The Making of a Princess

From Pumpkin to Princess

The Road to Fit and Fabulous

Gayle: So why put off until tomorrow when you can start today?  To say running is so not my thing is, well, let's face it, is a huge understatement. I am a "walk with purpose" kind of Gal, and lately not much one at that. My form of exercise is teaching kindergarten and dancing with them and when we do "Bop Until You Drop",    I've been a lot better at the dropping part than the bopping part.  For me it is all about the tee shirt, and let's face it, the tee shirts for the people doing the half marathons and full marathons are just so much cooler. But it's also about setting a goal, and going out and living Walt's words when he said "It's kind of fun to do the impossible" because for me, this seems impossible. I am proud to say that I completed my first Run Disney 5K event in September and was amazed that I finished in under an hour. For those of you that are seasoned runners, and were able to actually run the 5k or better yet, complete the Tower of Terror 10 miler-you are my inspiration!

      So today, along with many of the other Gals, we are embarking on our journey to conquer a Run Disney event-be it a 5K, half or full marathon-we are all putting on our moving shoes and putting one step in front of the other, even if they are baby steps to start with. Each week you will be able to follow our journey to find our inner Princess. We are also hoping that many of you will join with us as we get off the couch, move away from the snack aisle, especially now that my beloved Twinkies are all but a distant memory, and show that anyone, even someone like me, can do this. I have even gone as far as to promise that when we finally get to the starting line, I will be decked out in tutus and bows while chasing down my tiara awaiting me at the end of the journey,  My first steps on the road to fabulous started today. I was able to do 1.8 miles, as suggested my the RunKeeper 5K trainer keeping a 16.58 pace. Again, I am not a runner, but I am a huge believer in goals and dreams and with this pace, I would totally be eligible for any of the Run DIsney  events. I'm off and moving! Who's next to join me???  "Run like the Wind Bullseye"

Kelly: My story is a bit different from Gayle's. I have spent a good portion of my 40+ years being athletic and competitive. If there is a sport that includes throwing, hitting, dribbling or spiking a ball, sign me up. But running...could never quite grasp the concept. There's no ball to catch, no base to get to, what am I running after? Now if Johnny Depp or Hugh Jackman was running in front of me, there's my goal, but just going out for a run, no way!

     Only the magic of Disney could turn my thinking around. A number of the Gals were entered in the Happy Haunted 5K Trail Run this past September, so why not join the fun. I figured I could walk quickly enough to keep up the pace. Since I did not end up in the same corral with anyone I knew, it was easy enough to go at the pace comfortable to me. I was able to "speed walk" it in 40 minutes. Not too bad. At the end of the race when I received my medal and had a photo taken, it hit me, I want to do this again. And next time I want to do it better! That evening at the Villain Party we cheered on the runners in the ToT 10miler. New goal! That's where I would like to be next year.

     So today I join Gayle, the Gals, and hopefully many of you on this journey  to get motivated and get moving. I will set weekly goals and hope you can help me stay accountable. Together we can all be making the next runDisney 5k!

Judy:

I am sure each of us has our own story as to what or why they would like to do this. Let me tell you why I am here, I have three sisters, all of whom were cheerleaders and my parents were the cheerleader coaches, I of course was the only one who wasn't a cheerleader. Oh, they let me work the competitions, but that was it. So one day I was going to prove that I too could do what they did, right there in front of my boyfriend (now husband) I did the best splits ever and couldn't get back up. Needless to say I totally tore the cartilage off the bone in my left knee and at age 17 need knee surgery, fast forward 37 years later and this past May I had a total knee replacement (I got a good amount out of that first surgery!). So now that I have finished rehab, last month I did my first 5k, the Monster Dash here in Chicago (which is part of Team Ortho's events). Okay I had to walk it but I did it and that is all that matters!! I am still working on rehab at home, so this is perfect to help me along.  I would love to do a Run Disney Event (my friend keeps asking me too)!

I am happy to say I am joining Gayle, Kelly and the Gals and any of you who are going to be joining us in this journey, let’s see what we can do together. 

Tricia: I suppose that I can be considered more of a Princess that lost her way. In 2009, I embarked on my first "real" training regimen as a group of friends and I decided to head to Disney World in March 2010 to run my first ever 1/2 marathon. Earlier in the Spring of 2009, I remember someone asking me to run a 5K and I scoffed at the idea thinking that I could never possibly survive 3.1 miles. Nine months later, I ran 13.1 miles like it was a stroll in the park so I know it can be done. Unfortunately, I did the one thing that I swore to myself that I would NOT do and that was to stop running. I had spent months training to get myself to a level where running 10 miles was easy and I had no intention of losing that. I continued my training following the Princess 1/2 marathon so that I could complete the Philly Broad Street Run (10 miles) in May 2010. Then came the summer heat...and my endless supply of excuses. Well here I am over two years later and I really want to get back into the game. I have run two 5K's this year (one in July 2012 and the Happy Haunted 5K in September 2012) and also joined a local running club but I still need a goal to work toward to keep my motivation. Right now I am also considering the Tower of Terror 10-miler but maybe you can all help me decide! Follow us on our journey to Fit and Fabulous right here on The Disney Gals.