"I just wanna feel some sunshine" - 2019 Training Journal

Introduction

I’m Dis_Yoda. I’m a 32 year old engineer who now works in the public sector after 11 years of working in the private manufacturing industry.

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To say I’ve fallen off the running bandwagon is an understatement. After my ankle surgery in May 2017, it’s been hard to get back into the habit. The loss of my legacy race (Light Side) didn’t help either especially after my ankle caused me to lose my other legacy race (Dark Side.) Add to that a job that was crushing my soul, my motivation was gone. It also didn’t help that my favorite yoga teacher stopped teaching her evening beach yoga classes so I felt lost. I hate yoga at her home studio as her kids always interrupted. I also was tutoring children in math that affected my evening/weekend schedule as well. All of these are excuses but it was real to me at the time. I worked on fixing the cause of those problems.

Well, my ankle is healed. I got a new job in October 2018 that won’t let me work at home if I tried. My job also has weekly yoga during lunch hour starting January 7th. I quit tutoring. I quit the gym that I was spending money to and not going as I rather exercise outside. I live in Southwest Florida so I need to enjoy that. 2019 has got to be better than 2018.

My Goals for 2019
  1. Start training again for the 10K mileage and maintain pace. My performance has been horrible as of late. Its 100% my fault too from lack of training.​
  2. Train Gantu to run up to a 5K after confirmation of growth plate closure. We will be getting his hips X-Ray’d in February to confirm proper formation. We’re already working on his endurance with long walks and getting used to staying next to us while on the waist leash. His ultimate goal is to earn his Endurance Trial title in November 2020 at the Rhodesian Ridgeback National Speciality in Texas. Yes, I became that crazy dog owner.​
  3. Go to yoga every Monday at work starting January 7th. It is $25 for 16 weeks of classes. I’ll get $50 in Healthy Bucks in return. Seems like a no brainer there!​
  4. Bring my lunch to work at least 75% of the time. This is a combination health goal/money goal. My new job was a paycut so I know I should spend less money on certain things. Spending $80 to $120 a week while at my old job eating out wasn’t healthy for me or my wallet. To help this goal, I do have my own mini-fridge in my office.​
  5. Have at least one non-horrible race photo. This is a long shot I know. I take horrible photos during a race.​
  6. Have Gantu earn titles in Barn Hunt and Rally. Start Agility Training as well. This ends up being exercise for me as well between carrying his heavy metal crate, running him around the ring and stuff as he's a 90 lb dog and still growing.​
  7. Handle returning to graduate school. I start my first class this month. I need a total of 6 to get my Local Government Management Graduate Certificate. If this goes well, I’ll go for my Masters.​
If I lose weight, great but I don’t want to set a goal for that. I enjoy food, wine and bourbon too much.

Here is my race schedule as of today:

April 6th - Rival Run 10K
May 27th - Memorial Day 5K
September 20th - Disneyland Paris 5K
September 21st - Disneyland Paris 10K

Here’s Gantu’s schedule as of today:

January 5th - Barn Hunt Workshop (if this goes well - we’re going to his first trial January 20th in West Palm Beach if they still have spots)
January 26th/27th - Rally Competition


Here’s my husband’s schedule as of today:

January 12th - WDW Half Marathon
January 13th - WDW Marathon
February 8th/9th - South Florida Ragnar
Winter 2019 - Light Side Virtual Half Marathon
April 6th - Rival Run 10K
April 7th - Rival Run Half Marathon
May 27th - Memorial Day 10K
September 21st - Disneyland Paris 10K
September 22nd - Disneyland Paris Half Marathon
 
Yay for another new journal to follow! Excited to see both your and Gantu's journey!
 




Trying to make an effort and follow people’s journals this year. Not just lurk. Excited to follow along!
 
Yay for Rival Run! Following!

It is our favorite race week on the East Coast! Hope we run into each other there!

Yay for another new journal to follow! Excited to see both your and Gantu's journey!

Yes! This week is all about Gantu, like it feels most weeks are nowadays!

Following along!

Yay! Welcome!

Yay! You started a journal!
Yes, I hang out enough around here - I should you know, train.

Oh, girl, I am so here for this! Privileged to follow along :goodvibes

Hi! You're back! I haven't seen you around in so long.

Joining in!

Thanks for joining in!

So happy you started this journal. I’m excited to follow along.

Thank you for following!

Trying to make an effort and follow people’s journals this year. Not just lurk. Excited to follow along!

I need to do the same and not lurk. Thank you for not lurking!

Joining in!!

Welcome!
 
Week 1

January 1st

If talk about my dogs is going to annoy you, this isn’t the training journal for you. Gantu is our (ridgeless) Rhodesian Ridgeback who was born January 29th, 2018. We decided on this breed as we wanted a running partner. In 2018, we earned him three titles - Canine Good Citizen, Tricks Novice and Tricks Intermediate. 2019, we are planning on titles for Advanced Canine Good Citizen, Urban Canine Good Citizen, Rally Novice & Beyond, Barn Hunt Instinct and Novice (well, maybe on that Barn Hunt...) We cannot run with him yet as he is too young, especially for being a large breed dog. We are working on endurance with him with increasing the length and time of his walks on days he doesn’t have daycare or classes. I’m not going to count his short (less than a mile) walks as that's just normal dog ownership.

My husband and I headed out around 8AM to visit the Gordon River Greenway. It is one of the few walking paths safe for dogs thanks to the boardwalks above the waterways keeping you safe from the gators and is a good mix of shade/open air. We did 2.08 miles at an average of 28:51 minute/mile pace.

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January 2nd

On New Years Eve, I overcooked portions for dinner so I could have lunches set for Wednesday to Friday. I brought them all in today and placed them in the fridge. No excuses to go out to eat when you have them already there! I’m in full head cold mode though which is super not fun. Lots of fluids and rest needed to be better for Disney next week. I did end up booking us at Saratoga Springs for next Wednesday Night. We won’t make it there before 8:30PM but we’ll head to the bars at Disney Spring after we get into the room.

January 3rd

Gantu had Rally Class so after work, I didn’t have time to do much else than make dinner and take him to class. My training journal is starting out great in the exercise department!

January 4th

Despite having my lunch at work, I ended up going out. It was my boss’s birthday so figured joining the group was a smart work life decision since I’m still getting integrated in the group’s workplace culture since I've only been there since October. I did bring my yoga mat into work to store in my office so I wouldn’t forget it on Monday!

January 5th

Busy day for Gantu!

We had an 8:30AM Rally Class which we had to leave early to drive across the state because of the Barn Hunt Workshop at Southwest Ranches, FL (outside of Miami) at 11AM. I was there about 3 hours before we got to drive back. To say it was a slight disaster is an understatement. I think between having one of his littermates there (who also is due to go into heat soon) along with all the new smells around a working barn, getting him to pay attention was almost impossible. He lost all manners and pulled so much! At his weight, that is a lot of work that I ended up maxing out my move and exercise rings on the apple watch within that session. I’m just glad I have enough strength to hold him back as the trainer couldn’t hold him back and said as much. It kinda scares me for our first Rally Obedience Trial on the 26th of January. I mean just look at the photo of our group, I had to hold him by his collar and laugh so I didn't cry.

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When I got home, I was wiped from the day and sunburnt. I would be the Floridian sunburnt in 60 degree weather.

January 6th

Early this morning my husband, Gantu and I did a longer walk around our neighborhood. 1.61 miles at 29:03 min/mile pace. The temperature was nice and we could have gone for longer but my husband wanted to turn back so he had time to get a run in before he headed to work. As he's the one running next weekend, I was fine with him calling it.

I also got the shopping done for Marathon Weekend so we have water, diet Mountain Dew (my husband's vice), energy drinks (my morning vice) and bagels for breakfast. I did get the suitcase out as well so I could start packing as we leave on Wednesday evening.

Totals for Week:
Walking: 3.69 Miles
Run: 0
Yoga: 0
Lunches: 2 / 3

Totals for Year:
Walking: 3.69 Miles
Run: 0 miles
Yoga: 0
Lunches: 2 / 3
 
Hi! You're back! I haven't seen you around in so long.

Yes, it’s been quite the journey, most of it away from DisBoards. Lots of disastrous dates and zero running. Not a lot of incentive to post! But I finally found what I’ve been looking for my whole life. :cloud9:

The comment about a safe walkway for dogs away from gators...Florida, man!

I’m so happy you’re in a happier work environment and are starting to train again. :flower1: Can’t wait to see how it unfolds!
 
Yes, it’s been quite the journey, most of it away from DisBoards. Lots of disastrous dates and zero running. Not a lot of incentive to post! But I finally found what I’ve been looking for my whole life. :cloud9:

The comment about a safe walkway for dogs away from gators...Florida, man!

I’m so happy you’re in a happier work environment and are starting to train again. :flower1: Can’t wait to see how it unfolds!


Well, life's a journey right! I'm glad you finally found what you were looking for! Its a shame you had to kiss so many frogs to get your prince!

Florida life is fun...even when we do have to worry about things like that. There is also a pack of coyotes around my neighborhood according to Next Door. Fun!

Haven't actually ran yet but that is going to end up starting this week!
 
Week 2

January 7th

Yoga at work started today! For $25, I get 16 classes over the next few months. I figured it would be more on the gentle side of yoga since it was during a work day at a place that has 1 shower per gender in the building. Nope! It’s power yoga! I’m ok with that, I just need to be better prepared post workout next week to ensure I don’t smell for the rest of the afternoon. I learned how tight I am as I haven’t done yoga since August at the Zoo.

I also started grad school today. The amount of work seems doable as I know what I have to get done - a whole bunch of reading, 4 essays (1000 to 1250 words), 4 discussions (250 to 500 words) and 1 term paper (10 to 12 pages.) I can do this! I’m also learning who can and cannot read instructions. 1 to 2 short paragraphs is exactly that - not your entire resume as an introduction!

January 8th

Today was laundry and packing after work. No time to do much else since I didn’t get home until almost 6PM.

January 9th

I got to work early so I could get out around 4PM. My husband had the full day off so he got the dogs to the kennel and such. After I got home, we headed up to Disney! Traffic wasn’t too bad and we arrived before 8PM at Saratoga Springs in a great room for walking over to Disney Springs as we were in the closest building ot the walkway along with the closest room to the side. There, we had dinner at Terralina Crafted Italian as a walk-in. It was much better than the previous occupant of the space (Portobello)

January 10th

While I had intentions of making it to rope drop at Animal Kingdom, my husband did not. We ended up arriving around 8:40AM and headed straight to Dinosaur, then Everest, Tough To Be A Bug, Up! A Great Bird Adventure, Navi River Journey, and lunch at Nomad’s. We headed to the Expo for my husband to get his Goofy Bib. We ended up getting him a pullover, new shoes, body glide and running glasses. We got into the room around 3PM so we settled in while my husband took a nap. Dinner was at Paddlefish & amazing. We got cupcakes from sprinkles for dessert.

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January 11th

We did EPCOT today. It was wonderfully uncrowded. I worked on my drinking challenge. My husband originally wasn’t planning on drinking at all this trip but he did have a shot of tequila and a pina colada. It was nice seeing people at the meetup although I didn’t stay as long as I had hoped.

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January 12th

My husband ran the WDW Half Marathon with a goal of a sub-2 half. He beat that goal with a 1:57:10! He’s been trying for the sub-2 since 2016 so he is ecstatic that he made it!

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We headed to Hollywood Studios post race and made it until about 1pm. We took a nice nap until it was time to get ready for dinner at Sanaa. We were in asleep by 9PM.

January 13th

My husband ran the WDW Marathon with a sub-5 hour goal. He killed it and PR’d as well. 4:27:33! A 40 minute improvement over last year. I cheered on some runners at Animal Kingdom and had breakfast at Tusker House followed by Safari & Flights of Passage (had a FP+) After he bathed & I did laundry (no way was I putting those clothes in the suitcase), we headed to Raglan Road for our 2PM reservation where I was amazed by the amount of food my husband consumed as he had all the meat but protein is good post race, right? Rather than head back to the hotel for another nap, my husband said he was ready to go home and we hit the road. We got home around 6PM. I’m happy to say I didn’t gain any weight despite all the alcohol and food so all my walking around the parks balanced it out. I have my bag ready for tomorrow’s yoga. I plan on trying to run at least two days out of Friday, Saturday & Sunday as I have a busy social calendar (sushi with a friend Monday, Wine Dinner on Tuesday, Rally Class on Wednesday, Cher Concert on Thursday. At least my weekend is empty!

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Totals for Week:
Walking: 0
Run: 0
Yoga: 1
Lunches: 3 / 3

Totals for Year:
Walking: 3.69 Miles
Run: 0 miles
Yoga: 1
Lunches: 5 / 6​
 
I love your journals! Love Gantu!
Can't wait to read along and have caught up with your postings now. Great goals!
Congrats on the new job-there's a lot to say for a job that allows you to keep your soul! (I've had a few that darkened mine also, sad to say but we live and learn)
Grad school-been there and done that. So hard but totally worth it! Good luck (but I don't think you need it!)
Congrats @Dis_Yoda hubby on those races and PRs!
Always love your pics of the parks and the food, and of course the drinks!
Thanks for your report-Just love your reports!!
 
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Holy cow your husband crushed both his goals for Goofy! Big congrats to him. Looks like you guys had a fun weekend.
 
I'm so glad you told me about this. I love hearing about your pups. Congrats to Shaun on his sub-2 HM and rocking his marathon!! Yay for power yoga! Here's to a good first semester of grad school!
 
I love your journals! Love Gantu!
Can't wait to read along and have caught up with your postings now. Great goals!
Congrats on the new job-there's a lot to say for a job that allows you to keep your soul! (I've had a few that darkened mine also, sad to say but we live and learn)
Grad school-been there and done that. So hard but totally worth it! Good luck (but I don't think you need it!)
Congrats @Dis_Yoda hubby on those races and PRs!
Always love your pics of the parks and the food, and of course the drinks!
Thanks for your report-Just love your reports!!

Thanks for reading along!

It is sad to say we live and learn. I still talk to a couple people from there and it just isn't a happy place. They recently posted another contract job for my position as I guess they realized the amount of work I did. Bwahaha!

Grad school is going well. Working on Essay #1 now (although I'm procrastinating but I have until Sunday evening)

Disney drinks are so much fun.

Holy cow your husband crushed both his goals for Goofy! Big congrats to him. Looks like you guys had a fun weekend.

He did! I'm super proud of him. I think I'm going to have to sign him up for one of the local half marathons before Rival Run if Ragnar ends up falling through so he can keep his training mojo going.

I'm so glad you told me about this. I love hearing about your pups. Congrats to Shaun on his sub-2 HM and rocking his marathon!! Yay for power yoga! Here's to a good first semester of grad school!

Yay for following along. January hasn't been starting well but we're getting there.
 

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