A little over four years ago, I was passed over for my dream job and had to go back to working two jobs, from around 7:30AM until 6:00PM Monday through Friday. Working out was something that other people did. I didn't have the time or the desire -- in fact, I thought my husband was "wasting time" by working out and running. Meals consisted of whatever was quick and convenient. I had never felt worse in my life. Finally, one day I decided that enough was enogh. Some people talk about that crystallizing moment that changes their life forever and they finally see the light. I never had that. I woke up one morning and decided that I was going to change. I knew it wasn't going to be easy. I was overweight my entire life. I was never obese until I went to college. I had gone from around 180 pounds in high school to 265 at my heaviest, shortly after college. I finally decided that morning in May 2008 that I was going to take charge of my life.
My first change was simply by drinking more water and quitting drinking pop. I then researched healthy recipes and snacks and counted calories. I tried to stay between 1200-1500 a day, depending on how much exercise I was doing. I used a food journal to try to keep better track of myself as well. I also planned out my menus for a week at a time so I never had a guessing game when I got out of work as to what I would be eating that night.
Amazingly enough, exercise is what has changed my life the most drastically. I started exercising by going for walks around my neighborhood. After a month, I decided to just see if I could run. By that time, I had lost around 20 pounds. I managed to run the side of one block. Measured out in distance, it was less than 1/10 of a mile. I felt like I was conquering the world though. I tried to run a few blocks and walk a few blocks, increasing a little every week or so. Eventually I worked my way up to a mile. My first goal was to run a 5K (3.1 mile) race. I did so in 38:55. A year ago I went back to this first 5K race, and ran it in 24:34, winning my age group and coming in 15th overall!! I kept wanting to get better and faster and find more challenges. In the last two years, I have done a triathlon, a 1 mile race, two 2K races, probably 30 or more 5K races, 2 five mile races, a 10K, 4 half marathons, a two full marathons, and five 50K (31 mile) ultramarathon races, with my first 100K scheduled for October 8th. My marriage has never been better, as my husband and I share a love of running and fitness and health.
The ultramarathons I choose to participate in are primarily run on trails. I absolutely love getting out in the woods; the quiet, serene surroundings are perfect to reflect on life and on how far I’ve come. Often, I will stop, look around and just think about all the time I wasted sitting on my couch at home while life passed me by. My ultimate goal (hopefully within the next five years) is to complete a 100 mile ultramarathon. I am the Volunteer Coordinator and participant in the Oil Creek 100 trail runs in Titusville, PA – we have a 50K, a 100K, and a 100 mile race in October. I would love for this to be my first 100 mile. I just have a long way to go!! I finally weighed in at 152 pounds just in time for my brother’s wedding two years ago. In all, I lost 113 pounds and went from a size 20-22 to a size 6-8. I have never felt better!!
