Today, and In the Future

Today's workout!

I did the sprints I said I would do, and then after doing some crunches and push-ups I finished on the elliptical for about 20 minutes. Those sprint suckers are hard, though. I've done them about five or six times now and sometimes I can complete them without stopping... but usually not.

It's a routine I got from FitSugar which apparently was created by a celebrity personal trainer just for use on the treadmill. Since, especially at this time of year, I think it's easier to do timed sprints on a treadmill indoors, I have been trying to do this once a week. I do usually work some sprints into the latter part of my outdoor runs, though (the part after I've recovered from the long steady distance run).

Anyway, the routine is:
5m @ 5mph
1m @ 8mph; 1m @ 5mph. repeat 3 times
45s @ 9mph; 1m @ 5mph. repeat 3 times
30s @ 10mph; 1m @ 5mph. repeat 3 times.
5m @ 3.5mph

So obviously it's that last set, the 10mph one, that kind of... kills you. XD I enjoy these, in part because it's relatively brief, and in part because I know I can do it. But today I did have to stop after the first two reps of the 10 mph set. I'm also not sure I timed it all correctly today. Still though, it comes out to about 2.05 miles from start to finish (not including the walking at the end) and that's a good workout! The intervals are really good for fat burning and metabolism too, or at least that's what I've read.

After that I did more crunches and push-ups. Same crunch total as yesterday on both moves. Push-ups I added to slightly, still three sets, still 13 on the first, 10 on the second, but I managed 7 on the third and then 7 on the modified/girly position. So I totaled 37 today! My mother has prodded me to try the 100 Push-ups Challenge which I suppose I will give in and do starting on Monday. I'll see if I can stick with it. I've been really good at going gung-ho with push-ups for a few weeks and then forgetting about them entirely for a few more weeks. So we'll see. *G* The aspect I like of that challenge is where you only do them 3 days a week; part of what tires me out with push-ups is that I do try to do them each day and some days I'm terribly sore from other workouts.

*****

Now for something completely different yet still connected to running! For months now - even well before I was doing 5Ks or could run for a full mile - I've been eyeing the Walt Disney World marathon/half-marathon. (If anyone reading this doesn't know me personally yet, here's a secret everyone knows: I'm fanatical about Disney World. I can go back and forth on Disney products as a whole but the WDW fixation has just grown over the past four years.) You get to run through the parks. The characters come out and cheer you on. OH. MY. GOD. If I could actually run that far, I thought to myself, and actually ENJOY it, doing that THROUGH Disney World would be like... heaven. :O Just looking at the course map made me giddy.

Well. I'm not committing to doing it yet, because once I commit to it I will actually DO IT and I'm not sure I CAN do it. Getting there will be hard, more so because I would absolutely have to bring my family and it's just a matter of coordinating etc. But I've looked at the races they actually have available and it turns out there are a ton more than just the official Marathon and Half. They have a bunch of race weekends spread throughout the year and have been adding more lately.

In addition to the Half Marathon (or... perhaps... dare I say... the Marathon itself? I've thought maybe for my 35th birthday... assuming I could get the training time in by then... NO COMMITMENTS) I would love to run the Tower of Terror 13K. This just started last year and is a twilight run around Hollywood Studios, beginning and ending, as I understand, near the Tower of Terror ride. In addition to starting off with fireworks and taking the runners up to a "VIP" area inside the ride for the post-race party, you get gimmicky stuff like a glow-in-the-dark bib (well... I suppose, since it's a twilight race, that's actually very useful) and a medal shaped like the hotel, with MOVING ELEVATORS. I kid you not. XD

Tell me that doesn't sound like a hoot! An 8-mile run at dusk in October. I sincerely doubt I'll ever manage it, unless I give up entirely on running the marathon or the half (I just don't think my husband would be completely kosher with me spending a buttload on running in WDW races and paying to get everyone down there, etc), but what fun!