- I always hated running but a charitable cause inspired me to train for a marathon.
- I had to stick to a strict schedule during my six months of training.
- Although I almost quit in the middle of the marathon, I completed and reached my goal.
I never understood how people could like running. All I ever felt was pure torture. When I’d attempt to run, I’d only make it halfway around the block before I started feeling like I was going to pass out.
But one day, I received a postcard from a charity. It featured a beautiful picture of Hawaii. The postcard said I could help children battling cancer by raising money and running a marathon.
Intrigued, I attended a meeting to hear more. At the end of the video presentation, the last young person interviewed said, “I just want to live.” Tears filled my eyes, and I immediately rushed to the table to sign up.
I only needed to fundraise thousands of dollars and run 26.2 miles in six months; how hard could it be?
Sticking to a routine became my first mental hurdle
I often wing things in life, but I knew showing up unprepared for a marathon would be a big mistake. Thankfully, I had access to a detailed training plan and support. I now had a big “why” and a plan but still needed discipline to follow through.
I gathered things to make me feel like a successful runner: the shoes, the running belt, the energy packs, and all my favorite tunes. I started to feel motivated.
The first mental hurdle was committing to daily training. Knowing that if I made one excuse to skip a day, I’d start making more. It was a commitment I had to make to myself, and I decided to go all in.
I ran by myself daily to build my endurance, and on weekends, I ran with a group to further my distance. I became friends with some women who ran at my pace, but I needed to keep pushing myself to keep up with them at training.
My belief in my abilities started increasing. I continued achieving the goals I set for myself, and I celebrated those milestones with a quart of ice cream that I knew I’d eventually burn off.
After surpassing my fundraising goal, I felt confident enough to set my final challenge: to run the marathon in under five hours.
Race day became the ultimate test
After just six months of training, I made it to Hawaii, loaded up on carbs, and barely slept that night. It was early morning when I stood beside my running friends in the crowded starting area. I felt nervous and was already sweating from the heat before the starter gun went off.
Everything was going fine until mile 22. Out of nowhere, my body started shaking, tears began flowing, and I felt like I couldn’t take one step further. I quickly realized this was the infamous “wall” I had heard about. My mind and body were exhausted, and I didn’t know what to do.
I began to convince myself I could do it and only needed to make it to the water station ahead in the distance. I knew I had to keep running because if I stopped, I would never start back up again.
I didn’t want to fail after all the time and effort I had put into everything. When I finally reached the station, I threw water on myself and checked the time. I would have to continue running at least my usual pace to achieve my goal.
With all odds against me, I started saying, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” I kept repeating this as my mantra, refusing to let any other thoughts enter my mind.
With a second wind, I took off and just kept running. I was determined to come in under the five-hour mark.
I achieved my goal by forging ahead
The crowd was lined up on both sides, screaming and cheering, and I could see the finish line. The final .2 miles became the longest .2 miles of my life. My mantra changed to, “Just make it over the finish line, and you will never have to run again.”
With my eyes fixated on the clock, I crossed over at 4:57:38.
The marathon was much more challenging than I imagined, but the biggest obstacle I had to overcome was the belief that I could do it and the willingness to push myself past what was comfortable.
I still believe that running is torture, but I learned that once you truly set your mind to do something, anything is possible.
