Hey guys! I just updated my Bucket List on my blog, crossing out the little item of running the Disney Princess Half Marathon, because I did it! Last Sunday my bffl Kate and I (with fantastic cheerleaders Matty and Maddie) dragged ourselves out of bed at 3 in the morning to go run 13.1 magical Disney miles.
It was my first half marathon and the first time I had ever run more than 11 miles and I am quite proud of myself for doing it, considering that this time last year I was stressing out over signing up for my first 5 mile race.
Running has been a wonderful addition to my life but the relationship did not start out so loving, and some days we still fight like an old married couple...but at the end of the day I am so thankful to have pushed myself into doing it. My husbandis was the real runner in our family, and was my motivation to have started, but the real motivation is the fact that I have lost all of my baby weight plus an extra 20 pounds that was kicking around post-wedding, leaving me at pretty much the thinnest and fittest I have been in my adult life. Not bad for the girl who ate a foot long from Subway at lunch quicker than my friends ate their six inchers.
I don't do diets.Period. I love food, I love going out to eat with my friends, I love making fun dinners at home with Maddie mixing in her bowls at my feet, and you can pry beer out of my cold dead hands. That being said, I also don't like eating crap; our house is a no-corn syrup zone and Matty and I both try not to put anything in our mouths that we wouldn't let Maddie eat so rarely do we have potato chips, processed food or refined sugars. Who wants to eat that crap anyways, when I can mix up a batch of chocolate chip cookies in half an hour and we can eat fruit and cheese and homemade bread all day?
But I digress, this was about running,. I run because I need to get up early when the baby is asleep and burn the most calories/relieve the most stress/have a half an hour to think and prepare my mind for the day. I run because I enjoy the smiles and waves from other runners when it is 7 degrees and the snow is in your face and you know you are all out there when you could be sitting at home on the couch tweeting about how cold it looks out there. I run because I am vain, and being a fit, attractive mom is sometimes the only thing on my mind when I hear that alarm go off at 5am and know damn well the baby just had me up from 3am to 4am with her tumbling moves in bed.
So, why travel all the way to humid Florida for my first half? One day when I was doing the elliptical at the gym (ugggh how did I ever do that?) I read in a magazine that Disney had running events. Later that year I attended the Boston Marathon Expo with my running hubby and saw the Run Disney people and took home one of their free bags, determined to stop hating running so much so I could be a Princess runner too. Last spring I started training for a 5 miler and then kept going and running and Diva Dashing and started then training for the Princess Half right around Thanksgiving, which was perfect time for my eating habits. And now, I did it and I got to do it with my bffl and only other person I like to run with aside from Matty. Disney went all out - fireworks and characters and music - the way only Disney can. It made for such a fun, enjoyable run (even despite the 300% humidity!) and I am so glad I picked this as my first. Running down Main Street and through Cinderella's Castle was such an incredible thing to do for this 30 year old lover of all things Disney, and have you seen my medal? Totally fit for a princess!
I have about thirty other topics that I want to blog about right now, including my new fantastic position that I start in a week and the other fun things that we did in Florida and that one time I but my hand open and couldn't do yoga for a month. I promise to be back lickety split!
It was my first half marathon and the first time I had ever run more than 11 miles and I am quite proud of myself for doing it, considering that this time last year I was stressing out over signing up for my first 5 mile race.
Running has been a wonderful addition to my life but the relationship did not start out so loving, and some days we still fight like an old married couple...but at the end of the day I am so thankful to have pushed myself into doing it. My husband
I don't do diets.Period. I love food, I love going out to eat with my friends, I love making fun dinners at home with Maddie mixing in her bowls at my feet, and you can pry beer out of my cold dead hands. That being said, I also don't like eating crap; our house is a no-corn syrup zone and Matty and I both try not to put anything in our mouths that we wouldn't let Maddie eat so rarely do we have potato chips, processed food or refined sugars. Who wants to eat that crap anyways, when I can mix up a batch of chocolate chip cookies in half an hour and we can eat fruit and cheese and homemade bread all day?
But I digress, this was about running,. I run because I need to get up early when the baby is asleep and burn the most calories/relieve the most stress/have a half an hour to think and prepare my mind for the day. I run because I enjoy the smiles and waves from other runners when it is 7 degrees and the snow is in your face and you know you are all out there when you could be sitting at home on the couch tweeting about how cold it looks out there. I run because I am vain, and being a fit, attractive mom is sometimes the only thing on my mind when I hear that alarm go off at 5am and know damn well the baby just had me up from 3am to 4am with her tumbling moves in bed.
So, why travel all the way to humid Florida for my first half? One day when I was doing the elliptical at the gym (ugggh how did I ever do that?) I read in a magazine that Disney had running events. Later that year I attended the Boston Marathon Expo with my running hubby and saw the Run Disney people and took home one of their free bags, determined to stop hating running so much so I could be a Princess runner too. Last spring I started training for a 5 miler and then kept going and running and Diva Dashing and started then training for the Princess Half right around Thanksgiving, which was perfect time for my eating habits. And now, I did it and I got to do it with my bffl and only other person I like to run with aside from Matty. Disney went all out - fireworks and characters and music - the way only Disney can. It made for such a fun, enjoyable run (even despite the 300% humidity!) and I am so glad I picked this as my first. Running down Main Street and through Cinderella's Castle was such an incredible thing to do for this 30 year old lover of all things Disney, and have you seen my medal? Totally fit for a princess!
I have about thirty other topics that I want to blog about right now, including my new fantastic position that I start in a week and the other fun things that we did in Florida and that one time I but my hand open and couldn't do yoga for a month. I promise to be back lickety split!
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