My First Half Marathon Thanks to Onlineshoes.com

I grew up with competition. It was something I was aware of daily. My youth was spent swimming on a team that bred fierce athletes and shared the pool with Olympic swimmers in the summer. Our high school had been state champs 21 years in a row and there was no option other than winning. But somewhere between 5 a.m. practices, school, afternoon practice, a job and friends, I got burned out. As a high school senior my social life took priority.

Looking back on the last ten years, exercise was left on the back-burner. My gym memberships only had a relationship with my bank account in the form of automatic withdrawals. I thought “I’ll start tomorrow” countless times only to have something more intriguing come up, like television or happy hour. And then there is the fact that I was in my early twenties and it took little to no effort to maintain my figure. Now, as my twenties taper, aches and pains are manifesting and it seems exercise is the key to keeping them at bay.

Finally acknowledging that solo gym time is my personal recipe for failure, I joined boot-camp groups and loved the results but still felt the need to work toward something more than whittling my waistline. I had to get back to my roots. I needed a team, and I needed competition.

As a swimmer, I wanted to try triathlons but imagined people competing in them to be super buff exercise maniacs dedicating every waking minute to training. Plus, the running portion scared me; in my mind running was a painful enemy. Then, on a whim, I entered the Onlineshoes.com contest and won an entry into the Seattle Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon. I took it as a sign. If I could finish a half marathon, the triathlon was certainly possible.

Soon after winning the entry, I discovered Team in Training and began training with them for The Nation’s Triathlon in September. Team workouts are three times a week and hold me accountable for my progress. My solo workouts allow me to run longer distances and helped me prep for the half marathon. Plus, I’m fundraising for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society.

The Rock ‘n’ Roll was a huge thrill. Running with almost 30,000 people of different shapes and sizes really put me at ease and made me realize that racing as an adult is about your personal best. For the average competitor it doesn’t matter if you beat someone else, it is about finishing the race. My endurance through the 13.1 miles was surprising; I felt so energized. If that is a runner’s high, I want more! Crossing that finish line gave me enormous confidence that a triathlon was indeed within reach.

As I continue training, running remains my biggest challenge. But finishing my first race has shown me that the biggest challenge is in my head and I’m capable of quite a bit. Competition is my ally and the challenge is what keeps me active, healthy and happy.