Cara, a REALTOR® at Crest Realty of Georgia & Florida, was just minding her business and counting her calories one year ago when a friend surprised her with a runDisney Princess Half Marathon Weekend 10k registration. She didn’t know it at the time, but this act of kindness would change not only the way that she sees herself, but would shift the way her family spends their time together.
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Seeing herself as a runner has changed Cara’s life. Join us as we talk about runDisney race excitement, self-doubt, smashing through the barriers in our own minds, and straightening crowns.
Run Up to rundisney 10k race day
training
Cara struggled to train the way she hoped back when she was first registered. We have all been there!
Once training for the runDisney 10k was well underway, she came down with the flu! After a long recovery, she was ready to get her feet out on the pavement.
Mindset
Cara learned early in her training to her first runDisney 10k that the first two miles of any training run are liars. Once those miles are under her belt, her music takes over and she can settle in to enjoy the run.
Running helped Cara shift from calorie counting to weight reasons to enjoying movement just for the sake of moving. This is such an incredible transformation.
It was at the runDisney 10k Expo where she started to shift from fear to, “I can do this!”
runDisney Princess half Marathon weekend expo
Cara described her first race expo as “Overwhelming.” She was able to enjoy all the the step & repeat photo stations on her girls trip and shop until her heart was content.
The friends that dragged encouraged her to try out this experience introduced her to better socks, running gels, and other runner focused items that she wouldn’t have otherwise encountered. Shopping was fun!
She signed her name to pick up her runDisney 10k race bib and shirt, and definitely felt a bit of fear. She was afraid she might not finish. She was terrified to let herself and her friends down. But that couldn’t stop her! She was ready to push through.
Race morning
After Cara loaded up on the bus to head to the staging area, all the excitement and nerves set in!
It was cold, so this was her first experience with “Throw away clothes.”
She was there. She was a runner.
Standing in the corrals, she was able to take a moment to drink it all in. Cara was so impressed by the costumes and the fireworks and the entire environment.
She remarked that it was particularly fantastic to see so many women, all together, working together to reach their goals.
One thing I can’t stand is women putting other women down. In that environment, I didn’t feel like anyone was looking at me.
Cara
The Race begins
Once her corral started and she was moving her body, she described it as “Magical.”
She noted that she was a little disappointed that there were so few bathroom stops in the first half of the course. But as soon as she started to feel down about it, she saw a pregnant woman running. If she can do it without a restroom, so can she!
Around mile 4, she started to believe in herself in a real way. She was going to do this!
The finish line
Her running partner, a runDisney regular, told her, “Around this corner is the finish. Let’s move.”
As Cara turned the corner and saw that finish line for the first time, she couldn’t control the tears. She was so proud of herself for showing her daughters that anything is possible.
She did discover that her swollen fingers made it hard to use her phone. That was new!
Post Race thoughts
Cara is excited to run a future runDisney race with her daughters. This experience has brought a whole new level of physical activity to her whole family. She has even started taking evening walks with her husband and loves what that has brought to her life.
Cara says that anything is possible. All you have to do is move your feet.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US TODAY. PLEASE BE SURE TO SUBSCRIBE IN YOUR FAVORITE PODCAST APP AND SHARE WITH ANY FRIENDS OR FAMILY WHO ARE CONSIDERING MAKING THE JUMP AND REGISTERING FOR A RUNDISNEY RACE.
HAVE YOU EVER RUN A RUNDISNEY RACE? WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR A NEW RUNNER?
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