Growing up, I didn't consider myself athletic. I did not like gym class. Whenever field day would come in elementary school, I would beg not to go to school. I did dance and cheerleading, but I didn't think of myself as an "athlete."
When I turned 40, I challenged myself to run a half-marathon. I wanted to change the narrative in my head that I wasn't athletic or that I couldn't do outdoorsy things. Finishing it was one of the most gratifying experiences of my life, but my legs were like, that's wonderful, but we're never doing that again.
Well, I just turned 45 and as opposed to not doing it again, I'm doubling it. I want to see what my body can do.
I really believe in squeezing the most we can out of life, whether that means challenging ourselves, being present with family and friends, or elevating our health and wellness. I'm really trying to be the best person I can be.
Running a full marathon in such an amazing city to me sounds extremely difficult and—if I can get over that mountain—extremely rewarding. I can't hire a babysitter to help me out with it or let somebody else take the load. It's all on me.
When I first announced my plan, everyone reminded me how little time I have for training.
The common response: No, I love you, but you don't have time. Yes, I'm constantly running and juggling and, for the most part, I'm giving to other things. I'm giving to my kids. I'm giving to my job. This is something that I can give to myself.
When I go out for a run and when I'm training, that's me time. And it's scheduled. It's still not easy to block out the time, but I do. School is back in session, and I'm traveling more for work.
I teamed up with Jess Woods, who's a Nike running coach, and she gives me a schedule every week with my workouts and runs. At the beginning of each week, I'll put it all on my calendar. That usually means 40 minutes on Tuesday, and another 40 minutes on Friday, and then a long run on a Saturday. It's just what I have to do. I block it out just like I would an interview.
I learned the hard way. In the beginning I would say okay, I'll run today when I get home from work. Before I knew it, it would be nine o'clock at night, and I hadn't gotten it done.
Now I schedule training runs just like I do everything else. I put in my earphones, turn on the music, and try to relax my mind and just do the task at hand: running. I only take my phone, earphones, and keys with me. That's it.
I swim in cold water and do Youtube workouts for cross-training.
I've been doing a lot of swimming for cross-training. I'm not the best swimmer, but I don't turn the heat on in our pool and jump in and tell myself that's helping my body. I read all about the benefits of cold plunging. I don't know if it really works, but I think it does. I'm not as sore as I thought I would be.
Some days, I'll go on Youtube and search "20-minute cardio" or "10-minute full-body stretch" or "10 minutes of core." It's amazing how many free resources are out there for us.
I will pop open a video at night, with my AirPods in, and just get it done.
In many ways it's been more rewarding than I could have imagined.
Training for a marathon is rewarding along the way. I thought it would be rewarding at the end. I never thought about how the practice, the process, the journey, and the training can also be rewarding. Some days I don't feel like going for a run, but I never regret it when it's over.
Five miles used to seem insurmountable. But my body is slowly but surely responding to my training. I'm trying to do things the right way so that I don't hurt myself.
As adults, we don't just run for fun anymore. I want to show my daughter that's an option.
The other day I was in the basement doing laundry, and I was down there for a while. My kids didn't see me for probably 30 minutes. When I came upstairs, my daughter said, "Oh, I thought you went for a run."
First of all, that's a phrase I never thought I'd hear. Second of all, the fact that my kids assumed mommy was on a run when I was gone for 30 minutes? I was really astounded. That's pretty cool. Especially for my daughter.
I've learned some lessons the hard way.
In the summer, I love to go outside of the city to the Catskills. It's so peaceful out there. I did some long runs in the Catskills on weekends, but I underestimated the elevation and the amount of hills. I kept wondering, Why is this so hard? My answer: I just climbed 1,000 feet, according to my watch.
During one run in the Catskills, I wore ankle socks and new running shoes that I hadn't really tried before. I noticed that my shoe was cutting into the back of my ankle, but I just kept going. I told myself it would be no big deal. By mile four or five, the back of my ankle was bleeding. I was a couple of miles away from home still. I didn't know what to do. I asked myself: Do I run through it? Take some walk breaks? Am I supposed to take my shoe off and walk two miles?
I walked into a dollar store and used Apple Pay on my phone to buy bandaids for the back of my heel. With every step, my sweat made the bandaids slip. Slowly but surely, I ran and walked the mile and a half back. When I got home, I looked down at the bottom of my heel and it was in rough shape. Lesson learned.
It just taught me that things can happen, and you just gotta keep going. It's one foot at a time, and then I can say that I've conquered it.
I've also had runs where I felt really good and strong.
When I set out for my 12-mile long run recently, I thought to myself: Oh my goodness, this is almost a half-marathon. I trained so hard five years ago for a half-marathon, and it was such an event. Am I really going to do a half-marathon on a Saturday morning before my kids even wake up?
I popped in my earphones and started a guided run with an audio coach, which was helpful. It included a voice that would say: How are you feeling? Can you talk? Relax? I really felt like I had a coach with me, motivating me.
I also enjoyed listening to Jay-Z and Beyoncé. Then, I decided to try to be hip and put on the top 20 hits. Every song was a surprise. I took a different route than I normally do so all the sights were new. I went out for six miles and then I said okay, let me turn around and go back home. I did it, and I was so darn proud of myself.
My legs were not dying like they were five years ago after the half. That is something for me. It actually is a little more challenging this time around. I think my body is changing. I'm getting older, and so I have to work a little harder.
The rewarding part of the long run was that my body sustained itself. I was fine. I got home, I jumped in the pool, and I enjoyed the rest of my day.
Even the next day, I felt rejuvenated. I did a 20-minute shake-out run. That was when it really kicked in: I'm doing it.
