My Goofy Challenge strategy is not for those of you who want to know how to do the Goofy Challenge with great speed.
My strategy is for the person who just wants to finish without getting caught by the sag wagon.
It’s funny what when I opened up this draft, I’d actually written out what my main strategy points were and said something like, “Guess we’ll see how they work.” As I read through I was proud that I’d thought ahead and stuck to my strategy. And it worked out great.
First, and most important. SLEEP!
1) Sleep is everything. Everything.
Okay, fiiine. Perhaps it’s not everything. But it’s so close to being the most important thing.
The Disney races are at 5:30 in the morning. And the shuttles start at 3am! I (successfully) tried to get on that crazy sleep schedule early on. I was lucky, because 3am is midnight California time. And I’d ended up on this weird schedule at home where I was sleeping during the day and awake at night. The races fell kind of in my “night-time hours.” I don’t know.
I really don’t. My sleeping schedule was all over the place. But I stayed up almost all night before I got to Disney, went to bed early, and just kept going to bed earlier throughout the weekend. One thing that was amazing and wonderful was that I wasn’t woken up by my alarm for the half or the full marathon.
Since my sleeping schedule was so jacked, I ended up getting up around 1:15ish each morning. It was nice. I had time to very peacefully get ready, have some food, maybe even watch a little hulu. I never felt rushed. I never felt groggy And to me, this is the most important part of Goofy Challenge strategy!
Give yourself the whole however many days you’re down there to just concentrate on your race. Some people will try to fit a bunch of time at the parks in and not go to bed until 11pm or midnight. I would’ve been a huge crankypants if I’d gone to bed at 11pm or midnight. That sounds awful.
Some people don’t need as much sleep as I do. But as far as I’m concerned, going to bed in the late afternoon and getting a full night’s sleep is the most awesome thing and crazy important of the weekend.
2) Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. I mean, don’t over-hydrate. Replace your electrolytes as well. But make sure there’s a water bottle in your hand from a week before you leave for Disney ’til after the marathon. I often get dehydrated while away because there are not always places to refill your water bottles and you have to get rid of water before airport security, etc. But make the effort. Hydrate.
3) Eat enough. Between the half marathon and marathon, you might not be super hungry. But just make sure you consume enough calories to replenish what you just did and store for what you’re about to do.
4) Pace yourself. I walked the majority of the half marathon. My manta for the 5k and the half was, “Go into the marathon feeling like you haven’t already done any racing this weekend.” Some people think this might be the wimps way out, but I thought it was comfy and awesome.
5) This one is optional. But my sweet dad bought me a massage at the Grand Floridian after the half marathon. This was awesome. As I already mentioned, I hadn’t pushed myself too hard in the half marathon. But still. I already had 16.2 miles under my belt for the weekend (5k and half). So, a little rejuvenation was amazing. (Not to mention – if you go to the Grand Floridian after the race, about 4 million staff members will say “Congratulations,” and you’ll feel super special.)
I think that basically covers everything. Those were my goals before Goofy: Always get to bed early, never be thirsty, mainly walk the half marathon, and start eating right after – making sure you get enough to eat before it’s too late in the day. They worked out great for me!
Of course, in the comments section feel free to say what worked great for you (or ask any questions).