Remembering Determination and the Importance of Support

Yes, I know I haven't posted for a couple of weeks but I'll address that in a different post.  I wanted to get back to the blogger challenge and catch up a bit.  I'm skipping the day 13-15 topic...I did two posts for the day 10-12 topic so in my mind, that makes up for the skip ;-)

So the next topic was to pick any picture from your Facebook or Instagram pics and write about it.  You can see the pic I chose above; I actually didn't take the photo (obviously, I'm the one the red hat!).

This photo was taken by a ROTE friend during the 2011 Disney full Marathon as I was making my way from World Showcase in Epcot toward Future World.  I would guess this around mile 25.5, maybe a bit farther, and by that point my feet were killing me, my back was sore and all I was thinking was "just keep walking, don't stop, one foot in front of the other".  I was focused straight ahead when I heard one of the ROTErs, Joey shouting at me, "You're doing it Carra!"  I saw him walking with someone else-I can't for the life of me remember who-toward World Showcase and waved.  He is the one who actually posted this picture on Facebook and tagged me in it (thank you Joey!), and was the last ROTEr I saw before I crossed the finish line.

Even though my body was overwhelmingly sore, tired and ready to just collapse by that point, hearing and seeing people I knew cheering for me continued to lift my spirits and drive me on.  I didn't stop-even though I really wanted to have the Photopass photographer take my picture when I got by the fountains in Future World-I knew if I stopped I'd never get going again and I just wasn't going to let that happen with the finish line so close.  I was DETERMINED to get my Mickey medal!

My point in choosing this particular picture?  The importance of support.  When I first started my journey into the running world, I happened to come across an online forum of people who were runners who loved Disney and running Disney races.  I've made a lot of friends from that forum and having them online for support, advice and friendship before and after races and especially along the course cheering me and everyone else on is invaluable and tremendously motivating.  I can tell you without any doubt in my mind that I would have never been able to finish that race if it wasn't for my ROTEr friends-especially those I saw from the point of exiting Animal Kingdom through the end of the race.  They helped spur me on and get me going enough to leave those sweepers in the dust.

I gave shout outs to them in my 2011 Disney Full Marathon Race Report post, but I just wanted to recognize and thank them again-Joey (of course-you're always there with such kind and supportive words before and after races), Erica (super big hugs!), Tracy, and especially Colleen and Dawn-if you two hadn't of been there outside of Animal Kingdom, I would never have been able to dig so deep and start running to get away from the sweepers that were closing in-seriously.

Don't ever underestimate the power of your support crew-whether they are there so you can just hand off a jacket, grab a drink, pass you some Twizzlers or just clap/cheer/ring a cowbell/hold a sign...or scream your name, jump up and down or honk their horn as they're driving by you on the course.  They'll help keep you going and give you that push you need to make it across that finish line.

And if you're looking for a group that will do all that for you-and so much more-be sure to check out Running of the Ears.  I know you'll be glad you did.  Here's some pics of the group:

This pic is from the Monday after the 2010 Marathon Weekend (my first half marathon)

A bunch of ROTErs at Downtown Disney at the start of race weekend 2010

A bunch of us volunteering at the mile 13 water stop at the 2010 Disney full marathon (see our red hats?)

Group shot before the 2012 Princess Half Marathon

Group shot before the 2012 Tower of Terror 10-Miler

Do you have a support group for your running/walking/racing?

Ya Gotta Have a Goal Part 2

So I’ve been doing this running thing since the Fall of 2008.  I’ve done 8 5Ks, a 10K, a Half Marathon relay, 8 Half Marathons, 1 Marathon relay (basically another half marathon since we each did 13.1 miles)...and one full Marathon.  Now before you go jumping to conclusions, I can tell you that NO, my other current goal is NOT anything longer than a full marathon.  And those of you who are my smartypants friends don’t go :poke: :poke: at me to consider it...it won’t work.  No, my goal is the Disney full marathon in January 2014.  

“Wait a minute”, you say, “you’ve already done a full marathon, how is that a goal?”   

I did my marathon in January of 2011.  I wasn’t in peak condition for it; My peak condition was Winter 2009/Spring 2010.  At that time, I had lost 45 pounds and was easily keeping a 15 minute per mile pace for the half marathons I was running and even got into the 14 minute mile range for my 5Ks.  For the marathon a year later, I had gained back about 20 of the pounds I had lost and finished in 6:59:09, a 15:59 pace...just barely making the pace cutoff (while trying to keep away from the sweepers...you can read about that in my race report if you’d like).  It was hard.  Probably the hardest thing I’ve ever undertaken and completed.

Me after my first half marathon-this was after losing 45 pounds

So why is it a goal again?  As I mentioned in my “Starting Over” post, I gained back almost all the weight I’d lost.  I’m basically starting from scratch again.  Almost worse than scratch since instead of regularly walking or even semi-regularly, I went almost all the way back to doing nothing after being swept at the Tower of Terror 10-miler.  Workouts and miles here and there...but no “real” training.  Plus I have that wonderful added bonus of all this extra weight back on again.

And so, this is going to be just like training for my first marathon...again.  I’ve already mapped out my training calendar through the rest of the year.  It is fairly straightforward through the end of August with no really long mileage until the marathon training portion starts so it’s more like a general exercise program until the end of summer...that way I can concentrate on the losing weight part, though I’ll still be doing miles at least 3 days per week the whole time.  As many of you know, trying to lose weight while training for a marathon can be difficult so I’m trying to get a head start on that part before the longer miles begin. 

I’d love to be at my goal weight before the time comes for the race, but that would mean losing about 80 pounds between now and then.  Just that part alone would be a HUGE accomplishment.  But with the long miles in the Fall and early Winter, I’ll be initially shooting for at least 60 pounds by race time.  The overall goal?  Finishing faster than my first marathon.  My more ambitious goal?  Finishing in 6:50:00 or less.  But as long as I finish without having to take a sweeper bus ride, I will consider my goal attained.  Again.

If you’re out there about to undertake your first full marathon journey, feel free to contact me...virtual training partners are always welcome.  Or if you’re just trying to lose a lot of weight like me...same thing.  Most of this for me is done on my own for various reasons which is really hard.  It’s so much easier to stick to a plan when there are others around that you don’t want to make excuses to.  If anyone out there wants to join up so we can all be accountable to each other (for losing weight or race training-virtual or otherwise), you can use the Contact Me page to get in touch.

What are some goals that you have?  

My goal?  This picture in 2014!

Ya Gotta Have a Goal Part 1

I’m addicted to Disney.  Most of you already know this...after all, my blog description up there at the top of the page does mention my “Disney obsession”.  One of my favorite things to do is plan my next trip to Walt Disney World.  I’ve even start planning (and booking and paying deposits on) trips that come after ones I haven’t even taken yet.  Many of those trips have been for runDisney events (8 events, 7 trips to run them with two more coming up); even more-LOTS more-have been just to go have fun in the parks.  I’ve been going to Walt Disney World for 35 years now, usually several times a year since I’ve been an adult.  Being at WDW just makes me happy-whether I’m riding the rides or just wandering around the parks people-watching; the whole Disney atmosphere just draws me in.

I love the planning and booking so much, I’ve started an additional career centered around it.  In case you missed it in a previous post, I became an independent travel agent, specializing in Disney destinations.  I can actually book any kind of travel (and have), but Disney is my main concentration.  Do what you love, right?  And lately I’ve been laying the groundwork to start really growing that business...more on that in a bit.

I also love doing Disney races (that fact I’m positive you already figured out...you have, right?  Well, unless this is the first post of mine you’re reading).  Races in general are fun for me and I’m one of those people who loves the bling.  But being able to do races at my favorite place in the world?  That makes it a thousand times better.  But Disney races don’t come cheap and certainly aren’t going to start going down in price.  I know there are many people out there that are thinking twice about them due to how costly they are becoming.  I may eventually become one of those people if the prices go too high, but that’s a decision for the future...hopefully far in the future.  Though even if the cost of the races themselves get to high, I’d still go to volunteer (my new favorite thing to do at Disney races when I’m not running one) and to cheer my friends on with my sparkly Running of the Ears sign.

GO ROTE!

A ROTE friend who was running snapped this one of me (thanks Gina!)

Anyway, the point is one of the reasons I went into business for myself was to help earn money to pay for my Disney (and Disney race) obsession...among other things.  And that’s where the growing-my-business part comes in to play.

So that is my goal right now-growing my business.  I’m working on a few things regarding marketing.  And I want to create a tie with my other blog, The Disney World Files as well--I believe that my blog and my business complement each other and each can help the other thrive.  It takes a lot of time to do the behind-the-scenes stuff; but for me it is so very worth it.  If you have the time and inclination, I’m always looking for feedback on my website, www.enchanteddreamvacations.com as well as my blog at www.thedisneyworldfiles.com (don’t worry, as long as you’re offering constructive criticism you won’t hurt my feelings-I know there are things I can do better).

And while this is an important goal for me, it’s not the only one I have-hence the “part 1” in the title of this post.  Part 2 will be coming shortly...stay tuned friends...

And the Winner is...

So my first giveaway came to a close and that means it was time to pick a winner!  Congratulations to...................... Amy, my first giveaway winner!

And thank you so much to those who participated...while there were not a ton of entries (probably due to the simple prize I put up since this was a test run), I was able to see exactly how the Rafflecopter widget worked, figure out how to customize some things and so forth.  It was so simple to use and I love how you could see all the information from the entries in one nice spreadsheet.  And picking a winner is simple-just click the button.  So if anyone out there is looking for an easy way to run an online giveaway, yes I do recommend Rafflecopter (in case you hadn't figured it out yet).

Now that I am familiar with the widget, I'll be planning other giveaways for this blog and my other blog, The Disney World Files.  Of course the giveaways over there will be Disney-related...I hope my readers over here will check out my Disney blog...feel free to suggest topics or offer any feedback.  I'm working on expanding that blog with more frequent posts, adding informational pages, adding the giveaways, possibly guest posts and so on.  I've already changed the domain name from a blogspot one to www.thedisneyworldfiles.com to make it more official/professional (big thanks to my DH for helping me out...he's my computer guru!).

Now back to my regular scheduled blogging program...

ONLY the Marathon

I already knew I’d be doing the full marathon at Walt Disney World for January 2014.  Once they made the announcement about adding a 10K and Dopey (doing the 5K, 10K, Half Marathon and full Marathon), I was also thinking I would add on the 10K since it’s on Friday and the Marathon isn’t until Sunday...what’s another 6.2 miles, right?  Well, now I can rest easy knowing I’ve saved $100...the 10K has already sold out.  And that leads me to the title of my post...I’m ONLY doing the Marathon.  Betcha never thought you’d hear that phrase coming from me, huh?  That’s right, I’ll JUST be doing 26.2 miles for the weekend.  Ha!

Well, I’ll be getting 26.2 miles of fun on the same course from the 20th anniversary year.    Apparently there will be a new marathon medal for 2014 so at least I’ll get one different from the one I got back in 2011.  I’m planning on volunteering again, probably one or two shifts at the expo as well as the 5K and 10K.  I’m planning on cheering for the half again as well...need to be there on Main Street with my glittery ROTE sign!

Should be another fantastic trip...who’s coming along with me?

Oh, and don’t forget, if you’re headed to Marathon Weekend too, I can help you book your trip...just drop me line ;-)

Here's some memories from 2011: