I'm Doing Something I said I Wasn't Going to Do Again!



I don't know if I am completely healed from my injury or not. Sometimes I can still feel slight strains of pain in my leg. My plan for spring and summer was to just take it easy. I wasn't going to sign up for ANY races this summer, not even a local 5K just for fun. My Big race that I actually want to do well at would not be until October when I run the Tower of Terror. After that I will be running the Rock n Roll Half in Las Vegas and that's all about fun with family ( I don't really care what my time will be).

With that being said, I was kind of sad that I wouldn't be participating in Rock n Roll VA Beach this year, but every day this summer when I would go out for my very hot runs, I was thankful that I wouldn't be going because I remembered how hot it was last year. 
                                                           After RnR Va Beach 2012

But THEN Lacey had the great idea that we should sign up and run it. I told her for sure that I would not be doing the half marathon even though she said that she would run with me at my pace. I still told her "No". I was following the Galloway plan and by August 31 my longest run would only be up to 9 miles.  ( For those of you who don't know, I have run 13.1 miles several times but I became severely injured after the Princess Half Marathon this February so I am started my training plan from scratch).  I told her that I didn't want to run this race and end up bringing some of my injury back. I wanted to be strong for TOT in October.  So anyway,  after a bit of sister peer pressure I told her that I would consider the 5k or the Half Marathon relay if I could find a partner.

I'm sure many of you have seen us soliciting on Social media to find a partner for me. As luck would have it, one of our readers volunteered.

So me and my new partner started to plan our weekend and come up with a strategy for the relay.

But then something happened. Competitor group came out with this deal: Run the beach run and the half marathon and it was only $75 and you get a ton of swag.  We both figured it out and it would cost us less to do both the beach race and the half marathon then it would for each of us to just do the relay. Plus if we did the bundle we would walk away with 3 shiny new medals. So in the spur of the moment we both signed up for the half marathon ( instead of doing the relay as planned).

I'm not gonna lie, I am a bit nervous about running this race and here is why.
1. I know it's going to be SO hot. 13.1 miles in the heat makes me question WHY I am doing this?

2. I shouldn't be running 13.1 miles when my training plan only calls for 9. Is this just asking for a disaster?  This is one of the reasons that I wanted to start adjusting my Goofy Training plan to allow for some longer runs.

So this is our plan.  Even though I am no longer running the relay, the partner I had found and I are still going to try to run most of this race ( if not all of it) together ( She's training for the WDW marathon too and I think she's doing the same training plan that I am).

We are NOT doing this race for time.

We will probably run the first 9 miles just like we would for a training run and then the last few miles we will be taking it very slow and taking lots of walking breaks. There is really no need to push ourselves during this race.  Should we have just stuck with running the relay? Yea, probably. But hey, as long as we don't push it, I think we will be okay, right? Plus, having someone to run with you and motivate you for 13 miles has got to be better than running half that distance on your own, right? That's what I am going to keep telling myself anyway.

And, I figure Now that I will be running 2 Rock n Roll Series races, I qualify for the Heavy Medal medal, not that that was ever a deciding factor or anything. Really I could care less.  I think it would be more special if it was given to me after completing the second race but I recently found out that it gets mailed to you.

So I know many of you who are running RnR VA Beach at the end of the month. After you are done running your race and getting your refreshments, will you come back to the finish and cheer for me?    ~M

 Have you ever ran a race knowing that you need to hold yourself back? Tell me What's on your mind?

30 comments:

  1. Good luck with your race! I have major respect for people who run halfs during the summer : )

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    1. I did the half marathon relay last year and it was SO hot. I can only imagine what this race is going to feel like!

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  2. Yay, so glad that you'll be running the race! You're taking a smart approach to the race, and if you have to walk the last couple of miles its no big deal. Looking forward to seeing you and Lacey in just four short weeks!

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  3. That was me during the WDW half this year. I knew the only way I could do it was walking, and even then that strained my knee. I was in a bad mood most of the race because all I wanted to do was run. I'm building back up and I'm at 2 whole miles :-p

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  4. I was wondering if this was it after I saw your comment in a previous post :) I think you'll be great, and it sounds like you have a smart strategy! I'm getting excited for ToT. I had a 7 mile run yesterday (my longest so far) so I don't think it will be a problem getting to 10 in the next 2 months. And I made my fastpass reservations yesterday so that makes it seem so close!

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    1. I think you will be more than ready for TOT. I was just thinking about that race today on my run and was wondering how hot and humid it would be this year.

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    2. I was reading reports from past years and it sounds like we should expect very hot and humid! I keep that as my positive thought during hot and humid runs here, at least its helping me prepare for Florida :)

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  5. The heat scares me too. I don't know how you guys do it. I find the heat and humidity in Nova Scotia to be smothering at times. I think if you pace nice and easy you'll be okay. I've done similar juggling with schedules before I just make sure to rest up before and after.

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    1. I wonder what the heat and humidity in Nova Scotia is like compared to VA beach? I've been to Nova Scotia in June a few years back and the weather was actually beautiful while we were there.

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  6. You sound like me sometimes! I also got hurt doing a half back in January. Had to take off 8 weeks. I promised myself that I would just take it easy all summer and focus on Ragnar which is now 5 weeks away. I threw in a 10k last week and now my ankle hurts. What's up with that? It's really hard to say no to all the fabulous races that everyone is doing all the time isn't it?

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    1. oh no! I didn't realize you hurt your ankle in that race in Aspen.

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  7. This is exciting news, I mean I know you are apprehensive, but this is really cool! I think it's great to run races just for fun, not worry about time!
    Of course your listening to one of those weird people who actually like running in the heat. I think it's all a mind thing, and if your hydrated and find that part of your mind that says, "I'm going to enjoy that run in the sun" a weird thing happens and you will!
    This is really cool, I am glad I caught your post before I left town this morning. You had my curiosity yesterday when I saw your last lines of your post:)
    And to answer your question, yes I've run several races knowing I had to "hold back" and I think it's completely okay to do so!

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    1. Ahhh, thank you for being so supportive! I don't think this was one of my smarter decisions, but I hope it goes well!

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  8. It's gonna be a lot of fun!
    @heatherlas

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    1. Its gonna be HOT and Exhausting, but yes, I think we'll have fun!

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    2. I'm blocking out the HOT and Exhausting part and not thinking about it. :)

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  9. I think you're going into it with just the right mindset; keep it a training run to start and just have fun with the last few miles. I used to laugh at those who whined about running in the heat and humidity (hello, this is SOUTH Florida!), but it's even started to take it's toll on my heat loving legs! Maybe if it gets too much, you can take a side route into the ocean???

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  10. I have a hard time saying no to lots of swag! I probably would have made the same choice. I'm sure if you just take it pretty slowly, you'll be just fine. Hope you have fun!

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  11. Even though the half is a few miles longer than your training calls for, I think you have a great plan in running the first 9 then taking it easy for the remainder of the race. Make sure to listen to your leg if you have any pains. Good luck Meranda! :0)

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  12. Awesome! So exciting. Just be smart about your training and you will do great!

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  13. Good luck! What Sue said!!!!!!!!

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  14. Last December, while I was following the Galloway plan for the 2014 Princess half, a friend of mine convinced me to sign up for the Santa Hustle half marathon, even though I would only be at 8 miles in my training that week. I made up my mind to run/walk the first 8 miles and then "just" walk the last 5.1 because I was worried about injuring myself.
    Long story short, the weather and road/ground conditions were horrible, and as soon as I switched to straight walking, I started freezing. The last half mile or so was across this causeway that was so windy and cold..I wanted to cry but my eyes were too cold to produce tears. But I made it, and it gave me a lot of confidence for the PHM, which I needed after the polar vortex derailed my training plans.
    Anyhow, make a deal with yourself that you'll run the first 9 miles, and see how you're feeling afterwards, and don't be afraid to do what's best for your body if that means you don't run the whole thing.

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  15. I have run a few 5k races, and I just can't bring myself to doing another. I love working out, and being fit, but I hate running. I've said I'll never do another....we'll see ;)

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  16. Why not walk the first 4 miles, and then run it into the finish? I know a guy that does that at marathons, for his 20 milers, for training for his goal marathon. He walks the first 6 miles, then runs the next 20. It's a win, win, you get the swag & bling, you get to cross that race off, you get a supported training run, you get crowd support and fellow runners, and you won't risk injury by running all 13 miles when you're not ready. :)

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  17. Good luck at your race! Hopefully it's not too hot for you this year! I think as long as you listen to your body you'll finish strong and injury free and it will be a great training run where you get a medal at the end :)

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  18. Awesome! I love when people connect over twitter! I found my marathoner partner that way :)
    Karen @karenlovestorun

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  19. Good luck with the race. You get mad props in my book for doing a summer half - in VA! I can't imagine doing that in NYC's humidity and I know it's got to be worse where you are.

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Fairytales and Fitness is a personal blog authored and edited by us, Meranda and Lacey. The thoughts expressed here represent only our own and are not meant to be taken as professional advice. Please note that our thoughts and opinions change from time to time. We consider this a necessary consequence of having an open mind in an ever changing society. Any thoughts and opinions expressed within our out-of-date posts may not be the same, nor even similar, to those we may express today. Some links may contain affiliate links. Some links are just to pages we'd like to share.