Roxymama's 5k to Marathon, Time to Collect Another Castle

[mrsg00fy]

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My skirts came from the sale and I'm actually happier with them in person than even the website. The black one looks like it had so much texture but it's optical illusion. It's really light weight. I haven't tested the reflective capability just yet.

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And the bandana is a nice surprise. I thought it was a flat color but it's actually really shiny/sparkly/metallic in person. I was having a hard time capturing it in nighttime lighting. Here's a closeup.
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And I took one to compare to my minnie skirt. Pretty close in color, maybe little cooler red, more shiny.
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So now I'm dying for medals to be revealed so I can figure out which one gets the honor of running at Disney. Super happy as for $17.50 that bandana one being so pretty was a nice surprise!

Those are really pretty! Love that shine on the red one.

 

[Sailormoon2]

Those skirts look fantastic!

 

[roxymama]

Wow that's a big trip for an 8th grader! My eldest daughter is in 7th grade this year and I can't imagine her going on a trip like that in a year!

I know, what were my parents thinking letting me go??? But I'm glad they did. I did have a busload of other kids my age with me and I was at the homestay with one of my best friends. Just thinking about my little kiddo on the other side of the world though is giving me hotflashes as we speak, even if I imagine her as older.

Those are really pretty! Love that shine on the red one.

Me too! Nice surprise. Trying to figure out if I can turn the bandana one into some kid of "fall themed" chipmunk or mouse farmer situation for the fall disney 5k. hmmmmm

Those skirts look fantastic!

I hope they also make me fast!

 

[roxymama]

Monday Training Update: Week 8 will be Gr8!?!
One of the harder weeks in a while checked off the list. As proud as I was of my 7 mi tempo sandwich (4 miles of actual tempo on tasty WU & CD bread) effort this week; I really was feeling the tiredness this weekend. Saturday being a T+D of 124 was so helpful to my sunny disposition. I still sweat like a pig who had to run for over an hour. But on Sunday after a trip to Lincoln Park Zoo in the morning (so breezy, so nice out!) which was a lot of walking and then swimming in the afternoon (little snippet about that below) I ate my dinner pretty quickly while watching the great british backing show (LOVE THAT SHOW!) and said by the time it was over I would be digested enough to go for my run. I was leaving at 6:30 which meant I should be home from my 8 miles by 8 if everything went well. Well...it was going well enough until round about mile 3 I started getting severe side cramp on the left side just above my hip area and right under my waist. So I slowed it down a bit and headed in the direction of water. My left knee started feeling weak and my left foot started to feel swollen. What the heck??? I think it was because I was "running weird" to offset my cramp. So I stopped around 3.2 miles and drank water and just paused my watch and realized this was a indigestion + female cramps situation (TMI) and so took care of it. Then vowed I'd do another 2 miles to see how I felt. I did my two miles and couldn't muster anything near my 10:52 to 11:02 nice LR zone so I just gave in to my 12 min pace. I reached home and instead of doing the final little 1.5 mi out and 1.5mi back as planned, I went inside and passed the workout baton to hubby so he could ride his bike at the gym for an hour. I was bummed, but I was running weird to counteract the tummy situation and I was worried that I was gonna hurt myself by running weird. I'm not concerned about this being an injury...there was a digestion strategy that went amiss. I know better. This week is so similar to last but a few miles shorter so I gotta call a do-over.

This week's training!!
Monday 7/31: OFF and NEEDED. I am tired, I am tired, I am tired. It's not all from running, I stayed up way too late watching Game of Thrones and then reading recaps tweets about it.
Tues 8/1: 5 mi @ EA
Wed 8/2: OFF, basement strength
Thur 8/3: 2 mi WU, 4 mi Tempo, 1 mi CD (this was not easy last week; the WU and CD were a breeze and I stuck out the tempo but it was a war of will power. mind over matter. The tempos only getting longer from here so just kept reminding my self that this isn't "that long" to keep me moving. Treadmill wall staring and listening to my new power playlist of all No Doubt will be a must)
Fri 8/4: OFF
Sat 8/5: 5 mi @ EB with strides...I can do this. Can do.
Sun 8/6: 7 mi @ LR - hubby has a sprint tri in the morning. My plan is that he'll want to nap and so will kiddo so that's when I will run. And I'm avoiding shovelling down dinner and running right after. This will be a pre-dinner run!!!

There's going to be a lot of schedule maneuvering with hubby this week but I think past this week it'll get a lot easier for us to align our schedules. Just keeping positive and trying my best to fit them all in when I can.

Swimming update: So I mentioned it in the daily running thread but I actually for real put my face in the water at the pool yesterday afternoon and I blew bubbles out to breath out while I swam (well "swam") but I actually was kicking my feet and breathing out while submerged even though my arms were just straight in front of me. Trying out a "breaststroke" type movement was a little more jerky and odd. This is a big deal for me. I love going into pools and just floating around but I just never ever going under and I certainly never do any sustained swimming because figuring how to breath seemed intensely scary. And then the water gets in your eyes and nose and nooooooope. But I did it and I didn't have the choking on water that I feared would happen. I guess if I ask my kiddo to do her swim lessons than I can't punk out and put them off anymore. So next time we go to the pool it's gonna be round two. Roxyhubby wants to get me to 400 meters because that's the short distance tri next year. I'd like to just get to one side of the pool...one day. So we shall see.
I've been a big scaredy cat baby about this my whole life so I felt a little proud yesterday. And a little silly that I was freaking out about what literal 4 years old were doing near me :/
One final thought: it's weirdly peaceful with your head in the water and not hearing anything but the weird bubble noises coming from your mouth and nose and the sub-woofer-esque "thoomp thoomp" from your feet. Who knew?
(still not convinced I won't be choking up chlorine water next time and my brain is still breaking thinking about free style swimming, but baby steps)

 

[FredtheDuck]

Hey, good for you for thinking through what was going on with your Sunday run. It is easy to say "I'm broken, I will stop" or, "I'm broken but I'll push through," but actually pausing to say "Hey, what's going on here, and what does it mean?" takes much more discipline - nice job!

More importantly, I love that you had such a good experience with your swim lesson! And, I don' think it's silly that you were freaking out over something a 4 year old did. You never learned, and you've always been scared of it. Taking steps to learn and overcome that fear is a big deal! So, congratulations!!!

 

[michigandergirl]

it's weirdly peaceful with your head in the water and not hearing anything but the weird bubble noises coming from your mouth and nose and the sub-woofer-esque "thoomp thoomp" from your feet. Who knew?

This is what I love about swimming (former competitive swimmer). I really want to get back into it someday! I'm hoping to try a triathlon sometime in the next couple of years or whenever I can afford to buy a bike (running shoes & race fees are getting in the way of that).

 

[SarahDisney]

Great job getting your head in the water! That's really the hardest part of swimming - getting comfortable with the idea that your head will be underwater sometimes. You're doing awesome with this whole learning to swim thing!! Pretty soon @roxyhubby will be cheering you on at triathalons!

 

[disneydaydreamer33]

I hope you're enjoying your much deserved rest day today! Sorry you were feeling cramps during your 8 mile run. But I agree with @FredtheDuck that you are thinking it through and know you will have plenty of other runs coming up to do it again!

And congrats again on beginning your journey of conquering your swimming fear!! Major props for that!

And there is no doubt that Gwen Stefani will help power you through like a champ this week!!

 

[roxymama]

Hey, good for you for thinking through what was going on with your Sunday run. It is easy to say "I'm broken, I will stop" or, "I'm broken but I'll push through," but actually pausing to say "Hey, what's going on here, and what does it mean?" takes much more discipline - nice job!

More importantly, I love that you had such a good experience with your swim lesson! And, I don' think it's silly that you were freaking out over something a 4 year old did. You never learned, and you've always been scared of it. Taking steps to learn and overcome that fear is a big deal! So, congratulations!!!

I'm hopeful that whatever I do next weekend before my long run will = a different outcome in the indigestion department. At least hoping that is what it really was. At least I remembered to bodyglide my feet this time even though I didn't make it a long enough distance for that to matter???

This is what I love about swimming (former competitive swimmer). I really want to get back into it someday! I'm hoping to try a triathlon sometime in the next couple of years or whenever I can afford to buy a bike (running shoes & race fees are getting in the way of that).

Great job getting your head in the water! That's really the hardest part of swimming - getting comfortable with the idea that your head will be underwater sometimes. You're doing awesome with this whole learning to swim thing!! Pretty soon @roxyhubby will be cheering you on at triathalons!

Yeah, I don't own a bike and there's the whole "I'm gonna fall off if I go fast" fear that I have. So once I get past one thing, I'll move on to the next. Why am I like this? Oh, well, at least I'm trying. Maybe I have too much FOMO and can't handle just being on the sidelines of things. Hopefully hubby doesn't take up snake wrangling or whale watching next, because there's just no way on those fears.

wait...genius idea. I'm going to start a triathlon that involves floating with a pool noodle. Then taking a leisurely bike ride at low speed on a fixed gear bike on a flat course and then running really hard for 5k. I may have the skill set already for that.

 

[roxymama]

I hope you're enjoying your much deserved rest day today! Sorry you were feeling cramps during your 8 mile run. But I agree with @FredtheDuck that you are thinking it through and know you will have plenty of other runs coming up to do it again!

And congrats again on beginning your journey of conquering your swimming fear!! Major props for that!

And there is no doubt that Gwen Stefani will help power you through like a champ this week!!

No Doubt is probably my favorite band. I think I have other favorites and then I remember to listen to them and then it's like...nope, it's no doubt. I just did spotify and hit shuffle on all their albums and it really got me through my tempo run. Had me "feelin Hella good"

 

[ZellyB]

I love those new skirts, especially the bandanna one. So cute!!

Ditto to others on having a smart approach during a difficult run. And congrats on your swimming!! Baby steps (or strokes) and you'll be doing those tris with hubby in no time, although, if you ever get that tri going with the pool noodle float thing, let me know because I am SO in!

 

[Jenem03]

Just thought I would stop by to say hi! I've been reading your journal for forever but have never been brave enough to comment. Anyhow, you've been an inspiration to me as I've just started running so thanks for keeping up your journal. Oh and I live in IL too...central IL.

 

[roxymama]

I love those new skirts, especially the bandanna one. So cute!!

Ditto to others on having a smart approach during a difficult run. And congrats on your swimming!! Baby steps (or strokes) and you'll be doing those tris with hubby in no time, although, if you ever get that tri going with the pool noodle float thing, let me know because I am SO in!

I'm itching to wear the new skirts, thinking maybe I'll take the black one for a spin tomorrow. And I'll sign you up for my inaugaural (spelled right) pool noodle tri so you can start your legacy status

Just thought I would stop by to say hi! I've been reading your journal for forever but have never been brave enough to comment. Anyhow, you've been an inspiration to me as I've just started running so thanks for keeping up your journal. Oh and I live in IL too...central IL.

That's so awesome to hear!! I lurked at people doing disney races for a loooooong time (since like early 2000's) before I got the nerve to try out running. Stick with it, it's brought a lot of great things into my life. Mostly self confidence and a lot of new clothing.
If you ever decide to do a Chicago race just holler at me. There's a handful of us here who are from the area and we can give you pointers.


I've been crazy busy this week and a little MIA on here. But today I thought I had to run 6 miles and then looked at my plan and it was only 5 miles (WOOT) and then I had in my head tomorrow was 8 miles and actually its only 7 miles (DOUBLE WOOT) so now I'm in a real good mood. I think my brain was stuck in last week mode. I refuse to look ahead to next week as I'm preeeettty sure it won't be less miles.
@DopeyBadger my strides today felt really good which probably had a lot to do with the weather being really mild and breezy and so my first 4 miles felt pretty good. I was a little on the fast side and because I kept fluctuating between LR and EB pace. I don't think I've gotten very good at being consistent at my paces so far this training cycle but maybe it's because I'm bouncing between treadmill and outside and then the weather has been ALL OVER THE PLACE. Tomorrow will be a nice 60 something degrees out so maybe I will have a good consistent LR.
Today I "slept in" until 7 and stayed in bed with a kiddo who infiltrated my room until 8. Then after lunch I napped when she napped. And then I ran. I needed that recharge badly...this week was OOOOPH busy and tiring.

Ok, now I'll stop interneting so that I can try SO HARD to avoid GOT episode 4 leaks until tomorrow night. The night is dark and full of spoilers!

PS everyone was cooking grilled meats out when I was running. I guess about 4pm is grilling time. I couldn't decide if the smells were a good or bad thing.

 

[roxymama]

Oh I forgot to add. @roxyhubby is out doing a little shakeout bike ride right now because he has his last triathlon of the year tomorrow morning. The Naperville sprint. If anyone out there can do an anti-rain dance and also think positive vibes into the universe.

 

[McNs]

PS everyone was cooking grilled meats out when I was running. I guess about 4pm is grilling time. I couldn't decide if the smells were a good or bad thing.

There are a couple of houses I run past on my 3k loop that often have the smell of a curry cooking wafting out. Mmmmm. I also get the BBQ/grilled meat smell, not so much this time of year though...

 

[roxymama]

Spoiler: Disney Fall Feast 5k medal!

It's CUTE! And Shiny! As someone who is used to not that amazing of medals for 5ks compared to longer races I am VERY HAPPY! Mostly because I GET A MICKEY MEDAL!!!!!!! A Medal with Mickey on it I pretty much figured is only guaranteed if you run the full marathon. So I guess it's pretty clear this is very harvest themed and not Christmas or Halloween. SO BANDANA SKIRT IT IS! Now to decide what character I can bring into the mix. Some kind of Mickey's backyard bbq type aesthetic. Calling creative people to help me brainstorm

Spoiler: Wine N Dine 10k medal !

This is what @roxyhubby will earn for his first rundisney race and it's in Bears colors/food themed/and travel themed. AND MICKEY AGAIN! So right in his wheel-house. I really like it. Haven't talked with him yet so I'll see what he says.

Ok more to come later today with my game plan for this week. Check out the official park blog for all the other medals for the weekend. I know that these are different than past years and so I'm looking forward to hearing what people thing about the other medals too. For the race I am running, I am HAPPY!

 

[ZellyB]

I LOVE those medals. I know they are different and maybe people won't like that, but I have so many medals that are the standard round shape, it's neat to see some attempts at variety on them. The half one is probably my least favorite, but that challenge medal is cool! Now I wish I were running these races!!

 

[run.minnie.miles]

Those are great.... and makes me want to fast-forward to ALL THINGS FALL!!!

ETA: I went and looked at all of the medals and I really love the themeing! That challenge medal is really cool and very Epcot-y.

 

[roxymama]

I LOVE those medals. I know they are different and maybe people won't like that, but I have so many medals that are the standard round shape, it's neat to see some attempts at variety on them. The half one is probably my least favorite, but that challenge medal is cool! Now I wish I were running these races!!

Yeah, the half is my least favorite of the bunch. The challenge one is great though. I was secretly hoping I wouldn't like the half (selfishly.) Because then I won't be mad I'm not running it. We'll be at the airport around the time the half people are doing their thing anyways. I know I'm leaving that amazing Coast 2 Coast on the table, but sometimes having an amazing family vacation is more important than bling. (justification)

Those are great.... and makes me want to fast-forward to ALL THINGS FALL!!!

ETA: I went and looked at all of the medals and I really love the themeing! That challenge medal is really cool and very Epcot-y.

PUMPKIN SPICE IS COMING!

I agree on the challange medal, very Food n Wine-esque. This year I'm getting a food booth passport and the Remy find and squeak map for kiddo. So I'm excited.

 

[dancingtodisney]

Spoiler: Disney Fall Feast 5k medal!

It's CUTE! And Shiny! As someone who is used to not that amazing of medals for 5ks compared to longer races I am VERY HAPPY! Mostly because I GET A MICKEY MEDAL!!!!!!! A Medal with Mickey on it I pretty much figured is only guaranteed if you run the full marathon. So I guess it's pretty clear this is very harvest themed and not Christmas or Halloween. SO BANDANA SKIRT IT IS! Now to decide what character I can bring into the mix. Some kind of Mickey's backyard bbq type aesthetic. Calling creative people to help me brainstorm

Spoiler: Wine N Dine 10k medal !

This is what @roxyhubby will earn for his first rundisney race and it's in Bears colors/food themed/and travel themed. AND MICKEY AGAIN! So right in his wheel-house. I really like it. Haven't talked with him yet so I'll see what he says.

Ok more to come later today with my game plan for this week. Check out the official park blog for all the other medals for the weekend. I know that these are different than past years and so I'm looking forward to hearing what people thing about the other medals too. For the race I am running, I am HAPPY!

OUR MEDALS ARE OUT!!! I'm so excited!!! I am SO DOWN with that 5k medal!

Love your new skirts.. they are so cute!

How are you plans looking for your trip? Is Ohana still in there? AKA meet the Barnes family?! haha