It's here! Woo-hoo! You can see it here for yourself here. 

But let's get to the important stuff-so much new info! 

Event Transportation: the 10k and half end at Wide World of Sports. There will be no parking at Wide World of Sports, you will have to park at Epcot and then get bussed back there if you drive. 
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For the 10k, you need to be on the bus by 4:00 AM. For the half, you will need to be on the bus by 3:30 AM. 

So we are barely in the parks for the 10k and a bit more for the half. That pathway by Boardwalk will be TIGHT as it is no more than 2-3 people across. I am thinking the beginning will be really crowded. Hopefully they will be smart with characters in Epcot to help with crowding.

The 5k and 10k are A-F for corrals and the Half is A-L. 

Overall, I am excited for new courses and we will see how the return from Wide World of Sports will go. Hopefully it will all run smoothly :)

​Anyone else running Dark Side? 

I have been selected to be a Jeff Galloway blogger and could not be more excited for the opportunity. Incase you aren't familiar with him, he is AMAZING, a former Olympian and the official rundisney training consultant and probably one of the most down to earth people you could ever meet. 
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Here are past tips: here, here , here ,  here, here, here and here.

FAST AND FUN—It’s a state of mind 

Why is running faster a good thing?  Short and fast segments not only help you run faster in races.  If you run a few faster segments each week you can improve your running efficiency while receiving a better attitude boost.

How long should you be running before you add some faster running in? After 2-3 months of regular running some short accelerations can be added with minimal risk of aches and pains. 

Is it possible that running fast can actually be fun?  Yes.  The secret is be creative and limit the length of the fast segment at first. 

How often should you run fast? Playful speed can be done once or twice a week.

Four Faster, Fun Workouts
1. Speed play that you can do on your own. ACCELERATE AND GLIDE.  After an easy 10 minute warmup of slow running, pick up the pace for 10 steps, then coast off the momentum for 10-20 steps.  Don't be obsessed about the number of steps as this is just a guideline.  Don't sprint--be playful.  Gradually pick up the pace, and then glide back down to a jog.  Repeat 2-3 times on your first attempt, and take a one minute walk break.  Each week you could increase the number of accelerations as you wish, with a recommended walk break of 1-2 minutes between each.

1. Speed play you can do with one friend—CHASE game.  After an easy 5 minute jog together, one person takes the lead.  As the leader changes the pace (speeding up, then slowing down, speeding up) the follower tries to stay close but not pass.  After 3-5 minutes, take a 1-2 minute walk break and repeat with the other runner leading.  Repeat as many times as desired.

2. Speed play you can do with two friends—SURPRISE game. Following the same format as game 1, the follower tries to surprise the leader by passing gently but quickly.  While there should be no sprinting, it is OK to run fast for 10-30 steps to pass.

3. A speed play workout you can do with three or more friends—INDIAN RUNNING.  The group is running single file for a minute or two at an easy pace.  Then, the last runner, passes all of the other runners and takes the lead for a minute or two.  The current leader sets the pace, and takes a walk break.  When the running resumes, the last runner starts to move to the front.  Each runner gets to take the lead at least once in this game.

I did the Knott's coaster run 10k as we know I love running through theme parks!

The day before I did the Chi Running clinic and it was fabulous. I learned a lot about running form and decided to implement my top 3 issues: keeping my shoulders relaxed, facilitating a mid foot strike, swinging my arms equally and working on my lean to put less pressure on my calves. (more on this coming soon-I promise!)

The night before we(Me and Mallory of course #julesandmal) went to Devins wine and cheese party for a bit before coming home and have a carb heavy dinner and drinking a lot of water. We got to sleep around 9:45 for a 5am wake up. I woke up feeling fine but the rain was a bit loud. We got dressed and ready pretty quick and headed out around 5:30. 

The weather was pouring on the drive down which means it took us longer to get there-around 6:15. We were able to park right across from the finish and walked over to the start line to get our bibs. We were I our rain coats and hoped the rain would stop. We ended up finding Greg as soon as we walked In and hung out with him for awhile. 

Bib pickup was easy and we were able to put on our shoe chip, bib and use the Porto in about 10 min, I headed to the corral at about 6:55 for a 7:00 AM start. It finally stopped raining but they kept saying they were going to start on time so I was doing quick stretches. Well of course they started about 8 minutes late so I could have went and did a proper warmup. Oh well. 

There were wave starts but no one seems to know how the waves were done. There was 8 waves and I was in wave 2. There was both a 5k and 10k and they started at the same time with the majority of the course the same for the first 2.75 miles. When we started, we were going about an 11 min mile pace which was getting slower as there were puddles everywhere! I knew a PR would be hard so I decided to just take my time in the theme park and then open it up when we split from the 5k.

It was definitely an interesting first mile as there were roosters and chickens everywhere!! The puddles made it hard to maneuver especially when we headed up and down a few tunnels. Most of the time I was able to stay towards the side and do my intervals. Speaking of intervals, I didn't check it before I started so I had to adjust it at one point. I put it on 1:15 run/30 sec run.

The portion in the park was hard to get a rhythm going. It were lots of turns and sharp corners and puddles. I wasn't sure exactly where we were and there were people going all different speeds. On top of that, I was having my tight calf issue from not warming up so I was trying to work through that as well. I was just focusing on my form and trying to take the pressure off my shins. 

I was hoping for some characters out but I didn't see any but other waves did-I'm sad I missed the photo opp as I love Charlie Brown! 

We exited Knotts Berry Farm, got a nice tour of the parking lot before running through an empty Soak City water park and out on city streets. When we split off from the 5k, it completely opened up. I had it set in my mind to have a progression run and try to get faster with every mile. I was able to stick to my intervals and my calves finally felt better. I focused on different elements of my run and it did start to feel effortless. 

(Just incase you know the area, we went down Stanton Ave towards Cresent Ave and turning on Dale Ave. We did an out and back and did another out and back on the entrance to the mall before retracing our steps)

One HUGE mistake was we passed the mile 4 marker and then did a turn and hit the mile 5 marker-what? We did an out n back right by the car and back around to the finish line. Well I figured out, the mile markers should have been switched. I think that is a huge issue. I knew because of my watch but if you didn't know, that could have been difficult thinking you had a bit over a mile when you had two miles.

On the 10k, we had 4 additional water stops. 1 as soon as we left the 5k, 1 by the turn around with the mile marker issue, and one on the out n back by the car which we passed twice. 

As we continued, I kept getting boxed in by people so I had to work to keep my pace. I was really pushing the pace once we passed the correct 5 miles. I saw Greg and then Mallory. I pushed as hard as I could and started to get a cramp-but I was able to work through it. Something I worked on this last mile was speeding up my walk and it definitely made a difference. 

As we turned the corner we were there, I realized I hit about an hour which isn't bad considering how slow I went in the first 3 miles.

FINAL TIME: 1:00:22
SPLIT TIMES: 10:53 (+25 sec to adjust my intervals)/10:42/10:26/9:28/9:37/8:56- can you tell where we split off from the 5k and were out of the theme park and puddles? haha

Another thing to mention was my fueling. I have been testing out using UCan and like it so far. This was my first time in a race and I took it about 45 min before we started (I think I need to take it closer to when we start but I had to do what I had to do!). I did not need any fuel at all during the race. It lasts for 45-70 min and it definitely did. I was never lacking fuel and got faster as I went on. 

I got in the crazy line to get pie which was too sweet for me. I went and got some free goodies like Aldi snacks and Suju juice. I got my tshirt and waited for Mallory. We ended up going to Starbucks to get coffee and change, and went to Disneyland for a few hours which was super fun. 

Overall, I had a fun race and definitely think I'm in shape for a PR. I think as I work on my running form and getting stronger, my running should keep improving. I have a half marathon this week with a bit of crazy elevation but I'll of course be trying for a PR. 

I would be up for doing this race again especially if I could somehow figure out how to get into wave 1 or get into the corral sooner so the beginning wouldn't be so slow for me. Also, I am hoping they would not have an issue as big with incorrect mile markers. and hopefully it would not rain right before so puddles wouldnt be a problem. 


Anyone else run a 10k lately? What's your next race? 

Another Tuesday, another Tuesday on the Run hosted by our favorites: 
Erika from MCM Mama Runs, Marcia from Marcia's Healthy Slice and Patty from No-Guilt Life.This week's topic is Things I don't like about running. 

Last weeks post was on the things I love about running and this week is things I hate. Hate is a bit of a strong word so let's say things that I don't like too much. 

Running is such an individual sport so there are few things I don't like about it. If there were more things, I just wouldn't do it. However there are 3 things that really bother me. 

1. Craziness around races
This is basically for rundisney races and other popular races. Social media has made it easier to learn about races and learn tips for races but it also has caused a frenzy. For example, rundisney moved the registration for Wine and Dine back 2 weeks and people have gone crazy-freaking out, taking off work, etc. sometimes it's good just to take a break and breathe and know it'll be okay. Usually around crazy times, I try to stay away from social media on those topics. 

2. Rude Runners
I don't mean this in etiquette ways which also bothers me, I mean this in people thinking that you have to do X to be considered a real runner. X could be a time or a race or wearing an outfit or run without stopping. I personally believe anyone that wants to run is a runner! No rules or regulations! It has taken me awhile to really understand that I am a runner. Even though I don't consider myself fast, even though I'm always working on getting faster and improving, there are others that see my progress as motivating and that is true for everyone! 

3. Not respecting the distance
This one really does bother me! If you are going to run a race-make sure to train for it. I don't see the point of not training and potentially really injuring yourself. 
As I run a lot of rundisney races, this comes up a lot. People thinking they can run a race on pixie dust and hope. Or even worse, people knowing they won't train and will get swept. Make sure when you plan for a race that you do everything you can to get to the start line healthy and prepared. 

So that's it for me. I don't like posts to come off as negative but I believe in keeping it real! 
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How about you? What are some of your dislikes or pet peeves about running? 

Time for some weekly accountability! I will recapping how I have done on the 4 Well Rules over the last week: Eat Well, Sleep Well, Exercise Well and Be Well New Linkup for Monday! I will linking up with MissSippiPiddlin and HoHo Runs to talk about my week recap! Welcome to the 4 well rules that I try to follow as I go through my week! Let's get to it! 
EAT WELL
I had a great food week capped off by a fun dinner of Australian lamb chops and tomato and cucumber salad (all Disney inspired recipes). I have some great recipes for this week including pot roast and corned beef and more! 
I'm loving finding a passion for cooking again and am also looking forward to carb loading for my half marathon on Saturday! 

SLEEP WELL
I averaged about 7.5 hours a night and got more deep sleep but woke up tired through the weekend. Not sure what's going on but I'm going to try and sleep 8 hours a night as its spring break and work should be pretty easy. 

EXERCISE WELL
Last week:

• Monday: Yoga recovery 
• Tuesday: 3 miles +weights 
• Wednesday: Cize abs 
• Thursday: 4x800 (4:44/4:19/4:17/4:00) + weights 
• Friday: Cize abs + Piyo upper body 
• Saturday: 5 miles-2 miles at half marathon tempo (10:14/10:05) 
• Sunday: rest day/Disneyland 

This week: 

• Monday: Running Strength-Core 
• Tuesday: 3 miles + weights 
• Wednesday: Cize abs + Piyo 
• Thursday: 3 mile run +weights 
• Friday: rest day
• Saturday: Pacific Half Marathon (sign ups are online through tomorrow here!-5k, 10k and half still available! Agoura Hills,CA)
• Sunday: Yoga recovery/Disneyland 

BE WELL

• This week has been great. I spent yesterday celebrating Mallorys bday at Disneyland with an amazing afternoon tea at the Disneyland hotel(expect a review soon!). We also experienced our last Mad T party and it was as awesome as ever
• It's Spring Break: meaning no student meetings but also I don't have class! I definitely have things to keep me busy but it will be nice to work done uninterrupted. 
• I'm also going to get a ton of stuff done on my dissertation- things are going well ! 
• I'm excited about my half marathon this weekend. I'm getting stronger and can see improvements in my running and want to see what I can really do. I will write about my goals later this week. 

How was your week? 

Princess Half marathon #4: here we come! 
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Mallory and I woke up at 3:05 and I was definitely a bit groggy and sleepy. I need to remember that for next time when a meetup dinner before and make sure I get enough sleep. It also didn't help that I was still jet lag. 
 We got ready quickly and were out of the hotel by 3:45 and over to the monorail. We didn't have long to wait for either monorail and got to Epcot by 4:15. We took the long walk over, took some pics, checked our bag and headed to the corrals. 

The walk to the corrals is about 20-30 min so make sure to plan accordingly. We had plenty of time to spare so we used the Portos and then went to our corrals. I was excited to be in D as this was the highest corral placement I have had in WDW ever! Yay! 

I somehow moved up to the front of the corral and was about 3 rows back-oops. I took off at what I thought was an easy pace and looked down and saw I was going a 9:25 pace. Uh oh. I slowed down and got out of the way but my shins were killing me. I basically had to slow down and walk a lot more in the first one mile to calm down my screaming shins. Even though I thought I was at a crawling pace, I still hit the first 5k in 11:31 pace so I recovered nicely. 

The first few miles are pretty dark but they added in a group of volunteers cheering right after the first water stop which was greatly appreciated. One thing I love about this course is the first water stop is about at the first mile which is appreciated as its been awhile since we've had water. 

After the mile 2 marker, they had a hot air balloon out but no pirate ship. This part was definitely really dark am I'm not sure why! It was hard to see until we got closer to the MK sign. The princes were out but I knew I could hit them on the way back.

We went through the magic kingdom sign and headed towards TTC. We hit another water stop and a new Porto system. Basically someone was stationed at the Portos and there was one line and all the Portos were numbered. The person stationed called out numbers and even though I didn't use it, Mallory said it work well and efficiently. 

I hit the 5k mark at 35:51 (11:33 pace)
​Running splits: 11:30/11:30/11:16

​This was my first time running by where the speedway was and it was a bit strange. Also since it was early and the sun was starting to come up, it was super foggy-looked a bit creepy. 
I finally stopped for a photo! Jasmine and Abu were out. While in line we saw the first place people fly by on the other side-so crazy! 

Another Tuesday, another Tuesday on the Run hosted by our favorites: 

Erika from MCM Mama Runs, Marcia from Marcia's Healthy Slice and Patty from No-Guilt Life.This week's topic is What I love about Running. 

The best thing about running is twofold: one is the personal effects and second is the community. 

I love that running is something that is good for my body and also something I'm excited to do. Since I've been running, my endurance has definitely increased and I'm slowly picking up speed and I love seeing the changes in my body from running. I love how much fun it is to race especially in costume. 
The second is the running community. I love writing this blog and getting to interact and meet new runners. I love joining running groups like We Run Social, BOGP Lizards, and nT#urd and going to meet ups and meeting in real life people you interact almost on a daily basis. 

How about you? What's your favorite part of running? ​

EAT WELL
I was able to lower my carb intake until the weekend when I had the Chi Running clinic and the Coaster Run 10k. Now back to lower carb intake and just focusing on eating right until my half marathon in two weeks. 

SLEEP WELL
I was able to average 8 hours of sleep a night which has me feeling great. With Spring Break on the horizon next week, i should be able to sleep a good amount this week as I don't have any final school projects. 

EXERCISE WELL
Last week:
Monday: Cize abs-which kicked my butt-wow
Tuesday: 3 miles testing out 60/15 and it was a bit much. I'm going to stick with 30 sec recovery but work on upping to 1:15
Wednesday: Cize abs + weights 
Thursday: 3 mile run +weights 
Friday: rest day
Saturday: Chi Running clinic 
Sunday: Coaster Run 10k


This Week:
Monday: Yoga recovery 
Tuesday: 3 miles +weights 
Wednesday: Cize abs + running strength 
Thursday: 3 miles + weights 
Friday: Cize abs + Piyo upper body 
Saturday: 5 miles-2 miles at half marathon tempo 
Sunday: rest day/Disneyland 
BE WELL
I had a great week! I loved my Chi Running clinic (and will discuss it this week!) and had a pretty good Coaster Run 10k. I got a great amount of my dissertation done on Friday and had a great quick stop at Disneyland. 
This week I need to get some more dissertation work done and keep getting in my workouts. I feel like I'm getting stronger so I want to keep getting better. 


How was your week? 

Hi all! Linkup Friday!! Thanks to our amazing hostesses: the DC Trifecta Bloggers (Courtney from Eat Pray Run DC, Mar from Mar on the Run, and Cynthia from You Signed Up For What?!). Let's look at my Feb goals and get to my March goals. 

FEB GOALS
1. Bff every day for 5 minutes A-
I did pretty well with this. I love being able to travel with it to Princess-it definitely helped my recovery

2. Roll every day A-
I did not roll every day but stretched or massaged in some way

3. Eat healthy recovery race meals A-
I definitely did this and it definitely helped with my recovery! 

4. Weight train 3x a week B-
I did 2 times a week but I would really like to get up to 3x

5. weekly PiYo workout C
This did not happen so I will add this to March


MARCH GOALS
1. Weekly Piyo workout
2. Weight train 3x a week
3. Plank a Day
4. Ankle, Feet and Calf Stretch every day
​5. Work on 1 chi running principle every time I run 

What are some of your goals for the month?

After have a jammed packed day at the Expo and crashing hard at 8PM, I was up at 330 and actually felt refreshed. However my legs were a bit stiff which is not surprising. I got dressed, made breakfast and tea, stretched and was off to the bus by 4.
We got on the bus around 4:10 and then had a crazy adventure. The exit to Epcot was closed and the driver was not told another way to go so we went all the way down to the AK exit and had to turn around to come up Osceola parkway. We made it there by 4:30. 

I walked over to check my bag and get in the corrals and got some good stretching in before we were moved up to the start line at 5:10. I chatted with a girl named Madison before we started. One thing was the microphones or the speakers at the front were not working. We could not hear anything which means people were talking through the national anthem. 

We started at 5:31 and the crowd was moving pretty fast. One thing I like about the 10k course is it opens up quickly so I was able to pull over out of the way to do my intervals. My plan was to use 60/30 as it's pretty easy on my body and I knew I was still in recovery from LAM. my plan was to go on feel and not run with pain. Well let's just say, my legs felt better than I thought they would. My first mile was a bit under 11 min, and then my running pace from there was faster. I was having to force myself to walk slower and take more breaks as I needed to save my legs for the half the next day. 
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The course is the same as the WDW 10k with running out towards the Epcot parking entrance and looping back on the road until you hit backstage. From there, you go around the World Showcase and towards the Boardwalk area before entering Epcot and finishing in the parking lot. 

We kept going and passed the video sign playing Disney remix music videos and headed backstage. On the entrance backstage is where the halfway point is. It is interesting to note that this year there was 6 corrals (A-F) instead of 5. When we entered backstage, I heard the fireworks that let off corral E or F (I lost count somewhere in the middle) so as it usually happens, someone wins before everyone has even started!
We enter World Showcase by Norway and hit our second water stop. We passed China, Refreshment Port and Germany. I told a potty break in Germany and took a selfie with spaceship earth and made it to Italy where Jiminy and Pinocchio were waiting! 

We continued around world showcase and I stopped for Cogsworth and Lumiere in France who are just so cute! ​

We continued out of the International Gateway and over to the Boardwalk and I stopped for the Genie outside of ESPN Zone and even got to hear the Usc fight song (#FIGHTON!). We continued around the Boardwalk where I saw the Lizards! We made our way over to yacht club and beach club before heading back into Epcot. ​

Right before the entrance back into Epcot, Queen Sofia was there. We continued backstage and entered Epcot right before Journey into Imagination and continued past The Land and Living Seas before heading towards Spaceship Earth.

I finished in 1:33 (15 min/mile pace). My running miles were: 10:47/10:11/10:33/10:27/10:53/10:31/.2 in 10:12 for a total of 1:05. I added about 28 minutes with my one potty break and photo stops-not too bad! 

I grabbed my stuff and headed straight for the bus. I got back to the room to shower, stretch and relax a bit before grabbing a quick breakfast at the hotel. I got to the bus area and the AK bus pulled up immediately and a private shuttle to AK: score! I Waited for everyone else from the expo and we did the Safari, Everest and got a nice African margarita and tried the new pulled pork grits:YUM! I also got my  beloved iced tea too. 
We then took a taxi over to Disney Springs for the We Run Social meetup, a great round of drinks at Hangar Bar and a bit of shopping. We stopped by Fit2Run and got a free gift:woohoo!
I then headed to Wilderness Lodge to meet up with the BOGP Lizards and had a great meal at Whispering Canyon. A bit too much fun probably as we didn't leave until almost 8 and I didn't get in bed until 9. Oops! 
I definitely had a fabulous day but was on my feet all day so I knew my legs would be a bit tired. I passed out by 9 for a 3:05 wake up call.

Overall, I had a great time at the 10k however I'm not a huge fan of the out and back at the beginning especially because it's dark and not all of my pictures turned out that great. I'm excited to see how the Star Wars 10k turns out as its a completely different course than this course. 
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What's the last 10k you ran?