A New Challenge!

As I have previously mentioned, I recently signed up for three RunDisney races, the Wine and Dine Half, the Avengers Half and the Dopey Challenge. I will start by saying- I was very lucky to register for these races, most sold out in under 2 days, with some going as quickly as 2 hours! With the first hurdle successfully cleared-registration- I moved onto the next hurdle- planning the holiday and now I am on my final hurdle- training.

I have run 2 half marathons before, both under the RunDisney required pace of 16min/mile (and both on disjointed, injury filled training), so I feel confident that with a solid training block I could manage one half, however 2 half marathons one weekend apart on opposites sides of America? This is a whole new challenge (and a great training exercise for the Dopey Challenge), this is not just about completing the half, it's about finishing strong and feeling good, ensuring I do everything within my power to aide recovery and knowing my limits when touring the parks to ensure I don't tire myself out before the race even begins! I have read a lot of articles and a lot of other great blogs- check out the RunDisney Fitness Team blog and a great article they did on 'Don't Be The "Dopeyist" During This Years WDW Marathon Weekend'. I have been using compression sleeves both during and after runs, icing, stretching, foam rolling, trying to improve my eating, testing different sports nutrition, sleeping well and just generally trying to be the most responsible runner I can be. I am someone who hates the idea of a DNF. I understand sometimes there will be things out of my control and maybe I will have to see that dreaded DNF against my name. But I will do everything I can to avoid it. So if strong recovery and strong training are going to put me on the fast track out of DNF-sville, I am on board 110%!

Any tips for a strong recovery after a long run?

Ash :)