Some Run Disney Costume Ideas

It's still over 190 days away, but I'm already getting SO excited to Run Dopey in 2018! 

I've started to put together a list of some of my favorite Disney characters that I want to try to make into costume ideas for the races and wanted to share them with you!

Alice- I'm not exactly sure why I've lately been really into Alice, but she will 100% be one of my costumes! I'd like to try to do both the skirt and top as a similar style, but we will see how creative I can get. 

Star Wars- I'm leaning towards doing either R2D2 or Princess Leia. Either is definitely my two favorite Star Wars characters. Alex really wants me to do the whole Princess Leia in the gold bikini (he has a Ross-like obsession with her), but I'm not so sure on that one!

Minnie Mouse- because hello! It's Disney! And because I still have a Sparkle Athletic minnie mouse skirt that I used for last year's marathon. 

Jane from Tarzan- I'm not exactly sure how I would make this into a running costume, but I'm pretty determined! Jane is super bad ass and I would love to run as her in the marathon to complete my Dopey Challenge!

Any other good ideas for Disney Characters to dress up as?

Any good costume suggestions for any of the characters I listed?

Favorite Running Memes

Since we're busy driving the day away, I figured I would share with you a few of my favorite running memes! 

The memes below seriously depict how I feel about running/training sometimes and that's why they're so great!

Running really is my favorite and that's kinda surprising because I remember when I used to think of it as a CHORE! Now I will actually find myself waking up at 5am to go run 10 miles and I can also sometimes become like a small child in a candy store when a race is coming up (especially any Disney or Rock 'n Roll races). 

Well, maybe not Nikes exactly, but definitely running shoes! Want to know the perfect gift to get a runner? A giftcard to their favorite running brand (ahem... Brooks)- you seriously can never go wrong with this one! Getting a new pair of running sneakers is better than Christmas Day to me. 

Buzz Lighter ladies and gentlemen. He knows exactly how many of us feel about the pure joy that running 13.1 miles does for us! He was always one of my favorite Toy Story characters and now I know why...

Another Disney-related one, but it is SO true! A good pair of sneakers can bring about tears, laughter, growth, excitement, and fancy finisher medals! I remember when I ran my first half-marathon and was seriously wearing running sneakers that were TWO TIMES bigger than my shoe size! They still are such a magical pair to me. Running shoes > glass slippers

You HAD to know this one was coming! 

Favorite running meme?

How's your Dream Beyond Your Comfort Zone Project going?

Here are my three things that I am thankful for today:

1. healthy body

2. Stella

3. laughter

How I Balance My Nutrition When Not Training For a Race

When I'm training for a race, I really pay attention to my nutrition, but I also enjoy the treats sometimes. Currently, I've just started to build up my base mileage again and maintain slow runs (or tried to) to continue my recovery. My mileage base this week may peak out at 20 miles and that's a big IF (especially since we're traveling the second half of this week) and I'm ok with that. 

So what kind of nutrition do I follow when I'm not running 35+ mileage weeks?

It's still a lot of healthy prepared meals, but I decrease my carbohydrate intake quite a bit. I'll still try to refuel after my runs with some protein/carb mix (I'm not so great at this a lot of time, but determined to improve) and eat lighter meals than when I was training.

Lighter meals for me look like: more leafy green salads, less rice/bread/ pasta, more veggies, yogurt with fruit and almond butter (sans granola), bananas/ apples, almonds (rather than crackers/ granola bars), and smaller portioned meals.

I also really enjoy this time when not training to treat myself! I'll still have ice cream/chocolate when training, but when not training I may indulge with a larger portion of ice cream or 3 mini peanut butter cups rather than 2! It's all about balance and moderation in my opinion!

I got up at 4:45 yesterday morning to get my work-out and run in before work/ leaving for our trip that afternoon. I surprised myself when I launched out of bed and was on the road running by 5:15! I was also treated to an incredible sunrise!

Just an easy 3 for me, but it certainly was still challenging! We live at the top of a pretty steep 3/4 mile hill (or rather, at the BASE of a ski mountain) and the way back up seriously kicks my butt. I'm determined to sprint up the entire thing when my next marathon rolls around!

After my run, I followed it up for a quick 15 minute strength training session. I'm slowly trying to maintain what strength I had before the marathon and build on-top of it! 3 rounds of arms with 8 Ib dumbbells and 2 rounds of side planks (held for 35 seconds each side). 

I'm SO excited to run back in my old stomping grounds in Maine- where I first truly started to love running! 

How do you balance nutrition when not training for a race?

Favorite treats to have during a training cycle? 

Favorite treats to have when not in a training cycle?

How I went from focusing on the entire run to just one mile at a time

I truly believe that if you only see a run as the total numbers of miles you have to run, it'll seem daunting and intimidating. I think this is my biggest advice to those just starting to run or going from training for a half marathon to a full marathon. Take one mile at a time, very similar to taking it one step at a time.

I also really like this strategy when running a race. Just focus on the mile that you're in, you can't change the past, and thinking about the future will only help you go so far. Stay in the moment and enjoy it! 

I also definitely think this can be applied to anything in life. If you worry about the things/items that may come about the next day, you may never sleep. I've heard a lot of people say that it's good to be nervous/stressed about a race or big interview the next day because that means you care, which I agree to a certain extent, but worrying doesn't get you very far- it certainly won't provide a fantastic race day for you or get you the job. 

SO, worry less and enjoy the ride. As we're finishing up packing and getting ready to head onto the road tomorrow back to New England, I feel like I've needed to remind myself to stay in the moment every ten minutes. It is pretty stressful trying to get everything done before vacation! But, you know what? So what if not everything gets done or something gets forgotten? It really isn't the end of the world and definitely isn't worth the immense stress that we put on our bodies. **I need to try to remember this when those difficult workouts come on my training schedule again**

Onto my day recap! Tuesday was spent doing the usual work (I attempted to get up at 5 to run before work, but getting up early has been really HARD lately) and went for my 3.6 (supposed to be 4 originally) mile run in-between the end of work and before coaching. 

It was in the mid-80s out and super warm. My garmin said that I had 61 hours of recovery time afterwards, I guess that's what I get for 1. trying to fit in a certain amount of mileage in a short period of time 2. going faster than my post-marathon body was ready for 3. running in the HEAT with no water bottle with me

I also came across this sign on a section of my run:

I've seen moose in this area before, but no luck today! Probably for the best, since the trail was pretty busy!

After work, I grabbed us a pizza for dinner and a few snacks for the road trip before heading home. We finally finished up packing (at least I THINK so) and are ready to hit the road tomorrow evening!

It's always a bit of bummer to know how quickly vacations go by and I know this one is no exception, but just take it one day (or mile) at a time! 

I had this Siggi's Yogurt before my run for a snack and it was super delicious! Siggi's really is the best yogurt out there- I'm convinced.

That's all for me today and maybe by the time you're reading this we'll be out of Colorado and on our way headed back East! 

Favorite way to visualize a run?

Favorite snack pre-run?

Favorite way to make sure everything gets done before a vacation?

Dreaming Beyond Your Comfort Zone

I re-listened to the Runner's World Show Podcast on Deena Kastor's Positivity Speech yesterday and was totally inspired. I was ALSO inspired yesterday when I listened to I'll Have Another with Lindsey Hein's Podcast interviewing Teal Burrell (Teal went from a 4:07 marathon to qualifying for the Olympic Trails with a 2:42 Marathon)- talk about dreaming big!

I started thinking about dreaming big (and not just kind-of big, but really really big) and how truly scary it is to think of the long road there may be to get to your goals (and how uncomfortable it could be). I like to set goals for myself and sometimes get only a fraction out of my comfort zone, but I'm not sure if I've ever really pushed myself way out of my comfort zone too much. I've hiked some pretty dangerous trails, sky dived, moved halfway across the country by myself, applied for jobs totally out of my league, but these all seem SO small compared to Teal's goals and Deena Kastor's amazing speech about positivity. 

I've also been thinking a lot about my recent race and what my goal for Las Vegas Marathon should be. I'm a huge believer in stepping stones towards a larger goal, so I wanted to utilize LV as a stepping stone towards my bigger goals (running a sub-4 hour marathon, qualifying for Boston, running a 1:45 half-marathon). I also know that I still struggle with pushing myself in a race beyond my comfort zone (getting comfortable with the uncomfortable)- I was SO close to the edge of breaking through this barrier at my recent race (progress, eh?), so I am determined to achieve that at my next race. 

Positivity and the ability to dream big really do go hand-in-hand.

You not only have to BELIEVE in yourself, but you also need to BELIEVE in your dream. 

Creating positive self-talk is really difficult and something that I don't always succeed at. I get down on myself (sometimes on crummy runs or sometimes when I have a set-back from one of my dream goals), which is pretty terrible and a total dream-crusher. So, I am determined to begin to re-work my thinking from negative to positive.

It's not going to happen overnight or 6 months from now and it will be challenging, but I believe it will be THE key to my success to reaching my dream-big goals. 

It'll start small from consciously trying to be aware of how I look at situations, view myself, view others, etc. and correct myself when I notice these negative behaviors creeping in. I will also list three things each day that I am thankful for. 

Here's to launching my #dreambeyondyourcomfortzone project! You can join along in my project and leave your #thankfulnotes in the comments, a journal, your blog, social media, etc. Share the positivity!

Thankful for today:

1. A beautiful view out our deck
2. Avocados and Over-Easy Eggs
3. My Resiliency

What are you thankful for?

Any big race tips to stay positive and push outside your comfort zone?

What are some things that make your Dream Big list?