I get by with a little help from my friends.....

Mmm, I'm gonna try with a little help from my friends....

I begin this post on a day that has had so much encouragement.....

and it all happened before 8am!

I can't tell you a time that I have experienced that much awesomeness before getting out of bed!
No really, I shouldn't.

Today, I realized that the one thing I truly was missing from all of my past training in 2012

was someone to train with.

I did my training for my very first half marathon along with someone who I enjoyed running with...

and who helped me to keep up with what OUR goals were, 

not just my own goals, because we would set them together.

This time, I have a goal set...a personal goal...that I happen to share with several others!! 

Now understand I am running all by myself in location, but I am truly training along with my friends!

I am grateful to get those early morning texts from people who are doing exactly what I'm getting up to do.

I feel more and more encouraged to get out of bed.

I feel more and more encouraging of the people who are accomplishing their goals.

While running alone is fun....for the feeling of solitude....I truly think that running along with someone is important for reaching a little further within to challenge yourself to do better.

I found myself running alone at the Full Marathon in January for a few miles.  

Those few miles were probably the hardest miles of my life.

I had no one to encourage me to not walk....

and I had no one to encourage to push harder themselves.

It was only for a few miles,

but I'm grateful that I had them to really see that running "with" someone is better all around.
I started the race off with some of the very people who I'm training with now,
but I lost them at mile 3- as I got lost in the bathroom!
I ended up losing myself in my run for the greater part of mile 3 until about mile 13...
perhaps it was the fact that I was running thru The Magic Kingdom,
perhaps it was because I did get to see some of my cheering squad rooting for me and for that brief moment- I wasn't alone.
I departed The Magic Kingdom...
then it got hot...
then I started walking, cause I was ALL alone.
**Insert sounds of the worlds tiniest violin here**
It was a very difficult place to be alone,
thru the Speedway-on the race track,
thru the area that smells the worst on Disney property
(this would've been a perfect place to have someone there with me..as we could have made jokes at least),
then thru Animal Kingdom.
I finally managed to catch up to some friends that started a few corrals behind me.
Yes, they passed me at some point...
What can I say, I was walking.
I ran/walked with them from mile 13 until 23!!!
The day progressively got hotter...
but I had someone there to encourage me,
and me to encourage them!
(It didn't hurt that they had their own cheering squad that had snacks and cold water!
Sometimes the cheering squad is the most important aspect of a run...but I'll go into that on another post.)
Being with them gave me the strength to say..."I gotta FINISH this!"
I ran for the next 2 miles by myself,
only to run into my team cheering squad once again!
Another teammate was around the bend...
I caught up to him, finished his beer...
and we FINISHED the Marathon together!!!!
I couldn't have done it without everyone there!

So I decided that this was going to be a year of establishing relationships with some amazing people!
Each of these AWESOME people are taking on their own challenges for running...
some as crazy as I am doing the Dopey Challenge,
some not going as nuts, but are still training HARD!!

While we are all on a mission to help raise money for our cause,
we are also on a mission to make sure we hold each other accountable.
Whether coaching each other along, or just plain comparing war stories from our latest week...
we're all in it together!
You know you just wanted to sing the High School Musical song!!

I'm grateful for each and every one of you who are with me on this challenge!

Thank you from the bottom of my SUNSHINE heart!!

Destination unknown...

So I think I'm going to try to write a little bit each day I run and publish once a week.

Wednesday, May 1, 2013- 8:00 am
Today was day 1 of the official training schedule.
Woke up very early, yes, 8 am is very early for me right now.  I know it will get a lot easier each day I get up, but today was just very hard.  I got my running gear on and proceeded to the treadmill.
The treadmill is currently set up on the back patio of our apartment.  It's screened in & shady.

Mind you, I did not have my coffee, and I only had a little bit of water.  I don't generally like to have anything in the tummy when running.  I get side stitches, very bad side stitches.

"Coach" told me to run a steady pace 30 seconds per mile slower than my normal pace.
So I did.
3.15 miles in 32:45-  Average pace: 10:24

Back to H.E.W tonight.
Hard Exercise Works is the name and CrossFit is it's game.
It was a brutally awesome workout.  Happy to be back in the swing.


10-9-8...3-2-1:
-Bar Muscle Ups (2x’s Chest to Bar Pull Ups)
-Push Ups
-Wall Walks
-Rollouts

I completed the workout in 30 minutes...hard work!
Only thing that slowed me down was the rip on my hand!
She's a beauty!

Thursday, May 2, 2013- 8:00 am

Today was a VERY hard one for me.  Hard to wake up, hard to get out of bed, hard to get motivated.
Set the alarm for 7:30 again...couldn't seem to get the eyes to open.
I texted "Coach" and told him I couldn't get up...He told me to get my tush in gear~ so I did.
No coffee, no water, no breakfast again.
Stretched and spilled water everywhere including the treadmill got onto the treadmill.
One thing I am grateful for is a running option for rainy days.

I ended up shooting another text to "Coach" saying how difficult this run really was.
I was slow, fast, looking at the watch, saying to myself "Is this over yet?"
I felt every tiny pain that could make me complain.
And I was TIRED!
"Coach" encouraged me to keep moving forward, and get over the feelings I was having.
I kept staring at his text.  "Push through it"
His encouragement took me another .6 miles...then, I gave up.
A grand total of 1.6 miles in 16 minutes.
I just stopped.
I became frustrated with myself, but I had to stop in order to avoid a stupid careless injury.

Thank goodness for "Coach"...
He reminded me that bad days happen...
ALL THE TIME.
And that's the truth.
The more I process these "bad days" with some grace, perhaps they will become less frequent.
I have to choose to learn something from this bad day.
What I've learned so far, is how much I hate running right after waking up.

For the runs in Disney, while they are very early wake up calls & early morning runs...
Because I'm awake for several hours before I actually run, I feel ok about it.
I'm not as tired as a normal rainy day.
The adrenaline is pumping those mornings so I'm no where near tired!

As much as I don't want to, I may need to actually wake up dare I say earlier.
I might need the time to let my body wake up before jumping into running.
The question is...how?
I've always been an evening runner.
I've never had to wake up early to get a run in before going to work.
I feel my best when I run after I've been awake for a while.
I know it's time for a change, but again I ask, HOW?

Perhaps changing it up and heading to the gym in the morning, then running will help my body to wake up.
Guess we shall see.

No HEW tonight...
Tonight my body was telling me I needed rest.  So I graciously took it.

Took advantage of the Friday "Rest Day" scheduled.
No run, no morning workout.
Will be hitting the pavement for about 5 miles on Saturday.
Looking forward to it.

Until then....

Dare I start all over again??

Here I sit...

Once again, in front of my Blogger account....

Wondering if I am able to 100% commit to blogging about my running.

I question myself and my ability to complete this task,

as I have proven in the past that I am quite the slacker.

I read back through this blog, and it took me back-

ALL THE WAY TO 2010!!

hahahahah

Hard to believe that I was actually wise enough to blog about where it all began....

Alas, here we go again.

I decided on a whim that I wanted to run...not just run,

run long distances in my favorite place in the world.

I've since decided to take on what most would call crazy.

Call me what you will, but I truly have found something I love to do.

The feeling that comes along with accomplishing goals so big,

 is like nothing you will ever really understand,

unless you are a runner.

These challenges have brought me to a better understanding of myself.

How?  I'm not sure.

But I continue to want more.  Maybe it's because of the metals??

I failed to write about much of my last few races, actually, if any at all.

Before I go into what the new challenge is, you must understand a little of what went on the last year.

After completing Disney's Princess Half Marathon in 2011 & 2012, I went on to complete:

~ Disney's Tower of Terror 10 Miler- September 2012

~Disney's Wine & Dine Half Marathon- November 2012

~ Disney's Goofy Challenge (this was the big one) - January 2013

~ Seaside School Half Marathon - March 2013

Each race I became a little less prepared- perhaps a little cocky with myself.

I did little training, ended up getting worse with my times, overall consistently getting slower.

Also had a harder time recovering afterward, and had a significant amount of knee pain- NOT GOOD.

Princess Half Marathon 2011 was my fastest race-  I was prepared, I trained (semi-regularly)....

Half Marathon finish time- 2:37:12- Pace: 11:59.51

Princess Half Marathon 2012, not so prepared, not a lot of training-

 -and here is where the cockiness makes it's first appearance.

Half Marathon finish time- 2:38:14- Pace: 12:04

I finished this race 58 seconds from my personal record!!

**Does an "I'm awesome" dance**

I decide to register for the Disney races throughout the rest of the year....

And then proceeded to not train very much for any of them.

The product- a slower Jilly Sunshine.

~Tower 10 miler finish time-  2:08:19- Pace: 12:50

~Wine & Dine Half Marathon finish time-  2:39:58- Pace: 12:12

An even slower Jilly Sunshine made her appearance when it came time for the Goofy Challenge.

The Goofy Challenge, in case you don't know, is a 2 day 2 race challenge, covering 39.3 miles over the weekend.  That's a lot of miles.  Half marathon on Saturday and a full on Sunday.

The training for such a race distance should be that of, at the very least, running 3+ days a week.

I was not running near that....it was something like 1 day a week- 1 mile or so each time.

That is not anywhere NEAR the amount of miles I needed to prepare myself for 39.3 miles.

However, I was convinced I would be able to complete it.

And I did.

~Disney's Half Marathon finish time- 2:57:11- Pace 13:31

~Disney's Full Marathon finish time- 7:06:33- Pace 16:16

Now keep in mind, this was my very first full marathon, not to mention double races in one weekend.

I had no idea what to expect, but that should have made me want to train more.

What I got was an inability to walk for several days following the race weekend.

I followed up the races with a gym membership...5 days a week...for 5 weeks,

working a variety of skills, building my strength more than I could ever know.

Scheduled to run one more half marathon in March, only after joining the gym.

I ran that race with my friend who recently became a mom, and was unable to train as much as she wanted.

I became her coach, guiding her along before and during the race.  

I managed to convince her that I knew what I was doing...and I did...I just didn't practice it. 

I was doing only the gym.  There was no running in my training schedule.

~Seaside School Half Marathon finish time: 2:53:??  Pace: 13:21

After this race, I felt great!!  I was able to walk, I wasn't exhausted, and mentally I was thrilled to no end!

I have attributed the way I felt afterwards to the physical training my body was experiencing.

I took a month off from the gym, only to miss it like crazy.

It was a good thing that I decided to take the break, because as it goes, 

I start training tomorrow for the Dopey Challenge.

I know what you are thinking...

What?  Why?  How?  Is she NUTS?!?!?

My friends, let me explain...

My mind is in a better place this time.  I am ready and prepared for what is in store.

What's in store is 4 races over 4 days totaling to 48.6 miles,

and 8 months of training.

Yes, I said 8 months!  

Can she keep to it?  Can she stop being so lazy all the time?  Can she keep us updated on her progress?

Well, that's the goal.

Tomorrow it begins.

5 days a week at the gym in addition to 5 days a week running.

I'll be starting small with the distance running.

I've done a few pre-training training runs...both being only 3 miles.

I've felt great and accomplished after each.

I'm aiming to really focus on myself this year...as selfish as it sounds.

I'll be eating better, training harder, feeling amazing, and making sure all I have to offer is genuine.

This year will truly be the opportunity of a lifetime...

You are only 31 once!

So, let me finish by saying...I hope you will stick with me and my progress this year.

I hope to document this journey as best I can...and hope I stick with myself as well.

I believe in this opportunity- and can't wait to see what the future of it holds!!

Dopey Challenge Training- week 1

Miles so far: 6

Average pace: 9:44