18 weeks before 26.2 miles

Before turning a quarter of a century old, I decided to make a list of goals; which I’ll get into later in the year. One of them, was running a half (13.1 miles) and full (26.2 miles) marathon. But because of the Covid-19 pandemic, my half marathon was cancelled, then postponed, then made virtual… by then, I gave up on writing about the journey. So here’s my journey towards my full marathon. 

I was (or will be) running the Chicago Marathon with Autism Speaks. 

Some resources that helped me prior to doing something completely out of anything I ever thought I would do, would probably help you too! I decided to make this year my year of adventure. 

And boy have I done it. Thanks to the pandemic, I’ve learned some new talents I never knew could be as interesting and fun, like cooking. It’s made my eating habits better and I eat everything I want; in moderation of course. Diets don’t work for me. The most I’ve done is my modified diet and even then, it was only a few days of real detox because I feel guilty. I just have the biggest sweet tooth ever.

I started writing and contacting people in my social media asking who had run a marathon. If they had any tips, goals, guides… I was at an information overload but I needed it to calm myself a little. No one in my immediate family had ever done anything like this, so I was going in blind. I’m grateful for all the meetings, calls, texts, resources and everything everyone provided me.

I decided to run with a charity. Mostly because I didn’t know all of my options. I chose to even make the marathon a goal because one of my friends at North Central College wanted to run a full marathon before she turned 30. So of course, I jumped on the band wagon and aimed for it too, but before 25 years old. Little did I know what I was getting myself into. Thanks Linh!

There are multiple outlets in which you can run a marathon, but I chose to run with a charity and support Autism Speaks. With it comes perks. You meet people in the same running journey, maybe even in your same pace. You feel more motivated to run for the cause rather than for yourself. I joined the facebook group and it has been a life savor because if you know me at all, I like to ask a bagillion questions to be well prepared. 

A side note though: you have to fundraise a certain amount for whichever charity you choose to run for. Because I signed myself up nearly a year in advance, I started to focus on fundraising before my training. I like to give my all to one aspect before the next goal. I want to educate myself as much as possible and really dedicate the time it deserves. 

“It’s been a wild ride and all worth it!” said no one ever.

The start of training

We were sent an email each week for what training that week should look like. It looked something like: 

• Monday: REST
• Tuesday: # miles
• Wednesday: # miles
• Thursday: # miles
• Friday: REST
• Saturday: long run
• Sunday: cross training

Disclaimer: I’m not going to give you a run down of every day because you probably won’t read it. So I’ll just write about the days that provided more impact on me. 

My FIRST DAY of training was June 8, 2020. Ask me if I ate any type of healthy food? Absolutely not. Just to give you an idea of what I ate: 

• Breakfast: oatmeal
• Lunch: lettuce, tomato, chicken, cheese, black beans with apricots as “dessert”
• Snack: carrots, brie cheese with that good orange-y sauce, a chocolate cookie, handful of white cheeto puffs, two m&m cookies
• Dinner: rice, meatballs, avocado, sweet plantain chips

But at least I drank water for half my body weight. Which is what you’re supposed to drink daily. 

The fact that I knew the next day I had to start my real training, gave me good riddance… if that makes sense?

DAY 2: June 9 @ 4:29PM

• Distance: 2.64 miles
• Time: 29.53 min
• Avg pace: 11’19”
• Weather: 91 degrees
• Location: Miami, FL

It was SO HOT! Major regrets. My biggest goal was to keep a solid pace but also not get into the red zone. I DID IT! It wasn’t easy because I felt like I was dying but it opened my eyes to the type of motivation I want to provide myself. 

I feel very intimated about Saturday’s 8 miles. Where am I going to run? I’m not going to do 3.5 laps around my neighborhood. I’m going to feel dizzy. Where’s the new scenery?!

At least I have some fun socks to keep me going.

DAY 3: June 10 @ 7:13PM

• Distance: 5.01 miles
• Time: 01:02:13 min
• Avg pace: 12’24”
• Weather: 86 degrees
• Location: Miami, FL

I KEPT IT YELLOW THE WHOLE TIME! It felt like I’ve really been practicing, even though the pandemic took two months of unmotivated running from me. It was ROUGH. But I truly feel accomplished that I was able to stay strong the whole way through.

I feel a little excited about Saturday’s run because it’s all a MENTAL thing. My mind plays tricks on me and I have to keep myself motivated the whole time. 

ALSO, I need a running playlist. ASAP.

DAY 7: June 13 @ 6:13AM

• Distance: 8.01 miles
• Time: 1:36:18 min
• Avg pace: 12’01”
• Weather: 82 degrees
• Location: Miami, FL

Coming into this run, I felt SO intimidated. The last time I ran a long run was mid-Feb. But it’s all a mental thing, remember that! 

BUT I DID A RECORD FOR MYSELF!!

I ran with a friend I hadn’t seen IN YEARS! I think we were both nervous but didn’t really talk about it. It just felt natural, I guess? I’m also a huge advocate for running buddies- which is hard to find. Grateful for you, Ashley!

New scenery was also nice. We ran around the 4-mile golf course twice, completing my 8-mile run. She definitely helped keep a solid pace range, which I never thought I could do. I’m not going to lie, my left leg cramped for almost two miles but I stuck with it. Did you know that wearing thick socks for long runs help tremendously. It offers more support for your feet.

My biggest goal in both marathons? Do not walk. 

So a random little fact that also helps me- since I have long, thick hair, I have to use tight ponytails. Which in turn, I usually get headaches from wearing ponytails for too long because my hair weighs a lot. I bet you some relate. I know I’m not alone on this one! So I bought new ponytails to use on my runs. You can also run with braids, but my lil dumb excuse is that ponytails look better in pictures. In a sense, I’m still practicing with my day-of-run look!

Overall, thank you Ashley, for pushing me and my pace range. I iced my left calf when I got home. Had my mom massage my legs and really just relax all day. The pool helps with aerobics too!

I beat my 8-mile goal by like 15-20 minutes. Mission Accomplished!

DAY 27: July 4th

• Distance: 11.00 miles
• Time: 2:29:19 min
• Avg pace: 13’34”
• Weather: MUGGY degrees
• Location: Miami, FL

I have to run 11 miles and have been less motivated to do anything. I’m running on 3 hours on/off sleep and I sike myself out. Which brings in how much I haven’t eaten properly. Sounds like excuses right?

Oh and I would be running by myself. 

I also signed myself up for the 5k for Autism Speaks today. I definitely went a little above and beyond for it, if you know what I mean! Gatorade should sponsor me from all the bottles I drank.

Update: I ran it in the PM! I’m so proud of myself and how I turned my mood upside down. 

And I came up with a running playlist. It’s still a work in progress, but check me out!!

DAY 36: Monday, July 13, 2020 at 2:35PM

We were informed that the Chicago Marathon is going to be cancelled. I’m still waiting on more news and statements from Autism Speaks. I have too many questions, but I’ll remain patient.

I’m still aiming to run the half marathon this Saturday, July 18th. It would have been a double whammy with my marathon training, so I don’t want the run to go to waste.

DAY 41: July 18th

You don’t understand how long I’ve been waiting to finally run my half marathon. It was originally supposed to be in April, but covid-19 got a little more intense than we expected. I was a little intimidated as the date got closer but I knew I really wanted to run this.

It started pouring the night before since 10pm and pouring rain all weekend.

My condition

On Sunday, July 19th, I went to the Emergency Room. Now I definitely couldn’t run the half marathon, because my health comes first. If you’re interested in that story, I spoke a little about it. But if you’re interested in the whole story, feel free to reach out.

Covid-19 hasn’t made this journey easier but I definitely do not regret signing up for the marathons. My 25 goals before 25 years old may be a little ruined, but I’m still looking forward to everything else that lies ahead.

Who’s with me?!

The post Training Before the Chicago Marathon; but first, Covid-19 appeared first on Plane and Cheesy.

COVID-19 was peeking in.

The pandemic started taking turn on Thursday, March 12th. Chicago closed Tuesday, March 17th. But this trip had been planned for months, and we were going to make it possible. All our events, tours, and tastings were being cancelled little by little. Some were still happening, but we were ready with wipes, hand sanitizer and all the cleaning supplies necessary for a SANITARY trip.

So let’s pause on COVID-19.

We arrived at the Hyatt Place in Chicago. It was so convenient that our hotel was walking distance from everywhere we wanted to be at. With everything that was starting from the pandemic, the front desk helped us out of courtesy; and we’ll never forget it. The experience was one for the books, so I’d recommend it 100%, if you chose to stay here.

Side note: before we even entered the room, my sister took out the wipes and cleaned everything from head to toe- the door knobs, the whole bathroom, the remote (which actually usually has the most bacteria in a hotel room)… just about everything. I have video proof in my Chicago highlight, if you want to see.

F R I D A Y

I feel like I’ve pretty much gone to all the Portillo’s in the area because every time I tour the city with someone, I end up in a Portillo’s I hadn’t visited. YET I haven’t been to the original… so it’s goal! I only know it’s located in Villa Park, Illinois. A MUST HAVE (at least once in your lifetime) is the cake milkshake. They literally add a whole slice of chocolate cake in a milkshake. Vacation calories don’t count, right? *shrugs*

So we walked off our calories to the Skydeck, AKA Willis Tower, AKA Sears Tower. Back when I first visited, there was no such thing as “30 seconds per person” for a photo. Now, you have to figure out some poses before taking your 30-second photo and wait in a massive line… but the view is GREAT and the pictures, even BETTER! It’s also very affordable.

Look how cute my new friends are!

We made a pit stop in our walk to Slugger’s to stop at the front of Wrigley’s for a quick photo. Sluggers is a dueling piano bar and has an indoor batting cages with arcades upstairs. It looked like a regular sports bar walking in, but the excitement grew when we went upstairs. Check out the arcades and batting cages! The bar was like no other. I can’t wait to really experience it during the baseball games.

We originally had a tour at the Goose Island Beer Company, but it was cancelled. #ThanksCovid. We enjoyed it with a few beers and good friends, maybe bought a few souvenirs too. I definitely want to come back for a tour, since the brand is originally from Chicago since 1988.

S A T U R D A Y

My siblings, sister’s boyfriend and I went our merry way to the bar crawl (one of the few events that wasn’t cancelled). Surprisingly, it started in the morning and purposefully ended around lunch time just in time for the green river THAT NEVER HAPPENED. We packed our lysol, wipes and hand sanitizer for every time our hands touched something new. Exploring bars during this time was a little challenging. To name a few, we went to Underground, Celeste, Old Crow and Beatnik. I have to say that our favorite was Old Crow. Just reminded us about Miami, with a rooftop (that we could barely go to because the line was so long) and the music was great.

Everything was decorated for St. Patrick’s day and there were specials for green beverages. EXCITING!

Onto the next eating adventure… Goddess and the Baker. My sister spotted this place on Pinterest and it was a must do! It’s a very small spot, so our large group was a little much, but we loved the brunch spot. Everything we hoped for in a quick munch before our next spot.

It felt like we walked for hours… but it was just cold. We took photos by the river THAT NEVER TURNED GREEN. To make it a little better, we ended up at LondonHouse.

CUTEST ROOFTOP EVER!

It was a relatively small rooftop area, but the view was breathtaking. They even served green beverages, which continued my hope for an iconic St. Patty’s weekend in Chicago. This would have been the perfect spot for watching the river turn green… maybe next year!

Obviously, we couldn’t get enough of one rooftop, so we picked up my boyfriend at the hotel and met up with everyone at Cindy’s Rooftop. It had both an indoor and an outdoor area.

TODAY WAS THE DAY!

My sister saw snow fall for the FIRST TIME EVER! The curse has been broken, even through the Iowa experience. Can’t you see our happy faces?! I loved being a part of her first snow experience, as well as meeting new friends along the way.

Made a pit stop at Navy Pier for some prime time night photos. Check out my sister’s phone quality photos- WOW! It was also a little cold… can you tell?

Man… all this cold weather is making me hungry.

Guess what?!

We’re eating again.

Welcome to Bar Cargo. So much pizza goodness! I would call this location more of a hole in the wall. It had a vintage-cabin feel, all bricks and homey-like. We ordered based on the menu portions, but I wish the waiter would have mentioned something before. We ordered a few pizzas with different toppings, appetizers and barely made it to dessert. The portion sizes were HUGE. But thanks to the size of the group and how hungry we were, we ate everything… of course.

S U N D A Y

We donut think it would be right if we didn’t stop by the famous Stan’s Donuts. I had been wanting to come forever! I finally crossed it off my list and every inch of donut was worth it. So many selections and yummy goodness for that dessert compartment in you. The reason I say this is because even when you’re full, if you’re anything like me, you always have a small spot for dessert. We basically bought every donut, some ice cream and a milkshake. MUCH NEEDED SWEETNESS!

We had to walk off the calories somehow… Onto our next uncanceled adventure! Our group bought tickets to a small boat cruise and because of the pandemic starting, they were only allowing limited people the day of. To our luck, we were the last “large group” that entered for the cap of 100 people. Mind you, the boat had a capacity of about 350 individuals, but because everyone needed to start being 6-feet a part, they only allowed 100 people. The next big group went on the smaller boat next to us. LUCKY US! It wasn’t St. Patty’s for nothing! *winky face*

THAT VIEW! Not the scenery, but us.

Just kidding, the scenery too…

Of course, memories last forever when photos are taken… or maybe that’s just me.

ANYWAY

Here’s our 2020 Christmas card. You saw it first, two months later… we ARE the Cancio kids.

The lighting was incredible. We hit my favorite spot in Chicago before dinner- the skyline. SO WORTH IT! This is the correct address if you ever want to go: 517 E Solidarity Dr, Chicago, IL 60605. I’ve been dreaming of having a picnic here. *Someone tell my boyfriend. Thanks!*

We ended the night at RPM Italian. My sister has this tradition that every trip we take, we splurge and dress up for one fancy shmancy restaurant. One of our favorites since our first visit has been RPM Italian. RPM also has two other restaurants in the area, that’s why I’m being specific. The boys had a whiskey with the RPM ice cube- actually pretty cool. I shared the octopus as an appetizer, gnocchi *pronounced nyoh-kee* for dinner and the chocolate ball for dessert. SO YUM! Every inch was worth it.

M O N D A Y

When I tell you that this was the best Oreo waffle I had ever had in my life, I am not joking. The amount of yummy goodness in this for hit the spot. But one aspect we all should know is that usually, the line for Wildberry Pancake and Cafe is 2-hours minimum. We waited about 2-minutes for a group of 10. WORLD RECORD!

Here’s why… the #pandemic.

T U E S D A Y

Rise and shine! We ate breakfast at Corey’s, before our flight and made the best of it!

The governor started announcing the state-wide shutdown. We were basically in panic mode. I had to pack a bag and leave with my siblings back home for what we thought was going to be two weeks.

It’s been almost two months exactly since I flew back and everything feels so uncertain. This pandemic turned from a simple lysol, wipes and hand sanitizer movement to a nationwide shutdown.

All I can say is:

WHAT AN EXPERIENCE

Chicago, you have my heart. I’ll be back!

This trip was the last one I took before all this #pandemic got out of control. The people I spent time with and got to know were simply amazing. The trip would not have been the same without them, my siblings and our temporary sanity.

Until next time…

The post A Friend’s Affair in Chicago Before the Pandemic appeared first on Plane and Cheesy.