The Spirit of Running: My Journey

I'm not a natural born athlete. Far from it, in fact. I grew up with ballet, swimming, soccer, cheerleading and gymnastics as my sports of choice. None of which was I an all-star, all-state, or even collegiate performer. I simply participated because these sports brought me enjoyment and a sense of accomplishment as I kept excelling to the next level.

These sports kept me in moderately good shape and out of (most) trouble growing up. The ONLY running that was required in these sports were for warm-up purposes: laps around the field or laps around the gym. Soccer was an exception, as there was a lot of running required during the games; however, nothing more than a few miles.

I tried track and field in junior high and was always at the back of the pack for the mile (if I was even IN a pack after the 3rd lap!). I dreaded the annual Presidential Physical Fitness time of year in gym class because that meant we had to run a mile in gym class. I have no memory of my time, but I DO know that I always received the prestigious award because of my flexibility in the "sit & reach" being off the charts and I could "hang" on a chin-up bar longer than most. But the mile run was NOT what earned me that award year after year.
My dad has always been a runner and has (as far as memory serves) run in races each summer I spent with him. I was a spectator at these races until post-college, when my running kick started. But I entered my first 5k when I was a Senior in college (the race was on IU's campus and ended on the football field called "Run For the End Zone") and I ran quite slowly with my boyfriend and roommate. This roommate has since finished marathons in the 3:00 time frame!!! Anyway, I only ran in college because my cycling coach made us cross-train on our off days. Running seemed right for my body, as it helped elongate my bulky cycling quads. But it still didn't come naturally.

My first year out of college (1999) I entered my first 10 mile race in Minneapolis (The Twin Cities Ten Mile) to give me a reason to hit the gym in between hitting the clubs (I had a full time job at Target - money to spend and dancing to do!). I remember going to the Expo the night before the race and buying my very first pair of running tights and running gloves...the weather was a balmy 45 degrees for my very first long race. Not sure what my time was, but I know I felt like I had conquered the world once I finished. Plus, I had a race t-shirt that said I had run 10 miles! I signed up for that one again the next year and believe this is when I caught the running "bug."

2001 was the very first year I lived in Indy and I signed up for the coveted Mini Marathon (13.1 miles) that I'd heard about all through college. Friends would drive up to Indy to run the race every year and I was always so curious about the largest half marathon in the country. So I trained with my bulldog and ran the race alone. Believe my time was somewhere around 2:20. Had no idea about pacing, splits, chaffing, speed workouts, Body Glide - nothing. I just found a training program online and ran through my neighborhood with my dog's leash wrapped around my waste.

I continued to sign up for these races every single year since 2001. I have run them with girlfriends, run alone, walked with girlfriends (twice) and even started this last year with my husband for a whopping 2 miles. This is my hometown race and one I will run for as long as my body allows. I envision running with my girls by my side one day, us sharing in this passion I have.

But my marathon story starts in 2005, the year Mike ran his first marathon in Chicago. We had just wed in 2004 and moved into our Carmel house in November of that same year. Mike and I learned that we were pregnant and due to have a baby in August of 2005. We were overjoyed to tell our families at Christmas of our news, only to be devastated in February that we had lost the baby. A very long story short, the next 3 months were nothing short of scary and full of anger at how the (now-no-longer-practicing) OBGYN handled our miscarriage. Let's just say we could have had a malpractice suit on our hands but I just had to let it all go. Mike dove head-first into running and signed up for the Chicago Marathon that Fall while I focused on nursing my wounded body back to health.

The Fall of 2005 I was witness to the most amazing athletic event I have ever seen: the Chicago Marathon. My 10 year high school reunion was the night before and I was extremely hungover as we had to wake at 6am to make it to the starting line. But as SOON as I saw my husband leave to get into the starting shute, I was stone sober. I could not believe what I was about to bear witness to. My husband was about to do what less than 1% of the entire world's population has accomplished! After the start, I jogged to the 13 mile marker (a few miles away, stopping first at a Dunkin' Donuts for some hangover food!) to wait for the friends and family that were running. My college roommate was at the beginning of the pack, running with the elite, then came Mike, then Karen (college buddy), then Steve (cousin). I was so excited ringing my cowbell and blowing my whistle cheering them on. I then ran to the finish line and watched my husband through my tears as he finished 26.2 miles.

It was then that I professed I would one day run the very same race. However, I just knew my first goal was to start a family. It took two more years for that dream to become a reality, as fertility treatments were a constant up and down battle. Money. Emotions. Hopes. Fears. And no working out. My fertility specialist told me it was one or the other: baby or marathon. We obviously chose baby and are now blessed with two amazingly healthy little girls. Wouldn't trade them for anything. Ever.

So fast forward to 2008...we find out we're pregnant with Delaney (nothing short of a miracle, as the doctor told us we'd never conceive on our own! Plus, we were completely ok with having an "only child."). We were over the moon. And quickly started planning out how 2009 would look. Would be taking Izzy out of childcare and bring her home with a nanny. Would have to start another college savings plan. Would have to cancel my annual Mini Marathon registration. You get the idea.

When I told my bestie that we were pregnant she soon tells me she is running a marathon that year. Bummer! I wanted to run my one and only marathon with her. But it was my time to be pregnant...and I had in my mind's eye that I would be running Chicago in 2010. I even told my nurses in Labor & Delivery that I was going to run a marathon in 2010. I wanted everyone to know that was my goal. And therefore wanted everyone to hold me accountable for signing up, training, and finishing the marathon.

Registration for the Chicago Marathon opened on my birthday this year, February 1st. So as a birthday gift to myself (ha!) I signed myself and my niece up. Taylor has recently dropped out, as it conflicts with her Cross Country rules (but she's still running long distances at some sub-8:00 paces!). So here I am, running the race alone. In just 10 days. Oh my.

The journey has been a very long one since I signed up in February. I trained for 12 weeks for the Mini Marathon in May and PR'd with a 1:55, took 4 weeks off, then started my 18 week marathon training in June. The good majority of this year I've been training. Just in the past 17 weeks I've run 453 miles!!! I've had some pretty amazing running partners with Jaime and Meggie giving me their marathon advice along the way. I've had good runs, bad runs, soggy runs, and HOT runs in 97 degrees. I've run on the treadmill less than 5 times in the past 4 months and run around my office complex over 150 times!

I'm sure my friends and family are about tired of listening to me talk about running, watching me run or waiting for me to get BACK from a run...but for some reason it just never gets old to me. Now on the other hand, the songs on my iPod DO get old. So does my Monon Trail run and having to pack a gym bag for work every day (and then showering AT work during lunch). But the high I endure after a run never does.

There's just something about putting my shoes on and hitting the pavement mile after mile, alone with my own thoughts. I've heard other runners refer to their time spent running as their own personal "church." And I can completely relate. I do not worship or meditate inside four walls called a church, rather, I have 2-3 hours on a Saturday morning during my run to work out what's been bothering me. To blow off steam from a marital fight (I'm not perfect). Think about how to handle a situation at work. To appreciate all that I have in my life of health & family. I have internal debates and leave a long run with answers. It's my alone time to work things out in my head. It's for me and no one else. And that, to me, is meditation.

This has been a long journey to get me to the starting line of the Chicago Marathon on 10.10.10 but every single mile has been worth it. My marriage. My children. My family. My friends. I couldn't have gotten here without any of you. Thank you for putting up with me and supporting me. This has been a lifetime in the making and I couldn't imagine it going any differently.

PS-Sorry for the long post. Consider this part of my "Taper Madness."

PPS-What do you think my husband would say if I told him I wanted to do this AGAIN next year?!