Disney Marathon Weekend: The Half Marathon

This post is part two of my recap of the 2019 Walt Disney World Marathon weekend, for which I headed to Florida with my friends Mike, Jennie, and Jude. To read part one of the recap, which is about our first day in the parks and the race expo, click here.

Like every RunDisney event, the 2019 Half Marathon started with an early morning. A 5:30 a.m. race start meant a 3 a.m. alarm, and as much as I love RunDisney, I certainly do not love the early mornings that they require. But they are a necessary evil, made worth it by the fun that is to be had. We planned to be on the bus by 3:30, when the race guide suggested runners be on their way by.

We had set our outfits and race bags up the night before, so it was thought free preparations in morning, that way we wouldn’t forget any race day essentials. We did the best we could to get ready quietly (and if you know me, you KNOW this is not a skill I possess), and were out the door about 15 minutes before the 3:30 cutoff. It was a little chilly the morning of the race, but nothing compared to the freezing temperatures that runners dealt with during the 2017 marathon weekend. Mike brought along an old sweatshirt as a throwaway later, and I had a heat sheet stored in the bag I was planning to check, for when I had to remove my jacket.

It was a quick walk to the bus stop, and lucky for us we were able to get right onto the bus without a wait. I dozed in my seat as the bus took us to the Epcot parking lot, where we would start our 13.1 mile journey.

As is standard at any RunDisney event, there was a sea of runners dressed up as various Disney characters as we stepped off the bus, and we joined the masses as they made their way towards the start area. Walking through the parking lot we got a quick peek at spaceship earth, illuminated in the pre-dawn hours, and a reminder of the sight we would see just before the finish line. Both Mike and I had bags that we were planning to check, so we had to wait to have them scanned by security before we could enter the area, but the very populated line moved along quickly. When we got into the race staging area, we headed towards the DJ setup, and found a spot behind the bleachers to plop ourselves while we ate our breakfast. We had picked up the runner boxes that all star movies was selling, so we had bagels to eat from there, and I had brought along a Kind Breakfast Bar as well. Once we were finished eating, I organized the stuff in my bag into two piles - the stuff that I would need during the race, and the stuff that I was going to check during the race. I threw my jacket into the check bag, and although it wasn’t too cold, opted to bring the heat sheet I had packed into the corral with me.

We headed towards the bag check, and the green army man was stationed in front of the bag check trucks to encourage the runners to start moving towards their corrals. In previous years, bag check was in large white tents, but this time they had Fed-Ex trucks in place to collect our belongings. Mike and I had to split up, since our last names were assigned to different trucks, but were quickly reunited on the other side. We decided to make a porter potty stop before we headed to the corrals, and it was very dark in those toilets! Since it was still dark out, there was no sun to illuminate into the porter potties, and the parking lot light poles weren’t quite illuminating things enough.

Next step was to make our way into the corrals, and it was about a mile walk to get there. They had a DJ along the way, and photo pass photographers to take photos for anyone that wanted to stop and pose. We still had some time before the race when we got to the corral, so we found a spot that wasn’t too close to the speakers, and started stretching while we waited. Mike found a highschool friend in the same corral to us, and had a quick reunion as we waited. We made sure to each take a Gu before we got going, and I took a precautionary inhaler puff. Soon enough the announcers had Donald on the stage, and the countdown was on to the start time. Since we were in corral D, we got to watch a few sets of fireworks go off as the corrals ahead of us got moving.

At last, it was our turn to start, and with a Disney amount of excitement and fanfare, we crossed the start line as fireworks went off. Jennie and Jude were our official cheer squad for the day, and shortly after we had left for the start area, they got up and made their way to the start line, which would be the first of their four planned cheer spots. We texted them as we started, and Mike had the bright idea to shine his cell phone flash towards the spectators, who were across the street from the runners, so they would be able to spot us, and when we saw two people jumping up and down with excitement, we knew they had spotted us. As we ran towards magic kingdom, they hopped on a monorail to head towards the ticket and transportation center.

For me, the highlight of the first leg of the run, which consists of the highway between the start and magic kingdom, is getting to run under the Magic Kingdom entrance sign. There is just something magical about getting up close and personal to a sign that normally you only get to drive under, especially in the dark, it just looks magical!

There were a few characters on the highway as we made our way towards Magic Kingdom, including Lightening McQueen and Mater, some leading villains - the Evil Queen, Maleficent, and the Queen of hearts, and Wreck it Ralph with Vanellope. They also had a DJ, and a few High School bands playing to keep us entertained along the way. Soon enough we had reached the ticket and transportation center, where Jennie and Jude were waiting to cheer us on. We managed to spot them quick enough, and ran in for quick hugs before we were on our way. They were planning to walk over to the Polynesian, while we made our way into the Magic Kingdom. The next time we saw them we would be more than half way through our journey!

The bus stops were all lit up as we ran through the station, and they had big blow up lights set up to lead us into the Magic Kingdom through the main entrance. We had managed to make it to the park before the sun came up, so when we got to main street we could see the castle beautifully lit up in the distance, still covered in its holiday lights. Mike played to the cheering spectators that lined the road, interacting with their signs and even hitting a power up boost that one held and zooming off.

We then entered tomorrow land, where they had Mike with Sully and a Buzz Lightyear character stop. We decided not to get photos, and kept moving instead. The white rabbit was out neat the tea cups, and the evil step sisters held their usual spot just before the castle. We ran through the castle, and then stopped to get our photo taken in front - and to our dismay, that castle photo never did make its way into our race photos.

From there the course took us though liberty square and into frontier land, where we made a pit stop to get a photo with Woody and Bullseye, since they are Jude’s favorite characters, and we wanted to get a photo taken to show him. Then as quickly as it had begun, our time in Magic Kingdom came to an end, as we left the park through a back stage exit, and got to run by some festival of fantasy parade floats on our way out.

The park exit lead us to cone alley, a stretch of highway known for squeezing runners into a more narrow than preferred run way. At one point Mike and I both got a chill as the air froze momentarily, a event that is still a mystery to both of us. We sang along to the disney and pop songs that they had playing, as the sun finally began to climb into the sky.

As we got to the resorts that are nearby, they had Chip and Dale out with Clarice, and a group of Grooms near the grand Floridian. Just after mile 7 we approached the Polynesian, and spotted our cheer squad once more. We couldn’t believe how fast the miles were slipping by. For our second strech of highway, we passed by Mr. Incredible, and then after passing mile marker 9, which featured a photo of Anna and Elsa and played let it go, Mike serenaded me with his own rendition of Let it Go.

Mile 10 had a highway ramp that the green army man was positioned on, and as we ran by he shouted to Mike - “Keep going Lilo, you have me in stitches!” and Mike was very happy that he had recognized his costume. In what felt like the blink of an eye, we were entering Epcot, and stopped for a photo with Doug, Carl, and Russell from “Up” as we headed in. There was a DJ playing as we entered the park near the imagination pavilion, running by Journey into the Imagination, then onto Space Ship earth. Just a few more turns, and less than a half mile, and our race would be finished.

They had a gospel choir out singing as we approached mile 13, which of course featured Donald Duck, and then we turned the corner and could see our destination: The finish line! We crossed it with joy, and collected our metals - Mike was officially a half marathoner. We walked through the finish line chute, collecting cooling towels, power-aide, and of course, the coveted runDisney snack box.

After getting our finishers photos and collecting our bags, we found Jude and Jennie in the parking lot - they had made it there in time to watch us cross the finish line, even though Mike and I had not successfully spotted them as we ran through.

After hanging out in the Epcot parking lot for a few minutes, we headed into the park to get on a few rides, since Epcot was just opening for the day, and the lines would be relatively short. We managed to get on the Frozen ride, and soarin, then grabbed breakfast before hitting a few more rides. We had fastpasses in Hollywood Studios in the afternoon, so eventually we boarded the bus that would take us back to the resort for showers and naps, and after resting up for a bit, made our way into Hollywood Studios for another day of fun, and to celebrate completing the race.

After we had finished off all of our fastpasses I decided to head back to the room before everyone else, as I was pooped from a busy day, and had a big day ahead of me - my 5th marathon, and day 2 of the Goofy Challenge!

Disney Marathon Weekend: Expo Day

By the time our alarms went off on Friday morning, Jennie had managed to join us in the hotel room, without waking anyone up - I guess we were all exhausted from travelling the day before. There were extra magic hours at the Magic Kingdom that morning, so we planned to start our day there, then head over the the expo, followed by a visit to Animal Kingdom. We only had two park days, so we wanted to make sure we made the most of our park time.

By the time everyone was ready to move it was almost 8:00, when the park was set to open, so we opted to call a Lyft instead of waiting for the bus - not something I usually do in Disney, but like I said before, it was a short trip. Standard Lyfts can’t drop off directly at the Magic Kingdom, so the driver took us to the ticket and transportation center, where we were able to hop on a monorail, that brought us to the park. A big benefit of arriving through the ticket and transportation center was we got to go through security there, where the line was much shorter than it is at the main park entrance.

Once we got into the Magic Kingdom and were scanned in for extra magic hours, we decided to make our way to seven dwarfs mine train, as Jude and Mike had never been on that ride. The posted wait time was 45 minutes, but luckily it was actually closer to a 20 minute wait. After the ride we headed over to tomorrow land, where we rode Space Mountain and Buzz Lightyears Space Ranger Spin. They were handing out stitch stickers as we entered the second ride, which Mike was particularly happy about, as Stitch is his favorite character. We had time for one more ride before breakfast, and since we were eating at Be Our Guest we decided to go on The Little Mermaid ride, since it was right next door.

Breakfast at Be Our Guest was wonderful, as always - there is good reason that I always make a stop there during my Disney trips! We checked in with the hostess, and were lead into the restaurant shortly after. We hadn’t pre-ordered our meals, so there was a bit of a wait to place our orders, but once we made it through that we were seated in the main ball room, and given our tray of pastries while we waited for our breakfast. The restaurant uses RFID technology associated with magicbands to know where you are seated, and soon enough our food had made its way to us. Mike and I both couldn’t choose between the open faced bacon and egg sandwich and the Croque Madame, so we each ordered one and split them. Both were delicious, but I think I preferred the bacon and egg sandwich just a tad more. I also made sure to have some of the pastries that they brought to the table - you have to carb up in the days leading up to a marathon, right?! Jude and I also made sure to remind Mike to drink lots of water, so he would be well hydrated for his first half the following day. Of course, the meal was finished off with a “Master’s Cupcake,” which is topped with the famous “grey stuff.”

After breakfast we made it onto The Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean, and then met up with my sister-in-law Liz, and her Boyfriend Bobby. Bobby works for disney, and Liz was in Florida visiting him during her school break, so I was happy we were able to find a little time to hang out. We wandered around magic kingdom a bit, taking in the sights, and eventually made our way over to the Dumbo ride, and then the people mover. Our last order of business before saying goodbye to the magic kingdom was a character meet and greet - Stitch! Since he is Mike’s favorite character and we had no way of knowing if he would be out on the half course, we wanted to make sure to pay him a visit at least one. It was a very fun character interaction, and we all left the park with smiles on our faces.

We parted ways with Liz and Bobby, and walked over to the contemporary to catch a bus to the expo. We got lucky, and one was off loading runners just as we got to the bus stop. I was excited to get to the expo, even though we didn’t spend as much time there as I usually like to. Our first stop was the RunDisney merch, since that building was closest to where we got dropped off. When we walked in they were offering free airbrush tattoos, so we all decided to get one. Minnie for me, Stitch for Mike, Mickey for Jude, and the Castle for Jennie. They came out super cute, and I loved that it lasted all weekend.

Then it was on to the merchandise - I tried to limit myself in how much I was buying, since I already own about 10 RunDisney jackets, and had purchased the pre-order jacket (did that make me want the mint green half-marathon jacket any less? No. But I somehow managed to resist the purchase). In addition to the pre-order jacket, I had pre-ordered the annual passholder pin. My other souvenirs included 2 wine glasses, a pint glass, the tervis water bottle (they had all of the distances written on them, and the cutest Mickey - I couldn’t resist!), two pins - the replica marathon medal and the goofy challenge event pin, and a tank top commemorating the marathon. I really loved the dooney and burke bag that they were offering, but couldn’t bring myself to spend so much money on a purse. Once we had finished our shopping, we made a quick stop for pretzels - fueling is key - and then Mike and Jennie watched with jealousy as Jude and I lived our best lives, enjoying every moment of our pretzels and their dipping sauces.

Since our priorities were in order and we had taken care of food needs, the next step was to get our race bibs… you know, the whole reason we had come to Florida and all. While I had thought about printing out the waivers at home, I had completely forgotten to actually get it done, so we had to print them out before going into bib pickup. Thankfully, RunDisney has plenty of printers set up as you enter the expo for this reason, and since we were at the expo on its third day, there wasn’t much of a wait to print.

Waivers in hand we headed onto the main floor, and it was quick work to pick up our bibs. I had to take the traditional RunDisney mug shot, since I was running the Goofy Challenge. They always take your photo that way they can confirm that the same person is running both events, to ensure that the challenge medals are really earned. We snapped a few photos, and then headed to get our race shirts. We had fastpasses, so we didn’t have too much time to check out the vendors, but I made sure to stop by the ProCompression booth, and to pick up some GoGoSqueeze, which they always hand out at the expo.

The next plan was to head to animal kingdom, but as we went to leave the expo I remembered that the parks don’t let you bring glass ware in, and I had purchased a few pieces at the expo. So, I took everyone’s expo spoils, and sent them along to the park while I headed back to the hotel to drop everything off. I took a Lyft back to the room, and there was a bit of traffic leaving the expo, but soon enough I was back at All-Star Movies, and got lucky with bus times - right as I got to the bus stop a Animal Kingdom bus pulled up, and I wound up being the only one taking a ride. I got to the park just as they were getting off Dinosaur, so I met them in dinorama area. We had a fastpass for Avatar Flight of passage, so we headed over to Pandora next. It was necessary to make a stop at Pongu Pongu to get drinks - non-alcoholic for me, as I try not to drink in the days leading up to a marathon, but I looked on enviously while Jennie enjoyed her night blossom. We took another cross-park journey for our next fast pass, this time heading to expedition everest. This was the first time Mike and Jude had ever ridden at night, and I could hear Mike’s exclamations though out the ride, and I couldn’t help but to laugh with joy as we all enjoyed the ride together.

By the time we got off of everest, we had about 45 minutes until park closing. So, we pulled up the disney app to check out wait times, and decided we were going to try to get onto primevil whirl and then nav’i river journey. We were closer to dino land so we headed there first, and had a quick wait to get on the ride. By the time we were done it was a quick walk over to pandora, and I may have scared Mike into skipping a bathroom stop for fear of not getting into the queue before the park closed - but we made it, entering at 7:59 when there was an 8:00 closing time. Lucky for us, it was a quick wait, about 15 minutes total from entering the queue to getting on the ride - very much worth the hustle. We made a quick bathroom stop before heading to the buses, and making our way back to the hotel.

When we got back to all star movies we headed to the food court for dinner, where I went for some pasta and an uncrustables sandwich, I also picked up a runners box for the next morning. The food court had a decent selection of options for runners, but I would have loved to see a build your own pasta station, as some of the resorts offer on race weekends.

Then it was time to head back to the room, and set ourselves up for the next morning’s half marathon.

Kelly’s Goofy Plan: Week 14

Race week was finally upon us: I just had to get through 4 days of work, and then I got to hop on a plane and head to Florida for Walt Disney World’s Marathon Weekend!

I had a busy week, so I decided to focus on packing on Monday that way I could make a list of any last minute purchases that needed to be made. The hardest part? Trying to decide what I was going to wear for the marathon! I had already decided to make a Minnie Mouse outfit for the half, but knowing that Florida weather is tricky this time of year, I was stumped when trying to pick something for the full. Eventually I settled on a tank top and shorts - the “Will run for Mickey shaped food" one, with a few extra layers packed in case things got cold.

On Tuesday morning I got myself on the bike trainer, and rode 10 miles. I was finding myself nervous about each workout as race day approached, worrying that I was overdoing it. But I reminded myself that this cycle had gone well- so much better than the one leading up to wineglass. And I was strong, and not going to hurt myself with a bike ride.

Tuesday night was my last run before the race day, and there was an easy track night on my schedule. Emily agreed to head to planet fitness with me, and we even managed to find treadmills near each other - nothing short of a miracle this close to the new year. And wouldn’t you know it- Mike showed up and hopped on another treadmill near by. I was excited to see him still working hard in the days leading up to his first half. When he got to the gym I was in the middle of an intense (for me) pace, and almost flew off the back of the treadmill when I tried to turn my head to look for Mike. So, I waited until the interval was over before looking around for him while at a slower, safer, pace, and saw that he was just a few treadmills down.

As for me, my plan was for a total of six miles - 2 mile warmup, 1x1200, 1x800, 1x1200, and then a cooldown. The paces weren’t too aggressive, but the 1200s felt long. I was red faced and sweaty when I hit the cooldown, and happy to have gotten through this last night run before the race.

Wednesday I spent making sure I was VERY hydrated, drinking waterbottles full of nuun all day. After work I took a quick trip to target with Emily to pick up all of me last minute Disney trip needs. I finished up packing and got all my bags in line, only one day of work left!

At long last it was Thursday, and a full plate at work meant the day flew by when I expected it to drag. It was a little of a frenzy getting home on time to leave for the flight, and before I knew it Mike and Jude arrived with Mike’s parents, who were giving us a ride to the airport. We were flying out of MacArthur Airport, AKA the best airport on Long Island. Its further east on the island, and much smaller than the airports near New York City. It makes for a much lower stress start to a vacation, and an easier airport drop off. Liz and Mike Sr. were able to drop us off right next to check in, without having to fight standard airport traffic. We said goodbye, and headed into the airport.

We got there with plenty of time to grab food before boarding out flight, and excitedly discussed our DIsney plans. Jennie works in Manhattan, so she was going right from work to JFK, and had a little less luck than us with - as she sat in the airport delays were slapped onto her flight. As Mike, Jude and I climbed onto the plane, Jennie was still waiting to see when she would take off. It was seeming like she would be leaving NY as we landed in Florida. We managed to get three seats in a row on our very full flight, and even got overhead baggage space. Once we were in the air, I pulled up the media that southwest offers on my iPad, and selected Jurassic Park: Fallen Kingdom, as I hadn’t seen it yet. As the flight came to a close, I found myself tapping the screen to see how many minutes were left in the movie, nervous that I was going to miss the end of the film. But, I managed to just squeak through the ending as the plane landed. We were officially in Florida, and I was ready for the magic to begin!

Once we were off the plane we grabbed our checked bag, and headed for the magical express. It was Mike and Jude’s first time with magic bands, so I got Mike to scan us in, and after a quick reservation look up, we were on our way to the all-star Music resort. I had called the resort earlier that day and requested one of the newly renovated rooms, and for just $5 a night they were able to upgrade us to a preferred room, which was renovated. This was especially nice because it meant we were in the building closest to the main hall, which I knew I would appreciate with all of the running and early mornings I had ahead of me that weekend. We settled into our room, and set our alarms for the next morning - the plan was to head to the magic kingdom for extra magic hours to start our trip off on the right foot.

Kelly’s Goofy Plan: Week 13

The last Monday and the last day of the year -December 31. I took a rest day to start the week, cleaning up the apartment and doing some last minute errands to prepare for company on New Year’s Eve.

We rang in the new year with family and friends, and Tuesday was a little bittersweet, knowing that we had to return to work on Wednesday. After a long day of relaxing, I got out for a run just as the sun was starting to set. It was windy, but I just wanted to get a few miles in to start the year off on the right foot.

I brought my headphones along, but as I tried to find a groove with the music I realized it was the kind of run that called for me to unplug. I turned the music off, and listened to the sounds of the neighborhood, and three miles slipped away, with a little push at the end.

I didn’t sleep well Tuesday night, and it thwarted my plans for a trainer ride on Wednesday morning. I was hardly able to drag myself out of bed in time for work, let alone to get anything done before that. But after work I made plans with Sophie and Emily to head to the gym- having a plan with them keeps me accountable.

Once we were all home and about ready to get moving, we of course gave each other excuses, but blew through them and agreed to meet anyway. We even managed to find three treadmills near each other, and got to work.

I had a speed workout planned, as is my usual approach to treadmills. A two mile warmup, then 6x200 @ 6:58, 2 miles at 8:57, and a final repeat of the 6x200 set.

I actually felt good this time around, and hitting the numbers happened without feeling like I was going to die- even if I did feel like I may fly off the back of the treadmill a few times. At the end of the workout I had gotten 9 miles done, and was thankful that Emily and Sophie had kept me accountable.

On Thursday I had bike trainer plans for the morning. I was hoping to get Day one for the “tour de zwift” event done, but didn’t realize that I had to log on at a specific time to participate- a rookie zwift mistake. But it was the first event that I ever tried to participate in, so I didn’t know any better. Since the first stage wasn’t available, I did an FTP test instead, since I hadn’t don’t one since April. It was challenging, but I was happy to get it done. That night was a lot of running around and packing for my family’s annual trip to woodloch, so nothing was accomplished fitness wise- but I did find a little time to work on my costume for the Disney half marathon!

On Friday my family was heading to woodloch just before lunchtime, so Kasey and I agreed to meet up at 8 for a long run. I planned to do 12 miles, but once I met up with Kasey- who had overslept for the first time ever- she informed me that we were leaving 30 minutes earlier than I thought, so I had to cut the mileage down to just a bit over 8 to get it done and have time to shower and get ready for the ride.

The weather was nice, and we covered a lot of ground on our run. I was overdressed, as usual, with a too heavy jacket - maybe one day I won’t be scared by temperatures that are below 30. We both agreed that our legs felt heavy, but we somehow trudged forward at sub 10 minute paces, the miles getting away from us as the time we had remaining to dedicate to the run dwindled. Eventually we parted ways so Kasey could run home and I could head back to the apartment.

An hour later, we were on the road and headed to Pennsylvania. Woodloch Pines is a resort that was founded in 1958, and can most easily be described as a cruise on land. Lots of food, activities, and shows over the course of a weekend. My family has been going there since I was a little kid, our numbers growing over the years. This year we were heading there earlier than we normally do, to accommodate my cousins that are now in college, so that they don’t have to travel home an extra weekend.

We started the weekend with a trip to the Go Karts - there were nine of us wanting to ride, and six cars. So a few of us doubled up, which was simpler when we were all tinier. Kasey and I wedged ourselves into a car, and I only thought I was going to die a few times as we whipped around corners - so basically it was the same as driving with her normally.  We still had some time to kill before dinner, so we headed over to the main lodge after go karts and played some pool and ping pong with Dennis, my brother, and a few of our other cousins.

After dinner we headed to the traditional horse race- which uses giant chess horses and dice, and cheered for our favorites to win the races.

The next morning after breakfast, Sophie Kasey and I headed to the gym to get in some miles on the treadmill. I would have liked to go outside, but it was raining so the treadmill was a better option.

My plan told me to get in a “threshold” run, which consisted of a two mile warmup, and then 10 minute intervals swapping between a 8:58 and a 9:17 pace. I got through the warmup easily enough, but the air circulation was lacking in the tiny hotel gym. The paces weren’t hard but the temperature in the room ensured that I was a puddle of sweat as I slogged through the miles. Kasey and Sophie headed out after three, so misery had no company in the second half of my run. But I kept going, and soon enough I was able to slow the pace for a quick cooldown, before ending my run with a total of 7 miles. Then it was on to another meal, and another busy day at woodloch- this time a home run derby, and a variety show.

The big event on Saturday at woodloch - which is an almost annual event for my family - is the big dress up night. The lead up to this goes something like, Kasey asks me what I am wearing, I tell her what I think I may wear, and then i change my mind last minute anyway. It was a bit of a frustrating day, but it felt good to put my best foot forward and try to enjoy the night.

Sunday we enjoyed our last meals at woodloch, and then headed home. I was exhausted from a busy weekend, and very happy to see the kitties when we got home.

With only 4 days to go before I head to Florida, I have quite a bit of packing to do, but not a lot of training left before the marathon- just a few more miles to go before the big day!

Kelly’s Goofy Plan: Week 12

Week 12 started off different than every other week in this cycle: with a long run, on a Monday!

My office was closed for the holiday, and since I had family in town over the weekend, it made the most sense for me to complete a simulated goofy challenge between Sunday and Monday, running 13 miles Sunday and then 18 Monday.

I let myself sleep in a little bit that morning, and got moving around 10 am. It was drizzling a little when I started running, but the temperature wasn’t bad so it was manageable. I threw on a hat to keep the rain out of my face and got moving.

A few miles solo to get to Kasey’s house, and then we set out together. I left my fuel at her parents house, so we dipped by after mile 4 to grab a Gu and some water. Kasey was a bit unhappy with me at this point, but I somehow talked her out of climbing on a bike, and she agreed to keep running- so she would total 6 miles, the longest run since she ran the Star Wars half back in April.

We headed out once more, making our task an out and back route so that Kasey wouldn’t be tempted to cut it short. The air quality wasn’t great because of the high humidity, but at least the temperature staying nice. We grabbed another sip of water when we got to the halfway point- the apartment- and then left on the last leg of Kasey’s run. I was just over 8 miles. That meant 10 miles solo were ahead of me, and I needed to get my head in it. I was feeling the 13 miles from the day before, but knew that I needed to get this run done. So, I turned on an old favorite, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and let the audio book guide me through the miles.

Every few miles I dipped into my parents house for water, grabbing fuel when necessary as well. I stopped and stretched when I needed to, took one or two quick walk breaks, but slowly but surely managed to tick away the miles.

Towards the end of the run I swapped from my audio book to some music, counting off songs as they went by. Eventually I only needed two more miles, so I could start heading in the direction of the apartment.

My watch hit 18 miles, and I made it back home into the apartment and proceeded to cough for a good ten minutes- there were still a few lingering effects of the cold I had the week before. I was a bit chilly, and rewarded myself with a nice hot shower to warm up. Goofy simulation successfully completed!

Turns out, I ran 18 miles last year on Christmas Eve too, so it seems like I am establishing somewhat of a tradition with these runs.

I took Christmas Day off so that I could focus on spending time with family, and Dennis and I celebrated our first Christmas as a married couple. Den and my family spoiled me - Den got me a R8 recovery roller, and Dad got me a pair of clip in shoes for the bike!

I sadly had to head back to work the day after Christmas, and woke up feeling congested again. I had wanted to cycle in the morning, but figured it was best to not burn the candle at both ends when I’m still not 100% - I was planning on running after work, so didn’t want to start the day exhausted.

After work Kasey and I headed to the gym when I was done with work, to hop on the treadmill. I was planning on getting in a speed workout, that would total between 10-11 miles. At first I was intimidated thinking about doing speedwork again coming off of this cold, but these were paces that I realistically knew I could run. So, I got going to see how the paces were gonna feel that day.

First, a two mile warmup. I took it easy, listening to the final episode of the not real runners podcast. Once I finished two miles, I switched gears, swapping to some fast paced music to match the speed I needed to get to. Up first was 800s, three of them at a 7:30 pace, followed by .25 mi recovery. The 7:30s were hard for me to hit, but I fought for each one of them. When I rolled into the next section of my run, a 30-minute block at an 8:56 pace, it was a relief to be able to be at a relatively easier pace. As I made my way though the miles, I worked hard to talk myself into committing to the last set of repeats, which would be another set of 800s at 7:30.

Thirty minutes flew by, and before I knew it it was time to get moving again. My headphones had died, but luckily Kasey had an extra pair on her, which she loaned me. For easy paces I love running without music, but for hard efforts it is a necessary distraction. I managed to make it though the repeats one more time, and was very relieved to be finished. I slacked a little on the cooldown, doing just enough to bring me to a round 10 miles - Dennis and Rachel were preparing soup for dinner at the apartment, and I didn’t want to keep them waiting for too long!

I will say though, my legs hated me a little for that 10 miler- I woke up super sore on Thursday morning!

Thankfully, I was able to get outside to run on Thursday, with Kasey and Sophie. The weather has warmed up a little, and while I started my run with gloves on, I really didn’t need them or the jacket I was wearing. We made our way through the neighborhood loop, and when we hit the smaller of the two inclines that Kasey insists on calling “hills,” she came to a dead stop (I use the term hill very loosely here- the usual run path has about 12 ft of elevation gain when you hit both of the hills).

I’m paraphrasing here, but she said she would die if I made her run up the hill. So, we turned instead of going straight, and made it about three houses before Kasey flopped onto a strangers lawn, where she was content being left. Not that we left her- after a few moments of croaking, we wrenched her off of the grass, and accompanied her for the half mile back to her parents house. The good news is, she lived to run another day.

Sophie and I went on for about two more miles, and when we finished the run, I realized that it had accidentally been progressive- you know it’s a good feeling run with that happens! Sophie got a garmin for Christmas, so it was fun to watch her watch show us all of the new records she had just set. I called it a night after that run, knowing that I should probably run the next morning as well, as I was going out with Den’s family for dinner on Friday night.

Friday morning I woke up to a message from ProCompression on Instagram, asking if I had received an email from the the day before- I hadn’t, but upon seeing this message I was excited enough at the idea that they may select me as an ambassador, that I found the motivation I needed to get moving, and headed to the gym to get my mileage in. It was raining, so outside wasn’t an option today.

I pulled on a bright outfit to contrast the stormy sky, and headed to LA fitness. I listened to Harry Potter 7, and trotted along for five miles. It was an uneventful morning on the treadmill. But around lunch time I received an email that I hoped to get - I was invited to become a 2019 ProCompression ambassador! I excitedly accepted, happy to be offered a spot to represent a product that I love and use on almost every run.

Saturday was full of planned activities, so I had to get out before they started- we were heading into the city with Den’s family to see the pop up exhibit for Mickey’s 90th birthday.

It was windy when I got up, but I got moving eventually. My body didn’t feel like running, but I think it was just heavy with sleep. I headed away from the apartment in the first mile, telling myself that I could quit after two miles if it really sucked. Two miles came a few blocks from the apartment, and by the time I was almost home, I was just over 2.5 miles, so I figured I may as well go for three. As you can probably guess from here, once I hit three I figured I may as well try to squeeze in the full distance, 6 miles. At mile three I ran away from the apartment for a little over a mile, and miles 4 and 5 just slipped by. At this point, I was running out of time to finish the run, as I had to leave the apartment by a specified time to get into the city on schedule, so I wound up at a total of 5.5 miles. All in all, it was a good run, despite the wind. The exhibit that we went to was fun, and had a bunch of Mickey themed photo ops - if you would like to see a video of this event, let me know with a comment below!

The final run of the week, and the last long run of my training cycle, came on Sunday. I had to run a total of 16 miles, and I recruited Mike and Sophie to share some miles with me.

I headed out around 9, and got in my first 6 miles solo, while listening to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. As I approached mile 6, I made sure my route headed towards Mike’s house. He joined in on the run, and we chatted our way though the miles as usual, this time through the roads near his house, which were a bit unfamiliar to me, so I more than once took a turn that lead us right out onto a main road.

As Mike’s miles came to an end, we swung by my parents house and picked up Sophie so she could keep me company for the last few miles, and then ran Mike home.

Sophie and I opted to run near the apartment, and were both feeling stiff as we approached the end of our miles. I hit 16 right as we approached the apartment, and then we treated ourselves to some Chinese food to celebrate a job well done.

I had to spend the rest of the day preparing to host people on New Year’s Eve, but was glad that I found time to get my miles in.

Also, this week turned out to be my highest mileage week to date - 59.5 miles!

Kelly’s Goofy Plan: Week 11

I came into week 11 with one hell of a cold, making sure I stayed on top of my asthma meds, not wanting a repeat of last years marathon weekend debacle. Usually when I have a cold I manage some small amount of mileage, but that was not happening this time around.

I managed to get on the bike once early in the week, but the difficulty level of the ride told me that my body was not ready for running. So throughout the week the most I did was some resistance band exercises, and when Thursday rolled around I attempted a morning run with Kasey.

She dragged me out of bed even earlier than usual, as she needed to get to school early for her last finals of the semester. So by 6:05 I was headed out the door, and I quickly found Kasey outside.

The air was cold and my breathing was rough, and excuse my language, but way more phlegm was a part of this run than usual. We kept the pace as easy as possible, and I managed to get through 5 miles. Kasey ran the first two with me, and at mile three I stopped by my parents house to grab water. I tried to bail on the run at that point, but dad pushed me to finish the five miles that I intended to set out for, so I went back out and made my way back to the apartment.

I considered going out for more miles on Friday, but after not feeling great on Thursday’s run I decided to rest, and save my mileage for the days ahead.

My plan for the weekend was for 13 miles on Sunday, and 18 miles on Monday.

I met up with Mike and Carson on the bethpage trail on Sunday, and we headed north to get the hills out of the way in the first half of the run. Carson only planned to run 5-6 miles with us, so we figured that we could head out a few miles and then double back, before heading south for the second half of the run.

The miles slipped away as the three of us chatted, and I honestly felt better than I had all week getting those miles in. We shared gu, found a decorated tree in the woods, and Carson’s miles were over quickly. We took a quick pit stop in the parking lot to refill my water bottle before getting moving again. Once we were heading south, we needed to get to 3.7 miles before we could turn around and head back to the car, so we would have a total of 13 miles complete.

As our miles came to a close our legs got heavy through the last few miles, and we had to fight our way up the last little hill. But we had such an amazing last long run (for mike) before Disney. Plus, it was his longest run to date! After we finished our run we exchanged Christmas gifts, and I spent the rest of the day wrapping gifts and recovering.

The week started off difficult, but I was feeling so much better by the weekend, and I’m sincerely hoping that this cold has run its course, so I can get in all my remaining miles before the Goofy Challenge!

Kelly’s Goofy Plan: Week 10

Whole week 10 started out strong, it turned into a wash when a cold derailed my training at the end of the week.

On Monday I took a total rest day, feeling wiped out after Sunday’s long run. But come Tuesday, I was ready to get moving and started my day with a zwift session. I’m working my way through the “zwift 101” training courses, so I did the 30 minute “interval” trainer, and biked about 7 miles. I even managed to squeeze in a quick bike training club core session before work.

After work I met up with Kasey and Sophie, and we ran outside near my parents house. I don’t often run at night outside, but I really enjoyed seeing all of the houses that were lit up for the holidays. It was a little bit windy, but we got through the miles nonetheless.

I managed to make it to yoga with Emily on Wednesday, doing a yin class together. Then I met up with Allison to swim, this time making it to 800 yds before calling it quits, largely because I was so hungry, and my body was calling for dinner!

I repeated my Tuesday schedule on Thursday, biking on the trainer in the morning and then running in the evening. The zwift session was called “into the red” this time, and pushed me to harder paces than the previous sessions had.

In the evening, the whole squad headed to the gym together, since sometimes it truly does take a village - Kasey, Emily, Sophie and I all clambered onto treadmills, and got going. My plan was to do a interval workout, that would total about 8 miles. I did a two mile warmup, then upped the pace to 8:06, where I would stay for two miles. It was not the kind of day where the pace came easily, and it was a mental and physical struggle to keep myself moving that fast. When I got through the first set, I seriously considered just keeping an easy pace for the rest of the run, and saying to hell with it for the second set. But after a few minutes of recovery, I had talked myself into at least trying to do the interval a second time- breaking it up into smaller blocks. I could surely make it one mile at the pace, right? So after a half mile of recovery I cranked the treadmill up again, and pushed for that 8:06 pace.

As I struggled through my paces, the guy on the treadmill next to me ran his run, coughing on me sporadically as he went. I was a bit annoyed with this, and thought to myself “why do I feel like I’m going to wind up with a cold now!?”

Welp. Spoiler alert. Totally wound up with a cold.

But- Thursday nights run went perfectly to plan. I talked myself through the second set, and got in my cooldown, running a total of 8 miles that night.

The week came to a close, and Emily and I once again headed to the gym for some more treadmill time on Friday night. I felt fatigued and a little short of breath as we went, and I had to fight for each of the five miles that I ran through. I tried to shake the feeling, but it wasn’t turning out to be a good run. I headed to dinner with Emily and Jennie after, and my throat felt more and more sore as we ate our meal. I was supposed to meet up with Tara the next morning for a long run, so I headed to bed as soon as I got home in hopes of sleeping it off.

Alas, it was not meant to be, and I did not sleep it off as I hoped to. I woke up Saturday morning feeling dehydrated, my throat so sore that it felt swollen, and congestion pounding in my head. I had to bail on the long run, and just kept sleeping- for a total of 13 hours. Which was MUCH longer than I am usually capable of sleeping on my own.

I hoped that some cold medicine would put things in check, and maybe I would be able to get some miles in later in the day or on Sunday. But it was just not in the cards for me, so I focused on trying to stay hydrated and resting, checking in with my asthma meds.

Sadly, the cold was destined to get worse before it got better, which left me with a very low mileage week. I tried not to beat myself up too much about it, hoping the the cold would at least clear up in a timely manner.

Kelly’s Goofy Plan: Week 9

Over the weekend I bought a second hand bike trainer from a friend of mine, and I was ready to take it for a spin to start Monday morning off on the right foot- and I have to admit, it was nice to roll out of bed and get moving without having to venture out into the cold weather!

I loaded up the “London” loop on Zwift, and did a basic ride with no goals. I got in 8 miles in just under a half hour, and established that I am awful at swapping bike gears. But practice makes perfect, and I’ve got all winter.

After work Sophie and I headed to emerge to take a class with Vanessa, missing Emily who was preparing for finals, and her last week of grad school! Vanessa took us through sequences that opened up our hamstrings, eventually bringing us to the wall to work on handstands. I didn’t get up into one during class, but it was still a great, challenging class.

Tuesday morning Kasey and I headed out as usual, and it was another windy morning. We headed into the second mile and I felt like Kasey was picking up the pace, so I matched her and pressed onward as we got faster- I commented after she finished her mileage that she made me work today - but apparently she thought I was the one pushing the pace, so neither of us was really sure why the little burst of speed happened. I did one more loop around my parents neighborhood before heading back to the apartment, for a total of 6 miles.

The next time I got moving was Wednesday night, when Sophie and I agreed to meet at planet fitness to get in some treadmill miles. I had a speed workout on deck- a total of nine miles. A two mile warm up, 6x200@2:48 (200 rec), 2 miles straight @ 8:47, another 6x200@2:48 (200 rec), then a two mile cooldown. It was the good kind of night, where the miles just flew by and I felt like I could just keep going forever. I hit my numbers, and Sophie managed to knock out a 7 mile run, which I was really impressed with - I mean, she’s been consistently running for less than a month! Sophie, you’re gonna give me a run for my money as you up that mileage, and we will be racing each other in no time.

Kasey was in the thick of things with college finals, so our usual Thursday morning run was cancelled, and I hopped on the bike trainer on instead. I started the “Zwift 101” program that they offer, and did a 30 minute session that was all about training zones. Non-running activities continued that day, with a swim session with Allison after work. It was the usual plan of 1,000 yards, and I was especially grateful for the pool being warm with the cold weather we had outside.

Friday morning I was flying solo, with my original intentions being a treadmill run- 5 miles. But I really just did not want to get to the gym. So I procrastinated around the apartment, until I reached a time that I would only really be able to get in five miles if I ran outside. So, I sucked it up, added a few more layers, and headed out the front door. I took it easy around the neighborhood, enjoying watching the sunrise and occasionally seeing Christmas lights, still on from the night before. I had to rush a little to get ready for work when I got back to the apartment, but it was more than worth it to have gotten the run in.

The weekend was full of races, starting with the Ted Corbitt 15k. Mike and I signed up for this race together, and it was the final one he needed to complete to finish his 9+1 qualifier for the 2019 NYC Marathon. One of my co-workers, Carson, was also signed up for the race, so we all decided to carpool together again.

It was Mike’s turn to drive this week, and we did not get lucky with city parking near the start area. We wound up having to utilize a garage, and then walk about a mile to the start line. It was a cold morning, with a real feel under 20 degrees, but at least there was no wind this week. We picked up our bibs, made a quick porter potty stop, and dropped off our bags before heading into our start corrals. The three of us started together, but Carson anticipated needing walk breaks, so we weren’t planning to stick together through the whole race. I had 18 miles planned for Sunday, so I was planning to stick with Mike, so that the weekends runs would be a good approximation of how I would feel for the Goofy Challenge.

As we shuffled though the start line, we lost Carson sooner than expected in the crowd. I watched her neon pink ProCompression socks as she weaved ahead, wondering if we would see her again before the end of the race.

My toes were so cold at the start of the race that it felt like I had a block of wood in the back half of my shoe, a feeling which left me looking down at my feet to see if I had stepped in something before I realized that I was just numb.

We aired on the side of caution as we ran into the aid stations, walking when we needed to grab water since there were patches of ice where runners ahead of us had spilled water.

The race was broken up into two loops of Central Park, the first about 4 miles and the second about 5, and right as we finished our first loop, we watched the first finisher break the tape- that didn’t make us feel slow or anything. Soon after we spotted Carson’s pink socks, and sped up to catch her. We spent the rest of the race yo-yo ing with each other, as Mike and I continued to run a consistent pace, and she alternated between running and walk breaks. Eventually when Mike and I finished the race, she was only about a minute behind us.

We made our way through the finishers chute, collecting cups of yellow Gatorade, an apple, and the traditional bagel. Carson met up with us in the baggage claim area, and we headed to pick up our race shirts, then grab a pic of mike with the qualifier bell - with this race, he officially was qualified for the 2019 NYC marathon!

Weirdly, for me at least, I didn’t really take any photos during the race - it was just too cold! The gloves had to stay on my hands the whole time, and my phone was tucked away within layers of clothing.

We shivered as we made our way back to the parking garage, all VERY happy to be in a heated car. The ride home was uneventful, and I spent most of Saturday being perfectly lazy in anticipation of doing lots of running on Sunday.

The plan for Sunday was simple: a 5k, plus an additional 15 miles to make up one 18 mile long run. I set everything that I needed up on Saturday night, and Sunday morning I got dressed and headed over to my parents house to pick up Sophie, who would be joining me for the race. I got there early enough that was able to sneak in two miles before making our way to cedar creek park.

It was cold again on Sunday, and i just kept it easy for the first leg of the day. I did two loops near my parents house, not wanting to break a sweat and then be freezing while I waited for the race to start. After the two miles were complete I headed back into the house, and Sophie was ready to head out.

She drove us to cedar creek park, and we took a few minutes in the car pulling on layers before heading out into the frigid air. We had to wait in line to grab our bibs, and then ran back to the car to pin them on. We were parked right near the start line, so we were able to keep warm until just before start time, at which point we hopped out of the car and stretched a bit.

While waiting for the race to start I mentally debated my plan. I had a lot of miles ahead of me for the day, and didn’t want to be burning out. But I couldn’t talk myself out of racing this one. So when the start horn sounded, I took off and settled into a sub-8 pace, comfortably pushing myself. I had to pull my face mask on and off, the frigid air making it a little difficult to breathe. There was a turn around a little after the first mile, and I spotted Sophie and let out a cheer- she was booking it!

I had wound up in a group of about five women, and over the second mile I worked to break away from them, pushing myself to keep the pace. As we entered mile three I broke away with one other person, and the two of us fought each other to keep ahead throughout the third mile, until I had to back off a little- I felt the familiar nausea that sometimes comes with going fast for me, and I had too many miles ahead of me to risk a finish line puke.

I would later be a little annoyed with myself for this choice, as I came in second place in my age group, and that woman came in first, by about 5 seconds. Womp womp.

The last mile I fought to keep my sub-8 pace, and managed to hold it until the end of the race. I passed a few cheering members of the Merrick Bicycles Tri Team as I came into the finishers chute, and happily slowed my pace and moved towards the runners that were coming into the finish line to spectate as Sophie finished her race.

My race time was officially a 24:35, which was a PR for me! As I mentioned before, it was also good enough for second place in my age group, which I was pretty pleased about, since in 2017 I got third place age group.

Sophie and I headed out for some more miles at cedar creek while we waited for the final finishers to come in, and added another mile and a half to my total mileage for the day. We hung out with the Tri Team during the awards ceremony, and then headed to my parents house once it was all finished up.

Dad and I then headed to the bethpage trail from there, with the intent of getting though another 12 miles. I told myself that I would be happy if I got through 10, but knew I really wanted to hit 12 so I could total 18 for the day. The weather was nice, so why not go for it.

We made our way through the different paths at the preserve, which was mostly empty except for a few people out with their dogs or on their own runs. Dad and I chatted as we went, and he helped me to make it though the miles, without any more breaks like I had earlier in the day- other than one. When we were about half way through our first three mile loop, he realized he forgot to put his helmet on, so we had to stop by the car real quick.

But from there on out, we were good to go! When we did get through all of the miles, I was really happy with myself for getting though the distance without too much difficulty, considering I had set a new 5k PR on that same day.

Another high mileage week- the highest one so far in this training cycle as a matter of fact. With just a few more long runs ahead of me, I am officially getting excited for the races that lies ahead.