In 2006 one of my best friends ran a half marathon. She was already fit but wanted to challenge herself in a really big way. When I saw that medal around her neck, I thought, “Heck yes. I’m doing that.”
I was an overweight child, and then I turned into an overweight, unhealthy teenager. When I was told, “You have such a pretty face,” I also heard, “but your body is awful. Too bad you’re so fat.”
By the time I was 18, I’d dropped a hundred pounds by developing life-threatening habits. It wasn’t until I started having irregular heart palpitations my freshman year in college that I knew I had irrevocably affected my health.
Eventually, I developed healthier habits and came to enjoy exercise, both physically and mentally. It became a necessary part of my life. By 2006, fully inspired, I decided to start something new.
I don’t have that box of trophies in the basement like many of you because I didn’t play sports as a child. Never mind that I wasn’t coordinated or competitive — I couldn’t walk up a flight of stairs without being out of breath. So when I saw my friend with her new medal, I recognized it as an opportunity to make a big change. I could finally get a trophy, so help me God.
Though I was already in shape, I wasn’t a long-distance runner nor had I thought about becoming one. It was a huge leap to go from walking and occasional jogging to running 13.1 miles. I downloaded a training program from Runner’s World and followed it religiously. In April 2007 at the Country Music Half Marathon in Nashville, I got my first-ever trophy for a physical activity.
I cried, and I was also hooked.
Since then, I’ve completed 30 races — 22 half marathons, one full marathon, a four-person relay, and a smattering of 10Ks. As long as my mind and body cooperate, I will continue. This is the only body I’ll ever have and time is too short on this earth to live in deprivation and despair. Additionally, running clears the cobwebs in my brain and helps me to center my thoughts on what’s important. It helps to keep my eyes set on what’s important.
Races:
2007: Country Music Half Marathon, Nashville, TN
2007: Louisville Half Marathon, KY
2008: Scenic City Half Marathon, Chattanooga, TN
2008: Country Music Marathon, Nashville, TN (*first full marathon)
2009: Oklahoma City Memorial Half Marathon, OK
2009: Albuquerque Half Marathon, NM
2009: Chicago Half Marathon, IL
2010: Rock ‘N Roll Half Marathon, Dallas, TX
2012: Covenant Health Knoxville Half Marathon, TN
2012: Georgia Publix Half Marathon, Atlanta, GA
2012: Secret City Half Marathon, Oak Ridge, TN
2014: The Middle Half, Murfreesboro, TN
2015: Great Smoky Mountains Half Marathon, Townsend, TN
2016: Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon 4-Person Relay
2016: Santa Hustle Half Marathon, Sevierville, TN
2017: Highland Half Marathon, Maryville, TN
2017: Farragut 13.1, Farragut, TN
2017: Chickamauga Battlefield Half Marathon, Ft. Oglethorpe, GA
2018: UC’s Rhododendron Run 5K and Half Marathon, Charleston, WV
2018: Flying Pig Half Marathon, Cincinnati, OH
2018: Royal Borough of Kingston, England (*first international medal)
2018: Santa Hustle Half Marathon, Sevierville, TN
2019: Haunted Half Marathon, Jonesborough, TN
2019: Secret City Half Marathon, Oak Ridge, TN
2020: Five 10Ks during a pandemic
2021: Ew, Running! 10K (actually 7 miles) on my 43rd birthday
Though I still run, I haven’t the time nor inclination to travel and run races around the country. (Virtual races were a lovely discovery during the pandemic!) But exercise is still crucial to my physical and mental health — running, walking, weight lifting, a regular yoga practice, and more. I love it all. It doesn’t matter what you do as long as you move.
One day I won’t be able to do this. Today is not that day.