The Long Road to Run Disney

[Naomeri]

I had a lot of terrible runs all summer long, and on my first fall-weather run, I set a new 10K PR, with 5/6 of my miles being under 12 minutes. I wouldn’t worry until you start having bad runs in nice weather (which I hope you get soon!)

 

[JAMIESMITH]

I had a lot of terrible runs all summer long, and on my first fall-weather run, I set a new 10K PR, with 5/6 of my miles being under 12 minutes. I wouldn’t worry until you start having bad runs in nice weather (which I hope you get soon!)

Thank you for this! I'm hoping we get some nice weather before our trip. A few good runs before the race would boost my confidence!

 

[JAMIESMITH]

I would love to say that I had a great week, but that would be a total lie. Here's what happened:

Monday September 11th was a rest day. I took the kids to the dentist. The appointment ran late so we didn't make it to Scarlett's gymnastics class. She was bummed since it was the first one since school started back.

Tuesday September 12th was another planned rest day.

Wednesday September 13th was supposed to be our speed work day. I cut grass and weed-eated (so cross training?). Maddy did get her run in, a little over three miles with a mile warmup, 8 1 minute run intervals loosely at R pace, amd a mile cooldown.

Thursday September 14th started with a job interview for me. I've been pretty stressed out with my current job lately and downright angry for the past few weeks. I feel good about how this went and hope to get a good phone call next week. There was a scheduled easy 2 mile run which Maddy did at a speedy 10:34 pace. I made up the previous day's speed work. I did walk the warm up and cool down miles.

Friday September 15th was a scheduled rest day, but I had hoped to make up Thursday's missed run. After working late and going to the grocery store, this did not happen.

Saturday September 16th started with a morning of tennis and ended with an afternoon of cleaning our home.

Spoiler: TMI Alert

I also started my period, despite only being on day 16 of my cycle

Which brings us to today's scheduled 8 mile run. We drove to the country club so we could run the 2.15 mile paved golf cart track which is relatively flat, offers some shade, and is beautiful. We each stashed a bottle of water near a tree at the start and near another tree at the end of the first mile. I set my watch for 90/30 run/walk intervals. T+D=151.



The first two miles went really well with splits of 12:27 and 12:21. By mile three I felt myself starting to drag. That mile ended with a pace of 13:07. Mile four was worse with a pace of 13:39. At the start point, with 4.3 miles on my watch, I told Maddy that I needed to rest a minute, but she could go on without me.

I'm sweating, but not feeling dizzy or extremely overheated. My legs are okay. My breathing is okay. I just have nothing in the tank. I also felt extremely thirsty and drank so much during the run that my stomach felt sloshy. Basically the same problem as last weekend's long run.

Maddy ran her final four miles with splits of 11:24, 11:18, 12:31, and 12:02. This is her longest run to date and I'm so proud of her! She did say that our stashed water bottles disappeared between miles 3 and 5 so she had to tough it out to the start point water bottle.

I did try to restart after a short break, but stopped again after 1/4 mile and just turned around and walked back. I'm disappointed, but I have a chance at redemption next weekend. I am going to work on hydrating better next week.

 

[azrivest]

Have you tried taking some fuel as well? An 8-mile run at 12mm can go over 90 minutes. Maybe some electrolytes would help in addition to the water?

 

[JAMIESMITH]

Have you tried taking some fuel as well? An 8-mile run at 12mm can go over 90 minutes. Maybe some electrolytes would help in addition to the water?

We forgot our gels at home, but I did have Nuun tablets in my purse that I used one of in a bottle of water. I'm thinking maybe I should have started hydrating more before the run?

 

[Herding_Cats]

We forgot our gels at home, but I did have Nuun tablets in my purse that I used one of in a bottle of water. I'm thinking maybe I should have started hydrating more before the run?

I run my long runs at 13-14min/mi and try to make sure I'm hydrating and eating enough for about 36hrs before the run. Something with electrolytes the day or night before the run. Nuun doesn't do enough for my on it's own. When I drink it I have to use 2 tablets and kind of concentrate it to get enough sodium and stuff to notice it. I switched to liquid IV (I stock up when it's on sale at costco) but I do miss the flavor options of nuun. If I try to hydrate the day of a run, it just makes me have to stop more times for a bathroom and I still feel super thirsty.

I hear you on the wonky cycles. I recently went 24, 31, and then 21 days. It makes it a real joy to try to guess which days to start my meds for PMDD every month. I'm chalking it up to perimenopause since I'm about to turn 40.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

I run my long runs at 13-14min/mi and try to make sure I'm hydrating and eating enough for about 36hrs before the run. Something with electrolytes the day or night before the run. Nuun doesn't do enough for my on it's own. When I drink it I have to use 2 tablets and kind of concentrate it to get enough sodium and stuff to notice it. I switched to liquid IV (I stock up when it's on sale at costco) but I do miss the flavor options of nuun. If I try to hydrate the day of a run, it just makes me have to stop more times for a bathroom and I still feel super thirsty.

I hear you on the wonky cycles. I recently went 24, 31, and then 21 days. It makes it a real joy to try to guess which days to start my meds for PMDD every month. I'm chalking it up to perimenopause since I'm about to turn 40.

I'm going to be very conscious of what I drink this week and I do plan to pickup some Liquid IV and some Pedialyte.

Next weekend is a repeat of this past one. I really need it to go well.

I'm right behind you at 36. I'm feeling old!

 

[JAMIESMITH]

I broke out a new pair of Kinvara 13s that I had purchased on sale from Amazon a month or so ago. I wore them for the first on my three mile run this afternoon with the intention of breaking them in for the race. The toe box on this pair is much tighter than the two pairs I currently have in rotation. Maddy tried them on as well (she's running in the same size and style show) and immediately noticed a difference. We checked every other pair we have (5 pair) and they were all made in Vietnam. This pair was made in China. I'm trying to decide between another pair with 100 miles and some wear on the forefoot sole and a last minute trip to Fleet Feet which is an hour away.

 

[striker1064]

I've noticed the toe box in Saucony shoes has gotten significantly more narrow in the past 2-3 years. They're heavy on the racing/supershoe train, and my tinfoil hat theory is they've lopped off the toe boxes in all their models in an attempt to get weights down.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

All right folks, I need any thoughts or suggestions you may have to offer...we are sixteen days from race day and I am honestly not sure my training is even salvageable at this point. My daughter is going to do fantastic and there are some pace groups that she could run with, if she wants to.

The run on 09/20 was actually decent despite the too tight new shoes. T+D=145 with splits of 13:23, 13:07, and 12:46.

09/21 was two miles with T+D=140 and splits of 13:05 and 12:56.

09/24 was my second attempt at 8 miles. I ran 90/30 run/walk intervals and stopped at 5.7 miles. Average pace was 14:35.

I ended up missing yesterday's 2 mile run because a co-worker was out.

Today's 3 mile run was a miserable fade with splits of 12:59, 13:59, and 15:35. T+D=150. My legs were just dead on this one.

I'm unsure of how to proceed. The last two weekends were supposed to be our longest long runs, but I missed the mark on both as well as the 10K run the weekend before. Do I stick to our plan and shoot for 6 miles this weekend or try for 8 one last time? That would still allow for a two week taper period and improve my confidence if I could manage it.

I'm not even sure what's wrong. This is the longest training cycle I've ever attempted. We ran three days almost every week and did a lot of swimming as well. I do know that summer training is not my favorite.

I also received the rejection letter today for the job I interviewed for. I'm very disappointed about that as well as my apparent fitness level.

 

[WillRunForPizza]

All your training is definitely not wasted. Everybody struggles with summer running, and it sounds like you're dealing with a lot outside of running as well - don't forget that mental and emotional stress affect your body's resources the same way physical stress does.

I don't have the expertise to give you advice on what you should do with your training, but I do have some questions you might want to consider:

• Are you getting enough sleep? Insufficient sleep, especially on an ongoing basis, can have a huge impact on your running.
• Are you eating enough? When do you eat before your runs? Are you fueling every 30-45 minutes on runs longer than 90 minutes?
• Do you use intervals normally? Have you tried adjusting your intervals? It's counterintuitive, but sometimes shortening your run interval can help you run faster.
• How did you determine your paces for your runs? Maybe you are just starting out too fast and that's why you're seeing a fade.
• Do you track your heart rate on runs? What does it look like at the beginning of a run? What does it look like when you see a fade?

Take a deep breath: you've got this! I'll repeat, summer running is really hard, especially when it just goes on and on. It's okay to have crappy days and even weeks; it doesn't mean your training is pointless or that you're getting less fit. Keep going if you can and take a break if you need it.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Physically you don't need the 8 miler. It's the cumulative training that does the trick. Mentally doing the 8 miler might be beneficial. And the mental game is worth something. But doing the 8 miler does come at additional physical cost that may leave you less prepared for the race itself. It's not uncommon to have some real stinkers of training runs at the tail end right before the taper. Rest assured that all the hard work is still there. Relax and slow way down and let your body catch back up.

 

[nancipants]

• Do you use intervals normally? Have you tried adjusting your intervals? It's counterintuitive, but sometimes shortening your run interval can help you run faster.

This is me. I like to do continuous running for the aerobic workout, but speed-wise I'm way faster when I do run/walk.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

All your training is definitely not wasted. Everybody struggles with summer running, and it sounds like you're dealing with a lot outside of running as well - don't forget that mental and emotional stress affect your body's resources the same way physical stress does.

I don't have the expertise to give you advice on what you should do with your training, but I do have some questions you might want to consider:

• Are you getting enough sleep? Insufficient sleep, especially on an ongoing basis, can have a huge impact on your running.
• Are you eating enough? When do you eat before your runs? Are you fueling every 30-45 minutes on runs longer than 90 minutes?
• Do you use intervals normally? Have you tried adjusting your intervals? It's counterintuitive, but sometimes shortening your run interval can help you run faster.
• How did you determine your paces for your runs? Maybe you are just starting out too fast and that's why you're seeing a fade.
• Do you track your heart rate on runs? What does it look like at the beginning of a run? What does it look like when you see a fade?

Take a deep breath: you've got this! I'll repeat, summer running is really hard, especially when it just goes on and on. It's okay to have crappy days and even weeks; it doesn't mean your training is pointless or that you're getting less fit. Keep going if you can and take a break if you need it.

Stress could very well be the problem. I'm also wondering if the blood pressure medicine I started taking this past winter could be making me feel more fatigued.

I'm definitely getting plenty of sleep.

I eat plenty, but I do need to be eating cleaner. More fruits and veggies and less processed foods.

I don't normally use intervals, but I did start on some of the easier runs this cycle because I struggle when running on consecutive days and it was a means to regulate my pace. For no real reason, I started off with 90/30 run/walk intervals, but I am finding that the 30 second walk break doesn't feel like enough. I suppose it could also be that I'm trying to push too hard during the run intervals.

This summer has just been survival mode. I'm mostly running as slowly as possible to hold up in the extreme heat/humidity. The exceptions have been for sprints or a very few speed work outs.

Physically you don't need the 8 miler. It's the cumulative training that does the trick. Mentally doing the 8 miler might be beneficial. And the mental game is worth something. But doing the 8 miler does come at additional physical cost that may leave you less prepared for the race itself. It's not uncommon to have some real stinkers of training runs at the tail end right before the taper. Rest assured that all the hard work is still there. Relax and slow way down and let your body catch back up.

That's exactly what I'm weighing out. I feel like my mental game would very much benefit from a successful long run equivalent to what I usually finish before a half marathon race, but I do want to go into the race sufficiently rested to succeed.

 

[Herding_Cats]

Stress could very well be the problem. I'm also wondering if the blood pressure medicine I started taking this past winter could be making me feel more fatigued.

I'm definitely getting plenty of sleep.

When DH had his angioplasty a few years ago they put him on a bunch of meds post-procedure. They had him on metoprolol, a beta blocker (which can be used for high blood pressure,) and it made him sooooo tired. The effect was pretty much immediate and profound. We talked to his cardiologist at a follow up appointment and they either switched it or took him off it altogether. It’s definitely worth discussing with your doc if you feel like it may be contributing to your overall fatigue.

As far as intervals go, last year I was running 80/30 intervals, and this year I’m running 30/30 at the same overall pace (which appears to be similar to what you’re currently running) despite doing almost nothing from January to May. If you do try the 8mi run, don’t be nervous about trying a much shorter run interval. Don’t even check your pace until you’re at least a half mile in, because the shorter intervals take a little longer for your watch to “catch on” to IMO with all the speeding up and slowing down.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

Single Digit Dance!

Our race is actually ten days away, but our trip starts the day before so that's how our countdown is setup.

September 29th started a very busy weekend for us. The Homecoming game started at 6pm and both girls wanted to go. The dance started after the game and after helping Maddy change into her dress, I took Scarlett home for a quick shower and bedtime story before going back to pick up her big sister. Maddy was tickled that a boy asked her to dance. He's a new student at their school this year, but she's known him from the summer tennis league.



We slept a little late Saturday and skipped the morning tennis practices. My aunt's husband had passed away very unexpectedly earlier in the week at only 59 years old. We stopped by the church for visitation, but left before the graveside service because I had already promised another mom that I would have my girls at her daughter's birthday party. She was concerned that no one would show up. Of course now, half my extended family is angry that we didn't stay.

The other mom wasn't far off, the girl's older brother (who is Maddy's age)and two other girls from school were the only ones there so I am glad we went. We all bowled two games with the adults claiming one lane and kids on the other. It was a fun way to spend an afternoon especially after spending the morning at a funeral.

I made one last attempt at a long run on Sunday. I drank a protein shake about an hour before and some liquid IV that morning, but I only took water with me. I went with 45/45 intervals after reading some of your suggestions and that felt really nice. I also left Maddy at home so that I wouldn't feel tempted to try and run at her pace instead of my own.

I started down a road that makes a loop back onto one of our normal routes and would total a bit over 8 miles. I've only ran it once before. I did feel the need to hold my pepper spray a few different times because of barking dogs, but only one got very close and he turned out to be friendly.

My husband came looking for me close to dusk and I accepted a ride home. I did finish 6.74 miles at a 14:18 pace. T+D at the start was 144 and dropped to 138 by the time I stopped. It felt great in the shade, but the sun was brutal in places. I know that I would have finished this run so perhaps I'm getting the best of both worlds with a mental boost and not so much stress on my body?



I don't know if this will be a PR kind of race. I'm not thrilled with my pacing and it's still a bit early for a race day weather forecast. I do feel like I can cross the finish line and I'm excited to at least start my daughter's first half marathon with her.

Maddy got her braces off on Monday which was a scheduled rest day. She's so happy and her smile looks so good!

I ran fever Monday night and went to the doctor yesterday. I tested positive for strep, but negative for the flu and COVID. I got a shot and some antibiotics and I'm now on my second sick day from work and my second day of skipping runs. I'm trying to keep my germs to myself. Maddy has had her tonsils and adnoids removed, but she's leaving on a fall break trip with my parents as soon as school is out this Friday. I also don't want my husband or baby girl to get sick so close to our vacation.

So all in all, I am under the weather, but also feeling more optimistic.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

We're BACK! I will get to a race day update, but I want to pick up where I left off.

October 5th was my third sick day from work and my husband's first. We spent the girls' school day in bed. He went to the clinic that afternoon and also tested positive for strep.

I went back to work on Friday the 6th, but he took a second sick day. This round of strep really kicked both our tails. After school, I took Maddy and her luggage to my parents house so that they could leave out on her first Smokey Mountain vacation.

Scarlett and I were on farm duty while my parents were away. I did a lot of walking at the farm during this week, but no running. I still felt weak from being sick the week before. Scarlett enjoyed seeing the horses, cows, and barn cats everyday.







Monday and Tuesday were fall break so Maddy only missed school on Wednesday. Scarlett went to work with me those two days. On Monday, my parents and Maddy hiked to the top of Mt. LeConte and back down again via the Alum Cave Trail which is an 11 mile round trip with 2,763 feet of elevation gain.





They also spent some time riding go-karts, an alpine slide, and playing pool in their cabin.

My parents brought Maddy home Wednesday night (along with yummy Buc-cees barbeque sandwiches) and she went to school Thursday and Friday.

Friday night (the 13th) was the Powderpuff football game at the school. This was Maddy's first chance to play since it's her first year of high school. Her team lost, but they had a good time and it was a fun fundraiser. My husband stayed home, but my parents joined me and Scarlett in the bleachers.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

We got up bright and early (or rather dark and early) on Saturday October 14th and were on the road by 5:30. We stopped at a Cracker Barrel in Birmingham, Alabama for breakfast at 8:00. Scarlett declared their pancakes to be far inferior to mine.



We stopped off at Rock City Gardens in Lookout Mountain, Georgia and enjoying stretching our legs after so long in the car.











After Rock City, we coasted down the mountain (literally with my car in neutral for miles) and into Chattanooga, Tennessee.

If this race has a negative, it is definitely parking. My husband had to circle a few blocks while Maddy and I picked up our race packets because there was no where to park. The race shirt was a nice blue short sleeve tech shirt. We also got a window decal for our car.

We drove to our hotel for the night, Springhill Suites and settled into our room before taking the elevator down to the restaurant at the hotel, Scotty's on the River. We shared the calamari appetizer. My husband and I had steaks with salads and baked potatoes. Maddy went with fish and coleslaw. Scarlett had a hamburger. This was a fine meal, but not something I would rush back to repeat.

Race Day up next!

 

[JAMIESMITH]

I rarely wear my Garmin to sleep, but I did wear it Saturday night and woke up at 5:00 with my alarm with 6 hours and 23 minutes of sleep recorded. Only 1 hour and 54 minutes was deep sleep.

We quietly got dressed. I drank a Premier Protein shake and we both drank a Java Monster. We also split a pack of blueberry Belvita cookies.

At 6:00, we set out to walk the mile and a half from the hotel to the start/finish area in Coolidge Park. This was also where packet pickup had been the day before so we already knew how bad the parking situation would be. Preferred parking was available to purchase for $40, but it sold out before I made up my mind whether or not to purchase. As Rush said, "If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice."

The walk across the bridge was chilly! We stood in line for the porta-potties and snapped a few pre-race photos before watching the marathoners start at 7:03.





The weather was pretty perfect for running. It was overcast with a T+D=108.



Maddy's legs were still a bit sore from the combination of her hike and the powderpuff football game. We decided to start with the 2:45 pacer. I felt that this was a conservative time for Maddy and I have finished two half races at this pace before. At 7:33 we were off. I grabbed a bottle of water as we went through the start line.

For the first three miles, we stayed right with the pacer. My splits were 12:30, 12:11, and 12:08. We ran through the first water stop at the end of the second mile. We did each grab a cup of water. I felt that the pacer was starting out a bit fast and had hoped that this was to build a buffer to walk through the water stops, but she barely slowed down for us to drink.

Midway through mile 3, we came up on the first bridge ramp and I took my first walk break. I waved Maddy on to continue with the pacer. My next few miles were done at a more comfortable pace with splits of 13:13, 13:09, and 13:19.

During mile 7, I stopped and used one of the real bathrooms on the riverwalk portion of the course. This mile came in at 14:39, but my stomach felt much better. I also met the marathon leaders coming back down the riverwalk.

Maddy's Garmin was sending pace updates via text to me and my mom every mile and that was nice once I'd last sight of her. I did meet her after the turnaround during mile 8. My time for this one was 13:28.

I started walking a bit more from here on out. At one point I was using the beeps from another runner's gym boss for 60/30 run/walk intervals. I also chatted with several runners including the lady running intervals (although she eventually stopped running and just walked) and a mother/daughter duo. The mom was a seasoned marathoner coaching her daughter through her first half. My splits for miles 9-12 were 13:42, 13:17, 13:27, and 13:23. I also started to see the 3:00 pace group behind me during these miles and more and more of the faster marathon runners were mixing into the half runners.

Around this time, I received the alert that Maddy had finished her race! She said the pacer was very encouraging in the later miles.





The final mile was all downhill, including some stairs which HURT more than I could believe. This really should have been a fast mile, but I ran it at a 15:03 pace. I also ended up with .42 of a mile instead of .1 which was done at a 12:33 pace.



I just barely squeaked in under 3 hours.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

Maddy was the only female runner in the 11-15 age group. There were no runners younger than 11 and only five boys in the 11-15 age group so she was definitely one of the youngest runners out there.



She is pleased with her finish time, although she does think she could do better next time. I wasn't sure if she would want to run another half marathon, but I think she's hooked!

It does look like the pacer slowed down a good bit after mile 6 so definitely a fast start.





As for me, this was my slowest half finish time despite this being an easier course, but I'm okay with that. My training was not going well towards the end and getting strep two weeks before the race didn't help. I really didn't like training through the summer heat. I would like to find a later fall or early spring race next. I also don't know that I will ever work my way up to a full marathon. I am slow and at my pace it would be a huge time commitment to train for anything longer than a half marathon.