ColoradoLime
wait awhile between eating and goat staring
- Joined
- Dec 21, 2008
My Introduction
First off…I’m not a runner. But I am a racer. An Obstacle Course Racer (OCR) to be exact. I’ve crawled under barbed wire, hauled logs, and climbed mountains. But I’ve never done a half marathon…that all changes in 2017.
My name is Emily. I’m a mom of two, work full time, and live in Denver.
My Racing History
Let me tell you a bit about my background in racing…
In 2012 I started walking for exercise to help me lose weight. I would walk every day during lunch, after dinner and on the weekends. I loved walking! One day a friend of mine invited me to join her team to do a mud run. I’d done 5ks before, but never one with obstacles. I don’t mind getting dirty so I signed up. It turned out to be 90 minutes of hell. Sand pits, slippery walls, hills and more hills in the hot August sun. I was dead last. So last that the kids race had to start late because I was still on the course.
I cried when I crossed the finish line, I was just so exhausted. This picture shows our team. I’m the one on the far left - not posing because I was so tired I couldn’t even raise my arms and could barely smile. I just wanted to go home.
2012 Merrell Down n Dirty Mud Run
But later when I was clean and rested I started thinking about what I actually accomplished. Despite the heat, the obstacles, the pain and the suffering…I never gave up. I pushed my body to the limit and I still finished. Something clicked inside me and my inner athlete woke up. I was hooked on OCRs and wanted to do more things like this:
2012 Merrell Down n Dirty Mud Run
In 2013 I did a few more races. My obsession grew. I started feeling invincible so I set a new goal. 14 races in 2014. I signed up for a combination of OCRs and road races. (I ended up actually doing 15!)
2014 Survivor Mud Run
2014 Rugged Maniac
2014 Denver Rock n Roll 10k
2014 Snowmass Ragnar Trail Relay
The Spartan Race
At one race I met a woman who told me about a local group of racers and I became an official member of Colorado Obstacle Racers.
It was this group that introduced me to The Spartan Race. All I knew in the beginning was that you get to throw arrows and pick up heavy things. For some reason that sounded like so much fun so I signed up for the 2014 Spartan Race!
The Spartan Race has three levels, I signed up for the lowest one, The Sprint. I talked my brother in to doing it with me (I think he may hate me now!).
They say The Sprint is between 3-5 miles with around 12-15 obstacles. (They never disclose the actual distance, part of the mind games they play to challenge your brain in addition to your muscle).
I climbed mountains (literally!), lifted heavy things, and even fell off an obstacle so hard my shoes flew off my feet!
2014 Montana Spartan Sprint
2014 Montana Spartan Sprint
It took us 4 hours to complete the race. You read that right…FOUR hours! There are several things the course designers do to challenge you mentally and physically and I cried no less than fives times on that course.
2014 Montana Spartan Sprint
Again, it was physically grueling but there was something about it that made me keep going back. So in 2015, I completed another Spartan Sprint. This time, I did it in under 2 hours.
2015 Ft. Carson Spartan Sprint
Then Laziness Hit
Mid-2015 my personal life went south big time. I used every excuse in the book to avoid exercising and taking care of myself. I completed the 2015 Spartan in May and didn't do a single race after that. And nothing in 2016. That's nearly 18 months of sitting on my butt.
I’ve gained 30lbs on top of already being overweight. For months I’ve been wanted to change but haven't been able to find my motivation.
A Disney Family
We've been to WDW in 2009 (when it was just the three of us) and DL in 2013 so my son could experience the magic. The kids and my hubby have been begging to go back ever since. My son was only three at the time, I'm not even sure he remembers the trip!
Two months ago we moved in to our first home. We had been saving up for it for three years and I kept telling the kids no Disney until we move. Now that we’re settled in the house, the kids started asking when we would go back. I really wanted something different for our vacation, but I was out voted 3-1 for Disney, so we compromised and decided on DL Paris. The marathon weekend in Paris lined up with our dates so I figured it would be fun for all of us to do a 5k while we were there.
The Challenge
Then I found out about the Castle to Chateau Challenge. The only problem was that it’s only available for the half marathon. I’ve never done a half marathon – let alone two in one year! But if my previous races have taught me anything it’s that my body is capable of more than my mind thinks it is. So…that brings me here because I have a lot of training to do!
I feel like I need to earn the medal when I'm in Paris because that will just make it all the more special. Since the Paris race weekend is in September, I had to find a race that was before that date, but also far enough out to allow time to train. So right now I'm focused on the Tinkerbell Half in May.
Every OCR I do pushes me to my limits. I cry, I curse, and I bleed. But at the end, when I jump over the fire and grab my medal all of that pain disappears because I'm rewarded again with the knowledge that I did something I didn’t think I was capable of doing. That is why I race. That is why I know I can do the Castle to Chateau Challenge.
My Training Goals
- My Meal Plan: Have to get back to eating Keto. It’s all that works for me. I must commit to it and live it every day. Today (Sunday) is a meal prepping day and Monday will be my Day 1.
- Walking: I’m going to walk during my lunch hour at least three days a week – five if my schedule allows it. My daily step goal to start is 7,500 steps. I will increase this to 10,000 steps as I get further along in my training.
- Training Plan: I’ll be following the Disney training plan for the marathon doing the run walk run method as much as I can. Ultimately this is to work on my pace to get it to a minimum of 15 min/mile. Remember, I'm not a runner so this will be a challenge for me!!
That’s it for now. I hope you’ll join me on this journey to help motivate me!
First off…I’m not a runner. But I am a racer. An Obstacle Course Racer (OCR) to be exact. I’ve crawled under barbed wire, hauled logs, and climbed mountains. But I’ve never done a half marathon…that all changes in 2017.
My name is Emily. I’m a mom of two, work full time, and live in Denver.
My Racing History
Let me tell you a bit about my background in racing…
In 2012 I started walking for exercise to help me lose weight. I would walk every day during lunch, after dinner and on the weekends. I loved walking! One day a friend of mine invited me to join her team to do a mud run. I’d done 5ks before, but never one with obstacles. I don’t mind getting dirty so I signed up. It turned out to be 90 minutes of hell. Sand pits, slippery walls, hills and more hills in the hot August sun. I was dead last. So last that the kids race had to start late because I was still on the course.
I cried when I crossed the finish line, I was just so exhausted. This picture shows our team. I’m the one on the far left - not posing because I was so tired I couldn’t even raise my arms and could barely smile. I just wanted to go home.
2012 Merrell Down n Dirty Mud Run
But later when I was clean and rested I started thinking about what I actually accomplished. Despite the heat, the obstacles, the pain and the suffering…I never gave up. I pushed my body to the limit and I still finished. Something clicked inside me and my inner athlete woke up. I was hooked on OCRs and wanted to do more things like this:
2012 Merrell Down n Dirty Mud Run
In 2013 I did a few more races. My obsession grew. I started feeling invincible so I set a new goal. 14 races in 2014. I signed up for a combination of OCRs and road races. (I ended up actually doing 15!)
2014 Survivor Mud Run
2014 Rugged Maniac
2014 Denver Rock n Roll 10k
2014 Snowmass Ragnar Trail Relay
The Spartan Race
At one race I met a woman who told me about a local group of racers and I became an official member of Colorado Obstacle Racers.
It was this group that introduced me to The Spartan Race. All I knew in the beginning was that you get to throw arrows and pick up heavy things. For some reason that sounded like so much fun so I signed up for the 2014 Spartan Race!
The Spartan Race has three levels, I signed up for the lowest one, The Sprint. I talked my brother in to doing it with me (I think he may hate me now!).
They say The Sprint is between 3-5 miles with around 12-15 obstacles. (They never disclose the actual distance, part of the mind games they play to challenge your brain in addition to your muscle).
I climbed mountains (literally!), lifted heavy things, and even fell off an obstacle so hard my shoes flew off my feet!
2014 Montana Spartan Sprint
2014 Montana Spartan Sprint
It took us 4 hours to complete the race. You read that right…FOUR hours! There are several things the course designers do to challenge you mentally and physically and I cried no less than fives times on that course.
2014 Montana Spartan Sprint
Again, it was physically grueling but there was something about it that made me keep going back. So in 2015, I completed another Spartan Sprint. This time, I did it in under 2 hours.
2015 Ft. Carson Spartan Sprint
Then Laziness Hit
Mid-2015 my personal life went south big time. I used every excuse in the book to avoid exercising and taking care of myself. I completed the 2015 Spartan in May and didn't do a single race after that. And nothing in 2016. That's nearly 18 months of sitting on my butt.
I’ve gained 30lbs on top of already being overweight. For months I’ve been wanted to change but haven't been able to find my motivation.
A Disney Family
We've been to WDW in 2009 (when it was just the three of us) and DL in 2013 so my son could experience the magic. The kids and my hubby have been begging to go back ever since. My son was only three at the time, I'm not even sure he remembers the trip!
Two months ago we moved in to our first home. We had been saving up for it for three years and I kept telling the kids no Disney until we move. Now that we’re settled in the house, the kids started asking when we would go back. I really wanted something different for our vacation, but I was out voted 3-1 for Disney, so we compromised and decided on DL Paris. The marathon weekend in Paris lined up with our dates so I figured it would be fun for all of us to do a 5k while we were there.
The Challenge
Then I found out about the Castle to Chateau Challenge. The only problem was that it’s only available for the half marathon. I’ve never done a half marathon – let alone two in one year! But if my previous races have taught me anything it’s that my body is capable of more than my mind thinks it is. So…that brings me here because I have a lot of training to do!
I feel like I need to earn the medal when I'm in Paris because that will just make it all the more special. Since the Paris race weekend is in September, I had to find a race that was before that date, but also far enough out to allow time to train. So right now I'm focused on the Tinkerbell Half in May.
Every OCR I do pushes me to my limits. I cry, I curse, and I bleed. But at the end, when I jump over the fire and grab my medal all of that pain disappears because I'm rewarded again with the knowledge that I did something I didn’t think I was capable of doing. That is why I race. That is why I know I can do the Castle to Chateau Challenge.
My Training Goals
- My Meal Plan: Have to get back to eating Keto. It’s all that works for me. I must commit to it and live it every day. Today (Sunday) is a meal prepping day and Monday will be my Day 1.
- Walking: I’m going to walk during my lunch hour at least three days a week – five if my schedule allows it. My daily step goal to start is 7,500 steps. I will increase this to 10,000 steps as I get further along in my training.
- Training Plan: I’ll be following the Disney training plan for the marathon doing the run walk run method as much as I can. Ultimately this is to work on my pace to get it to a minimum of 15 min/mile. Remember, I'm not a runner so this will be a challenge for me!!
That’s it for now. I hope you’ll join me on this journey to help motivate me!
