make them bigger.  (The random other person is the wonderful lady who gave me my medal!)




























Did you run the 10k? What did you think?

Lauren