I had a really good idea a few months back: heading out to do my longer training runs out at Disney resorts. I've run at Pop Century before, and found that running loops around unfamiliar vistas broke up the monotony of doing the same 1.5 mile loop around the neighborhood. Of course, life got in the way, and my long training runs have sort of been ideas more than actions. So last night I decided I was actually going to leave the neighborhood before the sun came up.
Things worked out even better than I expected, because I woke up at 4:45 and my alarm wasn't even set to go off until 6:15. I was actually pulling into my destination when the alarm on the phone went off! And so, I set out along the banks of the "Sassagoula River" to do some laps around Port Orleans Riverside and French Quarter resorts.
It was lovely.
There were also a surprising number of runners out doing what I did, considering there was a 5k (the Jingle Jungle - guess that makes today a race-iversary for me!) this morning and the Wine & Dine Half Marathon this evening.
I had a totally unrealistic pie-in-the-sky goal of 11 miles (the plan was then to do 12 next Saturday and taper for the next two weeks, doing no more than 5 miles until the the Space Coast Half), but I figured 9 wouldn't be too painful and I'd just sort of shoot for something inbetween the two.
I actually averaged a 15 minute mile pace for the first 6 miles, which was impressive to me, and then kind of pooped out. I went into the gift shop at Riverside to see if I could get a single-serve pack of Tylenol and bottle of water, but they only had aspirin in small packages and I wasn't about to pay Disney prices for a full bottle. So I went out and did one more full resort lap, but my toes were aching, I hadn't had enough to drink, and I was getting a little light-headed.
I wanted to keep going, but since I plan to do another long run next weekend (considering that prep for my two half-marathons six days apart) I decided to give myself a break. I ended up doing 8.39 miles in 2 hours, 10 minutes. I know I could've gone another 5 miles, with cheering fans, water breaks, and Gatorade available. It's kind of a good feeling to actually feel good and confident three weeks in advance.
I also need to talk to my boss this week to see if I can start my days on Tuesdays and Thursdays an hour later. I need to get back into the habit of doing shorter runs (with more aggressive intervals) during the week and have just given up on ever forcing myself to do it after work!
So...my next races are 3 and 4 weeks away. I'm really excited to tackle these new races, spend two nights at the beach with my mom, and enjoy the week off from work between the two. It should be a pretty exciting few weeks!
It was lovely.
There were also a surprising number of runners out doing what I did, considering there was a 5k (the Jingle Jungle - guess that makes today a race-iversary for me!) this morning and the Wine & Dine Half Marathon this evening.
I had a totally unrealistic pie-in-the-sky goal of 11 miles (the plan was then to do 12 next Saturday and taper for the next two weeks, doing no more than 5 miles until the the Space Coast Half), but I figured 9 wouldn't be too painful and I'd just sort of shoot for something inbetween the two.
I actually averaged a 15 minute mile pace for the first 6 miles, which was impressive to me, and then kind of pooped out. I went into the gift shop at Riverside to see if I could get a single-serve pack of Tylenol and bottle of water, but they only had aspirin in small packages and I wasn't about to pay Disney prices for a full bottle. So I went out and did one more full resort lap, but my toes were aching, I hadn't had enough to drink, and I was getting a little light-headed.
I also need to talk to my boss this week to see if I can start my days on Tuesdays and Thursdays an hour later. I need to get back into the habit of doing shorter runs (with more aggressive intervals) during the week and have just given up on ever forcing myself to do it after work!
So...my next races are 3 and 4 weeks away. I'm really excited to tackle these new races, spend two nights at the beach with my mom, and enjoy the week off from work between the two. It should be a pretty exciting few weeks!
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