Barca33Runner's Journal: Thanks For Noticin' Me(Comments Welcome)
- Thread starter Barca33Runner
- Start date
Barca33Runner
Please excuse the crudity of this model
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2014
It is the first ever pic that we’ve waited for at MNSSHP. Even during races I have such an aversion to lines that I rarely get any character pics. Eeyore is my favorite character though (I probably have too much eeyore stuff) and after seeing them last year I knew I needed that picture. I was so happy to see the line in the 30-minute range at around 10:30 and after we had finished riding everything (and most things twice). It was the one thing at the top of my list for the party so I was really happy we were able to get it done.
The Peter Pan float is lime soft-serve and sprite with a red chocolate feather. The feather is purely decoration, I could hardly say it tasted like anything, but the lime soft-serve was better than I expected and it teams up really well with sprite. Particularly in the heat. The Maleficent cones had the same lime soft-serve and my sister and niece were in agreement about its merits.
Jules76126
Practically Perfect in Every Way
- Joined
- Apr 3, 2006
Barca33Runner
Please excuse the crudity of this model
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2014
I’ve had a lot of thoughts in the aftermath of my trip about how to move forward with my running and really get my training back in high gear. I know that I’m happier when I’m training, I know that both mentally and physically I feel better when I’m training, I know that races and race weekends are so much more fun and fulfilling when I’m chasing PRs instead of scrambling to finish, I know that I’m more than a little chunkier in those pics than I’d like, and on and on.
So I know all of these things and yet I’m still at the crossroads trying to figure out how to turn knowledge into action. Ultimately, there is nothing but to do it; however, I’m giving myself a little extra Disney-related motivation to maybe try to keep a bit of a carrot out in front of me.
I have had so much fun the last couple years going down for a quick September trip for the Halloween party and whatever else I could fit in. The only regret this time was being unable to carve out a little more time to take in Food and Wine and maybe make it over to AK. Part of that was because I let my AP lapse last year and didn’t want to buy more tickets. Well, with January coming up I’m already considering tickets and what will make the most sense. I know that I’d also like to do another September trip next year and maybe plan it a little better and further in advance.
Therefore, my carrot for the next couple months is once again purchasing an AP and doing a bit more of an extended September trip next year. I have worked out some difficult, but attainable goals (weight, distance, and time related) with an end game to know by Thanksgiving exactly what I will be planning: achieve the goals-AP, September trip, and a December of proper training for Dopey; fall short of the goals-no AP, no second trip, and likely a hellish December trying to cram for a Dopey Challenge.
So I’ve got my work cut out for me. Ultimately, the biggest motivation is getting rid of that feeling of dread about finishing Dopey that has plagued me and somewhat paralyzed my thoughts and actions the last few years. But, you know, some Disney motivation never hurts either.
So I know all of these things and yet I’m still at the crossroads trying to figure out how to turn knowledge into action. Ultimately, there is nothing but to do it; however, I’m giving myself a little extra Disney-related motivation to maybe try to keep a bit of a carrot out in front of me.
I have had so much fun the last couple years going down for a quick September trip for the Halloween party and whatever else I could fit in. The only regret this time was being unable to carve out a little more time to take in Food and Wine and maybe make it over to AK. Part of that was because I let my AP lapse last year and didn’t want to buy more tickets. Well, with January coming up I’m already considering tickets and what will make the most sense. I know that I’d also like to do another September trip next year and maybe plan it a little better and further in advance.
Therefore, my carrot for the next couple months is once again purchasing an AP and doing a bit more of an extended September trip next year. I have worked out some difficult, but attainable goals (weight, distance, and time related) with an end game to know by Thanksgiving exactly what I will be planning: achieve the goals-AP, September trip, and a December of proper training for Dopey; fall short of the goals-no AP, no second trip, and likely a hellish December trying to cram for a Dopey Challenge.
So I’ve got my work cut out for me. Ultimately, the biggest motivation is getting rid of that feeling of dread about finishing Dopey that has plagued me and somewhat paralyzed my thoughts and actions the last few years. But, you know, some Disney motivation never hurts either.
BikeFan
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 12, 2003
Sometimes, you need to spend a little time to remember what you've accomplished before. You've finished 6 marathons (and maybe more that aren't in your sig?)!! That's something to be proud of! And you know how hard it is and you've still signed up for more! That takes courage. You got this. It's just one foot in front of the other!
Barca33Runner
Please excuse the crudity of this model
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2014
Going to get this bad boy restarted soon. Hoping to get a short Marathon Weekend recap done by Sunday night.
Barca33Runner
Please excuse the crudity of this model
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2014
Going to do a little shorter recap than in the past, but hopefully it’ll be a decent read.
Wednesday, January 9
Our flight was delayed after pulling back into the gate to fix a radio and then needed to de-ice after there was th smallest amount of snow after we pulled back into the gate (literally the smallest amount; 0 accumulation and you could practically count the individual snowflakes that fell). We landed and got to the resort at about 1:30 PM, which was about 30-45 minutes later than anticipated. Wasn’t a big deal, we only had the expo and dinner at 5 at Morimoto that evening. Expo went great. Much more organized than last year. Wasn’t feeling particularly worthy of any extra swag this year so I just picked my shirts up and tagged along as the rest of my group shopped. Dinner at Morimoto was excellent. Had been a few years since we had eaten there, but it was better than remembered. We ate family style. Standout was the ribs, which I tried for the first time. Couldn’t resist the mermaid cupcake (it had coconut on top and a pineapple filling, I was powerless against such enticements) when we got back to Art of Animation where we were staying in a Lion King family suite:
It was off to bed after that. First race the next day.
Thursday, January 10
Up for the 5k at about 3 AM. Six years into Dopey and still not used to the wake ups. Ended up being perfect weather for Eeyore. I was nice and comfy during the build up to the race:
We tried to get a few pics as we went by some of the photographers in Epcot, but nothing came off. We didn’t bunch up well enough and didn’t want to deviate and potentially ruin others pictures. Got a nice one with my sister after the race:
After the race my sister, her friend and I went to Hollywood Studios while my mom waited for my dad to arrive and go to the expo (my mom finished the 5k and 10k, my dad could only come for the 10k which he finished as well). We waited for Slinky Dog for about 35 minutes after we arrived which was well under the 65 minute wait that was posted. We didn’t rope drop or rush back by any means and we arrived at about 9:45; this was just the first instance of the gloriously normalized crowds that we experienced this week vs. the last two holiday/school break Marathon Weekends. We had FP+ for Toy Story Mania, Star Tours, and Rock n Roller Coaster. RnRC was down when we went to ride and we got a FP+ that we used on ToT instead. We didn’t really hit any of the shows at the right time, so we left after hitting those rides and headed to Disney Springs to meet up with my parents. At 4 PM we had reservations at Homecomin’. By that point I was feeling very nauseous and had a huge migraine. This happens to me from time to time during training and at Disney. I’m not sure if it’s a sugar deficiency or some type of dehydration/lack of electrolyte issue, but it hits hard for about 2 hours and I usually feel fine afterward. Anyway I can’t give a fair critique of the food because I couldn’t eat while we were there. I got a chicken sandwich that I was able to eat when I got back to the room, but since that’s not the timeframe in which it is intended to be eaten it would be unfair to judge. As reheated chicken sandwiches go it was a reheated chicken sandwich. The rest of the group didn’t rave, but with me being visibly miserable during the meal I’m sure that probably shaded their impressions. I was asleep by 6:30, the earliest ever for any Dopey race for me.
Friday, January 11
Even though I believe the weather was substantially the same as the 5k I was miserable waiting for the 10k. I had no Mylar or trash bag, we got there too early, and I basically shivered for 2 hours waiting to run. Other than that it was a pretty standard 10k. We had a big day at Animal Kingdom planned afterward. We arrived and had about 30 minutes before our first FP+ at EE. We headed toward dinosaur and decided to stop for a picture with Launchpad McQuack on the way:
We had about a 15 minute wait for Dinosaur afterward and then head for EE. We hit EE, Gorilla Falls, and Kilimanjaro Safari before lunch at Tusker House. I was a little worried about my dad as he has a very midwestern palate: meat and potatoes, balks at anything remotely international (even if it is meat and potatoes, just in different form). He didn’t have any issue and I thought the food and characters were great as always. I’ve never had a bad meal there, but it is a much better experience on a day like this one where it wasn’t packed to the gills and they weren’t rushing people to open up tables. After lunch we had about an hour to our FOP FP+. Na’vi River Journey had a 60 minute wait so we got in line. This was the only ride all trip that exceeded the predicted wait time. We were in line for about 75 minutes so we still made FoP in plenty of time. NRJ is still incredibly underwhelming and FoP was even better than I remembered. These two rides are such a stark contrast of Disney’s duality: FoP is such a wonderful combo of IP, innovation and imagination; NRJ feels like an afterthought meant merely to divert some crowds. I guess they need both types and I’m sure the imagineers responsible for NRJ wouldn’t like my classification, but that’s how it feels. After that we were pretty burnt out and I wasn’t going to burn the candle at both ends with the Half and Full still to come so we headed back to AoA and relaxed before getting to sleep.
Saturday, January 12
Just a ho hum Half. It’s my least favorite course and the race that tends to blur out in my memory the most. I tried to conserve energy and it seemed to work OK, but other than that I don’t recall much interesting about the race. Our meal that day was brunch at Raglan Road at 12:30. It was a great meal. I wanted some carbs and had pancakes and hash (I was going to get pancakes and onion rings, but it seemed like too odd of a combination). We had planned on seeing a movie afterward, but there was nothing we really wanted to see. We went back to the room, relaxed and I got to sleep about 7:00 for the Marathon.
Sunday, January 13
I did not sleep well. I was incredibly anxious over the Marathon. I didn’t think I could finish because I hadn’t prepared well enough. For the last couple of years I’ve been embarrassed at how poorly I’ve trained whenever I’ve stepped up to the starting line of a race. That has led to stronger feelings of embarrassment about my performances in those races, but I had never had this level of anxiety about even finishing. The race started off pretty well. I didn’t have any GI issues and I was around 14:00 for the first 10 miles, which I was fine with. At that point the wheels pretty much fell off and it was a survival effort. I strongly considered checking out at AK when I came to the resort bus area. It was really the last point where I figured I could expeditiously leave the race; but perseverance is an odd and, at times, stupid thing so I just kept on walking my 18:00 miles and trying to throw in some running here and there. I tried to do intervals for a while, but my calf grabbed and I had to change my gait to avoid what seemed like it could be a pretty bad tear if I kept pushing it. From that point it was merely a question of how long it would take and how bad the blisters would be (they were very bad). Here I am making my best effort to run to the Finish Line:
Fortunately my calf held up for that final stretch. Planning on a bit of a state of the fat guy post for tomorrow in light of my failures and how mortified I am by my current physique and results. I want to change those feelings moving forward.
Afterward I felt pretty decent other than the blisters and being acutely aware of how much sugar and salt I had consumed in order to avoid dehydration and exhaustion on the course. I knew I needed some solid food and probably ate a little too much pizza when we got back to the room (at least in light of our Ohana dinner reservation). My little toe on my right foot was entirely encased in blister and I had a small, but very painful, blister on my left forefoot. I watched some football, relaxed and then prepared to go out to Ohana for dinner. Ohana was really good. I wish I was hungrier, but I ate my fair share of dumplings, noodles, chicken and beef. Our server was slow with the shrimp and I was stuffed by the time they made it over with it and chose to save room for bread pudding instead. We had planned to go over to MK for Happily Ever After, but we were wiped and didn’t really want to fight the crowds on the way out so we headed back to the room and called it a night
Monday, January 13
My dad had his flight out on Sunday night. He left on DME when we left for Ohana. So we had a slightly smaller group for Epcot. My mom and I made it over earlier than my sister and her friend, so we headed to The Seas with Nemo to wait for them before our FP+ for Soarin’. After they arrived we decided to stop and visit with Ralph and Vanellope before Soarin’:
After Soarin’ we decided to start our drink/snack around the world. We went the wrong way for the Dis DATW because our first stop had to be at Les Halles for some “breakfast.” I got my usual Palmier, which was breakfast-y enough. It was a pretty normal Epcot day other than that. We tried Via Napoli for the first time. I had made a reservation in conjunction with DATW plans, but we were off-schedule and hungry and were able to get seated over 30 minutes early (I thought I might have seen the group as we were walking out, but I’m not sure). Anyway, it was pretty good. I’ll definitely not avoid it, but it likely won’t move to the top of my reservation list either. We finished up around the world and had a decision to make at about 3 pm. Stay at Epcot the rest of the day or come up with something else. My sister was leaving the next day so we decided to go to MK that evening for Happily Ever After. After a couple hours back at the resort we headed to MK. We planned on hitting a couple rides, but it was cold and we wanted to find somewhere warm to eat. We made a reservation at Skipper Canteen. Second time I’ve eaten there and it’s been good both times. After hat hat we were just in time for HEA. This was the first time I’ve seen it in the parks and it’s pretty amazing. I’m not much of a fireworks person, so the emphasis on castle projection is a big win in my book.
Tuesday, January 14
Just my mom and I left from our group. We were headed to MK for the day. We hit pretty much everything in the park outside of Splash Mountain (it’s my favorite, but it was a little cold to get wet). My mom isn’t much for thrill rides, so she was out when I waited for Space Mountain:
It wouldn’t be a Disney trip for me without getting bamboozled by the Space Mountain camera .
The big first for the day was dinner at BOG. Despite a ton of confusion at the disjointed seating process (it was the only restaurant all week that was getting slammed when we were there), the meal was fantastic. The octopus appetizer was my favorite thing I ate all trip (although if you aren’t a fan of the briny goodness of olives it probably wouldn’t work for you). The filet was excellent as well. It’s pricey, but (for Disney) I can’t say I was upset at the value for money. We decided not to wait for HEA again (cold, been there all day, didn’t want to fight the crowds for a bus).
Wednesday, January 15
Last day of the trip. We had a Slinky Dog FP+ and rode the hits at Hollywood Studios:
Once again, RnRC was down so I transferred the FP+ to ToT. We finished up early and headed to Sana’a at 1:00. I said the octopus at BOG was my favorite of the week, but it’s hard to beat Sana’a bread service. I just had the burger as an entree and it was fantastic as well. Unchallenged as my personal favorite on property. I’ll always go out of my way to get there.
Afterward we decided to head back to Epcot. I had seen some bowls while walking through Mitsukoshi on Monday and decided I wouldn’t go souvenir free for the week; even if it was the least Disney souvenir ever. While we were there we stopped to ride Frozen Ever After. Less than 1 hour wait at 3 PM didn’t seem bad:
That was pretty much the end of the trip. Packing beckoned and we were flying out Thursday.
All in all it was a successful trip. I wasn’t happy with the way I prepared for the races and am disappointed in myself for having no choice but to persevere through them, but I finished and I’ve got to improve if I want to complete Dopey #7 next year. I changed my ticket to an AP at the end of my trip, so I’m looking forward to next year. I’m contemplating going down for Star Wars Rivals Weekend as my target half for this spring, but that’s still theoretical at this point.
Thanks for reading along, be back tomorrow with a critique of what I need to do moving forward.
Wednesday, January 9
Our flight was delayed after pulling back into the gate to fix a radio and then needed to de-ice after there was th smallest amount of snow after we pulled back into the gate (literally the smallest amount; 0 accumulation and you could practically count the individual snowflakes that fell). We landed and got to the resort at about 1:30 PM, which was about 30-45 minutes later than anticipated. Wasn’t a big deal, we only had the expo and dinner at 5 at Morimoto that evening. Expo went great. Much more organized than last year. Wasn’t feeling particularly worthy of any extra swag this year so I just picked my shirts up and tagged along as the rest of my group shopped. Dinner at Morimoto was excellent. Had been a few years since we had eaten there, but it was better than remembered. We ate family style. Standout was the ribs, which I tried for the first time. Couldn’t resist the mermaid cupcake (it had coconut on top and a pineapple filling, I was powerless against such enticements) when we got back to Art of Animation where we were staying in a Lion King family suite:
It was off to bed after that. First race the next day.
Thursday, January 10
Up for the 5k at about 3 AM. Six years into Dopey and still not used to the wake ups. Ended up being perfect weather for Eeyore. I was nice and comfy during the build up to the race:
We tried to get a few pics as we went by some of the photographers in Epcot, but nothing came off. We didn’t bunch up well enough and didn’t want to deviate and potentially ruin others pictures. Got a nice one with my sister after the race:
After the race my sister, her friend and I went to Hollywood Studios while my mom waited for my dad to arrive and go to the expo (my mom finished the 5k and 10k, my dad could only come for the 10k which he finished as well). We waited for Slinky Dog for about 35 minutes after we arrived which was well under the 65 minute wait that was posted. We didn’t rope drop or rush back by any means and we arrived at about 9:45; this was just the first instance of the gloriously normalized crowds that we experienced this week vs. the last two holiday/school break Marathon Weekends. We had FP+ for Toy Story Mania, Star Tours, and Rock n Roller Coaster. RnRC was down when we went to ride and we got a FP+ that we used on ToT instead. We didn’t really hit any of the shows at the right time, so we left after hitting those rides and headed to Disney Springs to meet up with my parents. At 4 PM we had reservations at Homecomin’. By that point I was feeling very nauseous and had a huge migraine. This happens to me from time to time during training and at Disney. I’m not sure if it’s a sugar deficiency or some type of dehydration/lack of electrolyte issue, but it hits hard for about 2 hours and I usually feel fine afterward. Anyway I can’t give a fair critique of the food because I couldn’t eat while we were there. I got a chicken sandwich that I was able to eat when I got back to the room, but since that’s not the timeframe in which it is intended to be eaten it would be unfair to judge. As reheated chicken sandwiches go it was a reheated chicken sandwich. The rest of the group didn’t rave, but with me being visibly miserable during the meal I’m sure that probably shaded their impressions. I was asleep by 6:30, the earliest ever for any Dopey race for me.
Friday, January 11
Even though I believe the weather was substantially the same as the 5k I was miserable waiting for the 10k. I had no Mylar or trash bag, we got there too early, and I basically shivered for 2 hours waiting to run. Other than that it was a pretty standard 10k. We had a big day at Animal Kingdom planned afterward. We arrived and had about 30 minutes before our first FP+ at EE. We headed toward dinosaur and decided to stop for a picture with Launchpad McQuack on the way:
We had about a 15 minute wait for Dinosaur afterward and then head for EE. We hit EE, Gorilla Falls, and Kilimanjaro Safari before lunch at Tusker House. I was a little worried about my dad as he has a very midwestern palate: meat and potatoes, balks at anything remotely international (even if it is meat and potatoes, just in different form). He didn’t have any issue and I thought the food and characters were great as always. I’ve never had a bad meal there, but it is a much better experience on a day like this one where it wasn’t packed to the gills and they weren’t rushing people to open up tables. After lunch we had about an hour to our FOP FP+. Na’vi River Journey had a 60 minute wait so we got in line. This was the only ride all trip that exceeded the predicted wait time. We were in line for about 75 minutes so we still made FoP in plenty of time. NRJ is still incredibly underwhelming and FoP was even better than I remembered. These two rides are such a stark contrast of Disney’s duality: FoP is such a wonderful combo of IP, innovation and imagination; NRJ feels like an afterthought meant merely to divert some crowds. I guess they need both types and I’m sure the imagineers responsible for NRJ wouldn’t like my classification, but that’s how it feels. After that we were pretty burnt out and I wasn’t going to burn the candle at both ends with the Half and Full still to come so we headed back to AoA and relaxed before getting to sleep.
Saturday, January 12
Just a ho hum Half. It’s my least favorite course and the race that tends to blur out in my memory the most. I tried to conserve energy and it seemed to work OK, but other than that I don’t recall much interesting about the race. Our meal that day was brunch at Raglan Road at 12:30. It was a great meal. I wanted some carbs and had pancakes and hash (I was going to get pancakes and onion rings, but it seemed like too odd of a combination). We had planned on seeing a movie afterward, but there was nothing we really wanted to see. We went back to the room, relaxed and I got to sleep about 7:00 for the Marathon.
Sunday, January 13
I did not sleep well. I was incredibly anxious over the Marathon. I didn’t think I could finish because I hadn’t prepared well enough. For the last couple of years I’ve been embarrassed at how poorly I’ve trained whenever I’ve stepped up to the starting line of a race. That has led to stronger feelings of embarrassment about my performances in those races, but I had never had this level of anxiety about even finishing. The race started off pretty well. I didn’t have any GI issues and I was around 14:00 for the first 10 miles, which I was fine with. At that point the wheels pretty much fell off and it was a survival effort. I strongly considered checking out at AK when I came to the resort bus area. It was really the last point where I figured I could expeditiously leave the race; but perseverance is an odd and, at times, stupid thing so I just kept on walking my 18:00 miles and trying to throw in some running here and there. I tried to do intervals for a while, but my calf grabbed and I had to change my gait to avoid what seemed like it could be a pretty bad tear if I kept pushing it. From that point it was merely a question of how long it would take and how bad the blisters would be (they were very bad). Here I am making my best effort to run to the Finish Line:
Fortunately my calf held up for that final stretch. Planning on a bit of a state of the fat guy post for tomorrow in light of my failures and how mortified I am by my current physique and results. I want to change those feelings moving forward.
Afterward I felt pretty decent other than the blisters and being acutely aware of how much sugar and salt I had consumed in order to avoid dehydration and exhaustion on the course. I knew I needed some solid food and probably ate a little too much pizza when we got back to the room (at least in light of our Ohana dinner reservation). My little toe on my right foot was entirely encased in blister and I had a small, but very painful, blister on my left forefoot. I watched some football, relaxed and then prepared to go out to Ohana for dinner. Ohana was really good. I wish I was hungrier, but I ate my fair share of dumplings, noodles, chicken and beef. Our server was slow with the shrimp and I was stuffed by the time they made it over with it and chose to save room for bread pudding instead. We had planned to go over to MK for Happily Ever After, but we were wiped and didn’t really want to fight the crowds on the way out so we headed back to the room and called it a night
Monday, January 13
My dad had his flight out on Sunday night. He left on DME when we left for Ohana. So we had a slightly smaller group for Epcot. My mom and I made it over earlier than my sister and her friend, so we headed to The Seas with Nemo to wait for them before our FP+ for Soarin’. After they arrived we decided to stop and visit with Ralph and Vanellope before Soarin’:
After Soarin’ we decided to start our drink/snack around the world. We went the wrong way for the Dis DATW because our first stop had to be at Les Halles for some “breakfast.” I got my usual Palmier, which was breakfast-y enough. It was a pretty normal Epcot day other than that. We tried Via Napoli for the first time. I had made a reservation in conjunction with DATW plans, but we were off-schedule and hungry and were able to get seated over 30 minutes early (I thought I might have seen the group as we were walking out, but I’m not sure). Anyway, it was pretty good. I’ll definitely not avoid it, but it likely won’t move to the top of my reservation list either. We finished up around the world and had a decision to make at about 3 pm. Stay at Epcot the rest of the day or come up with something else. My sister was leaving the next day so we decided to go to MK that evening for Happily Ever After. After a couple hours back at the resort we headed to MK. We planned on hitting a couple rides, but it was cold and we wanted to find somewhere warm to eat. We made a reservation at Skipper Canteen. Second time I’ve eaten there and it’s been good both times. After hat hat we were just in time for HEA. This was the first time I’ve seen it in the parks and it’s pretty amazing. I’m not much of a fireworks person, so the emphasis on castle projection is a big win in my book.
Tuesday, January 14
Just my mom and I left from our group. We were headed to MK for the day. We hit pretty much everything in the park outside of Splash Mountain (it’s my favorite, but it was a little cold to get wet). My mom isn’t much for thrill rides, so she was out when I waited for Space Mountain:
It wouldn’t be a Disney trip for me without getting bamboozled by the Space Mountain camera .
The big first for the day was dinner at BOG. Despite a ton of confusion at the disjointed seating process (it was the only restaurant all week that was getting slammed when we were there), the meal was fantastic. The octopus appetizer was my favorite thing I ate all trip (although if you aren’t a fan of the briny goodness of olives it probably wouldn’t work for you). The filet was excellent as well. It’s pricey, but (for Disney) I can’t say I was upset at the value for money. We decided not to wait for HEA again (cold, been there all day, didn’t want to fight the crowds for a bus).
Wednesday, January 15
Last day of the trip. We had a Slinky Dog FP+ and rode the hits at Hollywood Studios:
Once again, RnRC was down so I transferred the FP+ to ToT. We finished up early and headed to Sana’a at 1:00. I said the octopus at BOG was my favorite of the week, but it’s hard to beat Sana’a bread service. I just had the burger as an entree and it was fantastic as well. Unchallenged as my personal favorite on property. I’ll always go out of my way to get there.Afterward we decided to head back to Epcot. I had seen some bowls while walking through Mitsukoshi on Monday and decided I wouldn’t go souvenir free for the week; even if it was the least Disney souvenir ever. While we were there we stopped to ride Frozen Ever After. Less than 1 hour wait at 3 PM didn’t seem bad:
That was pretty much the end of the trip. Packing beckoned and we were flying out Thursday.
All in all it was a successful trip. I wasn’t happy with the way I prepared for the races and am disappointed in myself for having no choice but to persevere through them, but I finished and I’ve got to improve if I want to complete Dopey #7 next year. I changed my ticket to an AP at the end of my trip, so I’m looking forward to next year. I’m contemplating going down for Star Wars Rivals Weekend as my target half for this spring, but that’s still theoretical at this point.
Thanks for reading along, be back tomorrow with a critique of what I need to do moving forward.
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cavepig
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2001
Great trip recap! Looks like you had a ton fun, well not the marathon so much or the sick feeling after the 5k. But, you finished Dopey again, that's freaking amazing! Anytime I try to look at the camera on Space I get it wrong, it is funny though. So, when I handed out water in the 5k I thought about you in your warm Eeyore suit since you had mentioned it before. I saw a group that could have been you, but who knows with so many people.
Have you looked into Injinji Toe Socks to help prevent the blisters maybe?
Have you looked into Injinji Toe Socks to help prevent the blisters maybe?
Barca33Runner
Please excuse the crudity of this model
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2014
I usually don't have blister issues. These popped up because of the issue with my calf and walking 7-ish miles with a changed gait trying to protect it. I've tried toe socks before, but they don't really help or hinder me; plus, I love the Balega's I've been using the last couple years. Definitely appreciate the recommendation; unfortunately, I think they were self-inflicted and my best solution for blisters is being properly trained.
Barca33Runner
Please excuse the crudity of this model
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2014
I’m thinking he was near 7’ tall. I’m 5’10” and he dwarfed me. He gave the girls high fives as they walked up and then dunked on me...
It was a really cool character interaction, and it was definitely a very tall person in that costume.
Barca33Runner
Please excuse the crudity of this model
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2014
Day late with my plan moving forward, but here goes:
I'm sure the bad news is obvious, but I ran Dopey at 225 lbs. Beyond the fact that I know I am nowhere near healthy at that weight, physics was working against me pretty hard. As I said in the recap, I'm beyond mortified at the depth of my reversion and it was really difficult emotionally out on the course. I'm still 35 lbs. lighter than I was when I began running, but I'm 45 heavier than I was 4 years ago. Obviously, I need to change a lot of things.
To start, I am putting Dopey 2020 on the line to help provide motivation for my training and find moderation in my diet. I'm putting my target weight for registration at 190 lbs. I know that weight can be an arbitrary measurement of health, but I know how much better mentally and physically I felt when I was down at that weight and below. It certainly isn't the final destination or the ultimate measuring stick, but it is a difficult but achievable goal and something that will help me to feel better about myself, more deserving, and more self-confident when I'm out on the course. Ultimately, I still have a lot of goals in running: sub-2:00 Half (then maybe sub-1:45 and so on), sub-4:00 Marathon (then sub-3:50, -3:30, BQ?). I know these things are all pipe dreams if I don't get back on the right track.
I don't really know where everything went wrong, but I know that I've been in an extended period of apathy about running and doing what it takes to be fit. I've had the self-loathing but, like I was so good at when I was younger, I took the path of least resistance and pushed it down deeper rather than taking action to fix the things I didn't like about myself. I know I've had several times in the last couple years when I've resolved to change things; it makes me even more embarrassed knowing that I didn't follow through on those promises. I've got to keep trying though. If I resolve 100 times to change and fail all 100 I've still got to be willing to try the 101st time, that might be the one that works. I don't think it'll come to that though. I think this is the time that it'll work, that I'll make it stick, and I'll advance further than I did when I was at my best last time. I'm ready to chase down those goals and I'm not going to give up my Perfect Dopey without a fight.
I'm sure the bad news is obvious, but I ran Dopey at 225 lbs. Beyond the fact that I know I am nowhere near healthy at that weight, physics was working against me pretty hard. As I said in the recap, I'm beyond mortified at the depth of my reversion and it was really difficult emotionally out on the course. I'm still 35 lbs. lighter than I was when I began running, but I'm 45 heavier than I was 4 years ago. Obviously, I need to change a lot of things.
To start, I am putting Dopey 2020 on the line to help provide motivation for my training and find moderation in my diet. I'm putting my target weight for registration at 190 lbs. I know that weight can be an arbitrary measurement of health, but I know how much better mentally and physically I felt when I was down at that weight and below. It certainly isn't the final destination or the ultimate measuring stick, but it is a difficult but achievable goal and something that will help me to feel better about myself, more deserving, and more self-confident when I'm out on the course. Ultimately, I still have a lot of goals in running: sub-2:00 Half (then maybe sub-1:45 and so on), sub-4:00 Marathon (then sub-3:50, -3:30, BQ?). I know these things are all pipe dreams if I don't get back on the right track.
I don't really know where everything went wrong, but I know that I've been in an extended period of apathy about running and doing what it takes to be fit. I've had the self-loathing but, like I was so good at when I was younger, I took the path of least resistance and pushed it down deeper rather than taking action to fix the things I didn't like about myself. I know I've had several times in the last couple years when I've resolved to change things; it makes me even more embarrassed knowing that I didn't follow through on those promises. I've got to keep trying though. If I resolve 100 times to change and fail all 100 I've still got to be willing to try the 101st time, that might be the one that works. I don't think it'll come to that though. I think this is the time that it'll work, that I'll make it stick, and I'll advance further than I did when I was at my best last time. I'm ready to chase down those goals and I'm not going to give up my Perfect Dopey without a fight.
Jules76126
Practically Perfect in Every Way
- Joined
- Apr 3, 2006
Congrats on your perfect Dopey. It's tough when we all set goals and are upset when we don't meet them. Good for you for trying again. Many people would just say I tried, oh well. Best of luck.
Barca33Runner
Please excuse the crudity of this model
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2014
Update:
So, I wouldn't be running my sub-2:00 tomorrow, but I think my training and moderation in my diet are going well so far. I let things get far enough out of hand that this is a full revamp rather than a couple tweaks. I'm going back to what worked for me when I started out, which involved running a lot of weird intervals and at varying speeds. When I've tried to change my routine to conform to what works for others (and likely would work for me if I could keep at it) I get super bored and lose my enthusiasm for my workouts. Unfortunately, it makes runs much easier to skip when I'm somewhat dreading the monotony. I know at some point I'll have to put a little more thought into things if I can get to the point where gains become incremental; but, right now, I've got so much progress available to me that I just needed to get started in the right direction by doing things I know I can enjoy.
Speaking of things I enjoy, I was able to plan a non-rD trip for September with my sister, niece and nephew. I am super excited because we will be staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge for the first time. I really fell in love with that place the first time I walked in when we had dinner at Boma and had always wanted to stay there so this is pretty cool as far as I'm concerned. We are planning around being able to attend MNSSHP on one of the nights, but rather than the whirlwind trip we've done the past couple years we've managed to squeeze in 5 days. Despite the somewhat less than flattering reviews I've seen the past couple years for MNSSHP it's still pretty amazing as far as I'm concerned. I'm a little more into the fun and whimsical side of Halloween vs. the horror side, so the party fills that perfectly for me. Looking forward to all of the planning when our ADR and FP+ windows open.
So, I wouldn't be running my sub-2:00 tomorrow, but I think my training and moderation in my diet are going well so far. I let things get far enough out of hand that this is a full revamp rather than a couple tweaks. I'm going back to what worked for me when I started out, which involved running a lot of weird intervals and at varying speeds. When I've tried to change my routine to conform to what works for others (and likely would work for me if I could keep at it) I get super bored and lose my enthusiasm for my workouts. Unfortunately, it makes runs much easier to skip when I'm somewhat dreading the monotony. I know at some point I'll have to put a little more thought into things if I can get to the point where gains become incremental; but, right now, I've got so much progress available to me that I just needed to get started in the right direction by doing things I know I can enjoy.
Speaking of things I enjoy, I was able to plan a non-rD trip for September with my sister, niece and nephew. I am super excited because we will be staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge for the first time. I really fell in love with that place the first time I walked in when we had dinner at Boma and had always wanted to stay there so this is pretty cool as far as I'm concerned. We are planning around being able to attend MNSSHP on one of the nights, but rather than the whirlwind trip we've done the past couple years we've managed to squeeze in 5 days. Despite the somewhat less than flattering reviews I've seen the past couple years for MNSSHP it's still pretty amazing as far as I'm concerned. I'm a little more into the fun and whimsical side of Halloween vs. the horror side, so the party fills that perfectly for me. Looking forward to all of the planning when our ADR and FP+ windows open.
ZellyB
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 18, 2010
When it comes to running...you do you! Sounds like you are feeling good about where you are headed and that's the biggest part of the battle.
Hooray for a Disney trip. We took a non-running trip this past summer with our girls and it was awesome. Leaving ourselves again for a short one in March and looking forward to it. I hope you love Animal Kingdom Lodge.
Hooray for a Disney trip. We took a non-running trip this past summer with our girls and it was awesome. Leaving ourselves again for a short one in March and looking forward to it. I hope you love Animal Kingdom Lodge.
Barca33Runner
Please excuse the crudity of this model
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2014
I've addressed it in the past, but one of my biggest issues has always been looking for ways to make things easy. I think I was convinced that because I was doing things differently than conventional wisdom suggested that I was making things more difficult on myself or that I wasn't maximizing my gains vs. effort. It's constantly something I struggle against. Things did get easier, but I stopped making gains in overall fitness, speed and endurance because all I was really doing was looking for the easy way out. Accepting that there isn't an easy way to do this, it's going to hurt, and even if I'm not optimizing my workouts it's important to do keep doing them has really helped me. If it's not difficult than the best I am doing is treading water.
ZellyB
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 18, 2010
That makes sense and conventional wisdom is just that for a reason. Those tried and true plans and approaches do work. But, as Coach used to like to say, we are all an experiment of one, so I do think finding the right place to be for YOU (without giving yourself an easy out) is as important to success as doing things the conventional way. I'm glad you are back on a good track!
Barca33Runner
Please excuse the crudity of this model
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2014
I decided I had to post that I have now run 3+ miles five days in a row. It's not something that I would have once thought noteworthy enough to post and not something of which I should necessarily be proud; but something feels different about the last few days. Two of the runs were at odd times when I would have easily given into excuses to just skip it over the past few years. I'm excited; I think good things are happening.
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