Week in Review

Not to brag or anything, but I am awesome! I rocked this week like no other week before it!

Sunday: Walked Epcot with Pattserella for our Friendaversary

Monday: 2 mile treadmill run with Samantha + 10 minutes elliptical

Tuesday: 2 miles treadmill run with Samantha

Wednesday: Rest Day

Thursday: 1 mile treadmill run with Samantha + 30 minute circuit

Friday: 2 mile treadmill run with Samantha + legs and arms machines

Total Miles: 7 miles

Run Fund Total: $52

Ok, so not only did I run 4 days this week, I also cross trained! Not even one of my goals last week. Over achiever, me.

So goals from last week were:

1. Run 3 times - Done and then some! Ran four times this week, woohoo!

2. Run solo - I meant to... I really did. Samantha was getting her hair done on Wednesday so wasn't going to go to the gym so I was going to go on my own then but I decided I needed a rest day.

And next week I plan to continue to rock it!

1. Run 3 times - 4 weeks down, 2 to go until I get to buy myself something expensive and beautiful! I'm debating between the Garmin Forerunner 220 and the Nike+ GPS Watch.

2. Run outside - It's Florida! I know it's hot! But running outside on the pavement is important. I don't want to become too dependent on the treadmill. Races are run outside on the pavement so I need to get used to both.

It's going to be a great week! I can feel it!

How did your workouts go this week?

Happy Haunted 5k – 132 days| Wine and Dine Half Marathon – 167 days | Avengers Half Marathon – 175 days | Walt Disney World Half Marathon – 230 days | Disney Princess Half Marathon – 273 days

Motivation Monday

Happy Monday! I did a LOT of pining on Pinterest and I found this gem to motivate myself:

If the Rhino can hit the treadmill to become a magical Unicorn then I can hit the treadmill to become a magical Sarah.

Also, I have been dangling a carrot in front of my face for the last few weeks to get in the habit of running: Expensive things! I want the Garmin Forerunner 220. I WANT IT NOW! But I’m making myself wait until I am running consistently, which for me is 3 times a week. And I have to do it for 6 weeks so hopefully it will become a non-negotiable at that point. That is why that has been one of my goals every week so far.

Speaking of which, here's an update on my goals from last week...

1. Run 3 times per week - nailed it! I didn't even half ass it this time. Woohoo!

2. Research cross training - nope. Didn't do it.

3. Join a gym - done! Samantha and I were going to do the Pi-K Group Run on Tuesday but it was hot so we went to her gym instead and I liked it so much I got a membership that very day!

And my goals for next week:

1. Continue to run 3 times/week - 3 weeks down, 3 weeks to go.

2. Run solo – I'm going to be running races alone for the most part so I won’t have Shelila or Samantha there to pace me so I need to get used to the solitude and regulate myself a little better.

And another motivating factor: my run fund has continued and my total is now $38. So yay!

Happy Haunted 5k – 138 days | Wine and Dine Half Marathon – 173 days | Avengers Half Marathon – 181 days | Walt Disney World Half Marathon – 236 days | Disney Princess Half Marathon – 279 days

Week in Review

This week went pretty awesome! I hit a couple of goals this week (more on that tomorrow) and I went to Disney with Pattserella for our 15 year friendaversary (more on that later this week)!

Sunday: Rest Day

Monday: Morning run with Shelila, 1.26 miles

Tuesday: 3 mile treadmill run with Samantha, 3.0 miles

Wednesday: Rest Day

Thursday: Morning run with Shelila, 1.02 miles

Friday: Rest Day

Saturday: Walked Magic Kingdom

Total Mileage: 5.28 miles

Winter is coming. No, wait. Summer is coming. And so is training. And so is Motivation Monday.

Happy Haunted 5k – 139 days | Wine and Dine Half Marathon – 174 days | Avengers Half Marathon – 182 days | Walt Disney World Half Marathon – 237 days | Disney Princess Half Marathon – 280 days 

And The Rain, Rain, Rain Came Down, Down, Down...

As you all know probably know by now (because I won't stop talking about it), I went to Orlando last weekend to participate in the Expedition Everest Challenge and I had a blast (read my full recap here)!

And spent way too much money. Way, way, way, way, way, way, way, wayyyyyy too much money. But what else is new, right?

After I went to the expo on Friday, I headed over to Epcot to do a little shopping. Pattserella’s parent’s 30^th wedding anniversary was coming up and she wanted to get them a present. For their 20^th she got them a Cinderella and Prince Charming figurine so she wanted to stick with the Disney theme. 

Coach Bob and Mama G's 20th Anniversary Figurine

Since I was headed down anyway, I offered to pick something up for her. So the decision came down to these three items. 

Mickey and Minnie Bride and Groom

Beauty and the Beast

Bobble Head Mickey and Minnie

It was the showdown of all showdowns! No one was safe! But she picked the last one cause they kiss and they’re bobble heads.

But while Pattserella was deciding, I decided to head into the World Showcase, just to wander.

That’s a lie. I wanted to get the cinnamon glazed almonds that I found at Magic Kingdom and I heard a rumor that they lurked in Epcot as well. One slight problem though: rainy days are back again in Florida. And I left my umbrella in my car. I sucked it up for a while. For a long time it wasn’t really raining enough to even justify using an umbrella. But then I came to Morocco. And I genuinely needed some cover from the rain. So I bought a plastic monstrosity, also known as: a poncho.

Now, the last time I wore a poncho was about 40 years ago. I know that’s not actually possible since I’m only 24 but whatever. I have a gift for hyperbole. Seriously though, the last time I wore a poncho must have been when we went to Disney when I was about 3 or 4, a trip that I do not remember at all except that it rained and the water got in my shoes and made my socks wet and then my feet got all wrinkly and they hurt. It was magical, I’m sure.

But, since I hadn’t used a poncho in 40 years I had forgotten how a poncho worked. Why doesn’t it have arm holes? I don’t understand! But I put that college degree to work and figured it out (It has clasps on the side. It took me an embarrassingly long time to figure it out).

I continued to walk through the World Showcase occasionally stopping under an overhang to see if Pattserella had made a decision. Once she had decided on the bobble heads, I headed back to the store and picked them up along with an Ariel mug and a Sleeping Beauty ornament and by the time I left it was POURING! So much! I would have enjoyed it if my phone had been in a Ziploc bag where it couldn’t get wet. But it wasn’t, so I worried about my dear little phone. By the time I made it to the exit, my pants were soaked all the way though. I had to change in the car. Very uncomfortable. And really awkward if anyone had happened to walk by.

And the worst part? I didn’t even get the almonds! I was heartbroken. Forlorn, even. 

But luck was on my side two days later! On Sunday, Lackey and I went to Downtown Disney to get some ice cream from Ghirardelli (we deserved it!) and we passed by a nut stand! And it didn’t just have almonds, it also had pecans and cashews. I didn’t get the cashews (which I kind of regret now) but I did get the pecans and they were pretty delicious. Next time I will buy up that cart!

Moral of the story? Fate (and Downtown Disney) is a wonderful thing!

When was the last time you used a poncho? Was it actually 40 years ago?

Happy Haunted 5k – 143days | Wine and Dine Half Marathon – 178 days | Avengers Half Marathon – 186 days | Walt Disney World Half Marathon – 241 days | Disney Princess Half Marathon – 284 days

Motivation Monday

It's Monday! I'm actually posting this on time this week! Hooray!

Kicking it off here's my Pin of the Week:

It's true. And very applicable to my life. I had a tough time getting of my butt and out the door. So I'm going to try to take this to heart this week.

Checking in on my goals from last week, I had two. The first one I hit (sorta): run 3 times. I ran for real on Thursday and Saturday and I decided to count the part of Expedition Everest that happened after midnight. The second one was to begin cross training. This did not happen. I didn't even try. So good job, Sarah! One-ish out of two is not so bad. Ish.

Goals for this week then:

1. Continue running 3 times per week. I'm going to get it for real this time, no half-assing it with part of another run that began the day before. And I'm going to my group run on Tuesday, no excuses!

2. Look into cross training. I'm backing off on the actually starting cross training. I'm a research person, I like knowing what I'm getting in to, so I'll start with the research this week.

3. Join a gym. At our Mother's Day dinner on Saturday, Lackey said that she goes to the gym every day at lunch and runs which is a great idea! Normally during lunch I wander around the mall and buy things I don't need and this would solve that spending too much money thing and help me make running non-negotiable.

How did your goals go last week? 

Week in Review

This week was kind of tedious. The excitement of Expedition Everest was behind me and I'm looking at a long summer without any races to look forward to. Just long training runs in the heat of the Florida summer. I've also been trying to find a 10k somewhere somewhat local so I can get a time for Wine and Dine but it's not going so well because it's Florida in summertime and no one wants to run a 10k in Florida in summertime. 

So this week was a struggle. I had a hard time just getting myself out the door and my weekly activity shows it.

Sunday - Scavenger Hunt portion of Expedition Everest, about 2 miles. Also walked Downtown Disney with Lackey for about an hour.

Monday - Rest day

Tuesday - Rest day

Wednesday - Rest day

 

Thursday - 1 mile solo run

Friday - Unplanned rest day (I was planning on running but Pattserella made beer bread, what's a girl to do!?)

Saturday - 1 mile solo run

Total mileage: 4 miles

I'm counting the tail end of Expedition Everest as a Sunday run. I was also supposed to go to the Pi-K Group Run on Tuesday with Samantha but I went to visit my grandmother instead. 

Saturday was actually a surprise run! It was on my schedule but since we celebrated mother's day that day I figured it would fall through the cracks. But I was sitting in my room at 8 pm and the inspiration struck. I probably would have gone farther but I was wearing new running pants that are a bit too slippery so they kept slipping down my butt and no one wants to see that so I just headed home. Next time I'll wear my normal pants. Lesson learned. 

Would you pass up a run for beer bread? Cause it's delicious. 

  

Expedition Everest Excitement In Pictures

As all of you know by now, I ran Expedition Everest last weekend with my sister in law, Lackey You can find the full recap over at Running at Disney.

READ IT! But, I wanted to share some pictures on here as well (along with my oh so witty commentary).

So here it goes.

Bus stop excitement!

On the bus excitement!

In the corral excitement!

Lackey cold and not so excited!

Race start excitement!

Excitement because I met my soul mate, Donald. I made Lackey stop so we could take a picture with him. I told him he was my favorite and he looked all embarrassed. Adorable.

And we met Mickey! Not my soul mate, but still awesome! And exciting!

Weird dragon thing behind Expedition Everest! Exciting!

I got my medal! So exciting!

And I added a medal to my display! Exciting!

Can you tell all the excitement there was? It was crazy excitement! I can't even deal with it anymore, I'm going to go pass out of excitement!

Have you ever been so excited you passed out? Or so dramatic that people think you're being serious about passing out due to excitement?

Motivation Monday (On A Tuesday)

It always bodes well when a post that should have come out on Monday actually comes out on Tuesday. That’s motivational, yeah?

So this is motivation time. Where I work on motivation. To motivate myself to run. Yeah. 

Pinterest is always good for things like that. So I have a board just for running. And this is my Pin of the Week.

True story, right?

And I have found something to trick myself into running regularly: A Run Fund!

Every time I run I keep track of the mileage and I pay myself accordingly. So for every mile I run, I pay myself $2 and by the time I get to a big race – say, Wine and Dine for instance – I will have a good chunk of money to spend at the expo, guilt free. I’ll still buy stuff if I don’t have enough in my run fund but I’ll feel guilty about it and that’s no way to live, right? I have a few dollars saved up so far. Just from last week I’ve got $14. When my mileage starts to increase when I start training for Wine and Dine, I’ll be rich! And $2 is a small enough amount that I won’t even notice that my regular spending money is less than it normally is.

And I have set a few goals for myself this week as well.

1. 3 runs a week. I have made a deal with myself that I will run at least 1 mile 3 times per week. 1 week in and so far so good. I’m trying to keep it up for 6 weeks and then buy myself something awesome.

2. Start cross training. Running is great but it’s probably smart to try some other stuff as well. My brother has invited me to work out with him and his friends at his storage unit so I can do that or I might try out a DVD or maybe join a gym. We shall see I suppose.

So that is my Motivation Monday Tuesday. Next week it’ll be on Monday, I promise. 

What do you do to cross train? Any suggestions for me?

Happy Haunted 5k – 151 days | Wine and Dine Half Marathon – 186 days | Avengers Half Marathon – 194 days | Walt Disney World Half Marathon – 249 days | Disney Princess Half Marathon – 292 days 

Week In Review

Ok so I meant to do this yesterday but I was sleepy. So I slept. Cause that’s what you’re supposed to do when you’re sleepy.

I just got back from my weekend in Orlando for the Expedition Everest Challenge which was AWESOME! Definitely do it if you get the chance. My full recap will be coming up on Running at Disney in the next few days and I’m really excited to share it with everyone.

So far as my weekly activity goes, here it is:

Sunday – Rest day (laundry day) 

Monday – 30 minute solo run, 1+ miles, 1:4 intervals 

Tuesday – supposed to be the Pi-K group run but it rained :/

Wednesday – Rest Day

Thursday – 30 minute run with Shelila, 1+ miles, 1:4 intervals

Friday – Walked around Epcot (in the rain) 

Saturday – Expedition Everest Challenge, 3.1 miles plus scavenger hunt, about 5 miles total 

Total mileage: 7+ miles 

Mileage is pretty decent (for me at least), but I plan on increasing it steadily over the next few weeks.

Next up is Motivation Monday which will come on a Tuesday this week cause that’s how I roll.

How did your workouts go this week?

Happy Haunted 5k – 152 days | Wine and Dine Half Marathon – 187 days | Avengers Half Marathon – 195 days | Walt Disney World Half Marathon – 250 days | Disney Princess Half Marathon – 293 days