Sunday, January 22, 2012

Self-doubt


As the Princess Half nears (5 weeks!!!), it seems like some of us are experiencing a hefty dose of self-doubt.  As I read my Facebook news feed today, I see many of my Princess Half friends  post things like “what have I gotten myself into” and “Why is it when I run on the treadmill, I only do half the mileage that I can do when I run outside? Getting nervous about my mileage for Disney.”  I am not immune to this self-doubt.  Due to a very snowy weekend, my usual running trail that I use for my long runs is covered with snow.  I ran on the treadmill at the gym for an hour and a half, almost 7 miles.  I was spent when I was finished—both mentally and physically.  Although 7 miles is far from my farthest run, I was done.  My time was ok, but I kept thinking 7 miles will barely take me out of the Magic Kingdom.  How am I going to make it all the way back to Epcot? 

On my drive home, I thought about all the wonderful people I have met on this journey and how far we all have come. You all are so inspiring to me. Ladies--we are better than this. Enough with all of the self-doubt! We need to believe in ourselves and our bodies.  We all started at different places, but we will all end at the same the finish line.  Look how far we have come already.  We are to close for second guess ourselves now.  I will ask you what I asked myself:  Have you worked hard to prepare yourself for the race?  Yes.  Have you done the planned training?  Yes.  Are you prepared to push yourself hard on race day?  Yes.  Then you and I will both succeed!  Princesses, see you at the finish line!

A dream is a wish…

--Amy

***Still need a tiara for the race?  Please consider buying a Bondi Band!  All the proceeds go to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.  

9 comments:

  1. I just started reading your blog!! I'm running the Princess 2012 half also-and it's also my first half marathon. Just the last two weeks, I've been asking myself that "what have I gotten myself into?" question. I've also had the "this isn't the smartest thing I've ever done." thing rattling around in my head. It's actually nice to know that others are feeling the same way. But, I'll stick to my training. WE CAN DO THIS!

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  2. I did a no-no. During my internship with Disney this past fall I completely fell off my training. I ran exactly twice between August and January (when the 1/2 marathon was) and I was able to do it! I was in the 6th wave (wave F) and finished with doing the majority of it walking. If I can do it, I know you can!!! :) You got this!

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  3. Overcoming self-doubt is really part of the journey to complete a half marathon. I've gone through it before every race and the good news is, I've overcome it every race. I'm sure you will be able to as well as long as you keep your head focused on finishing the race and those lovely medals we get at the end!

    @gymnotechieology- I was doing an internship with Disney between June and January as well! I was able to keep a decent schedule for running because my manager gave me a decent schedule. I didn't get that much training in before the Disneyland 1/2 though, but I too finished!

    As long as we believe we can, then we really can do it. Most of endurance sports are mental, not physical!

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  4. Thank you! I know I have self doubt but I will finish and you are correct, I will see you at the Finish Line! Run, Walk, Crawl doesn't matter, I will cross that finish line! :)

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  5. I completely understand about self doubt. I am not going to lie...the starting line is scary. This is where I normally freak out the most, especially when I am racing by myself, but something magical happens when you cross the start line.

    Also, the treadmill is a torture device to drive runners insane. A 10 miler outside, not a problem. A 10 miler on an indoor track, not ideal but doable. A 10 miler on a treadmill, kill me now.

    You will be great!

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  6. Completely agree - there is something so discouraging about the treadmill (perhaps see the count at EVERY single second!)

    Ditto on nerves! I decided to run the Philadelphia Half Marathon in November so I could get the fear worked out of my system before Disney. So glad I did, I was a WRECK! I'd totally lost all confidence in myself going into the race. Thankfully, I achieved my (and Galloway's) goal of finishing upright!!

    People will say on race day you get an adrenaline kick from those around you, so true. Unlike training when it is all you, out there on the race course you are surrounded by friends.

    If I had any advice to give, it is to keep up with the long runs. Even if you don't follow the plan and get to 14, getting to 10-12 allows you to feel as though you are close to your Princess day goal. After all, if you can do 11 you can definitely kick it out for just two more miles.

    See you all in FIVE weeks - thanks for all Amy!!

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  7. The treadmill kills me! It's funny because when I started running a year ago, I ran exclusively on the treadmill. I started doing the c25k plan and I loved it. I didn't run at all outside until April and even then doing 1 mile outside was killer. Now, last weekend I ran 10 miles outside (wahoo!) and I felt tortured when I had to do 3 on the treadmill at the gym.
    When I hit 10 miles I felt amazing. I knew in that moment that I could do it. Every doubt I had about finishing vanished. It was really fantastic to feel like I could kick this half marathon's butt! My mom is running it with me and this morning she was saying the same things you've been hearing for others, "it's crazy" or "what have I gotten myself into" and my response is just that this will be one of the most amazing experiences in our lives.

    Five week! Wahoo! I'll be heading to Florida in 4 weeks. Can't wait to see you all there!!

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  8. I love you girls! Thanks for all the confidence! When I first started running, I was an exclusive Treadmiller too. Now, I agree--its a torture devise. Running outside is so much from fulfilling. I can't even imagine how it will feel to run through the castle with all of you lovely ladies. I know I can do this and I KNOW you can too! Thank you so much for being part of my journey.

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  9. NEVER EVER think that a treadmill run is indicative of an outdoor run. It is not. You will run better outside, especially if the treadmill is just used for the occasional run. Use it when you have to, but remember that the treadmill is only tool. You will run better when you're outside and you'll kick Princess's butt! It's hard to believe that when you've never done it before (the distance/half marathon), but you will. Hang in there! You can do this!!

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