My Run Around

Friday, June 6, 2014

There's nothing too big

One week from tomorrow I will get my first opportunity to guide a good friend of mine, David Kuhn, in his first triathlon. Since meeting David there's one message that's rang through loud and clear to me, there's nothing too big. His actions support this mantra as he spent 2/3's of the month of May running...a marathon a day. David decided to begin his journey raising awareness and money for Cystic Fibrosis, a disease that his granddaughter battles. I've been chronically his journey on Facebook by sharing his updates and passing along his stories from the road. Now as he rests from his running to attend a triathlon camp and then race his first triathlon next weekend (a half iron distance) all before taking off again to continue his journey running around America, I wanted to take the time to ask for your support of his cause. According to David's last blog post on Day 11 of his run, he had logged just under 239 miles and raised about $1,300. I haven't seen updated numbers after 19 days of running and fundraising but that would put his miles at about double, around 500. David has been inspiring others and finding inspiration in those that have joined him. Each day of David's run has inspired me to continue to think that there's nothing too big. If a blind man can run 500 miles in 19 days and if total strangers can reach out to David and offer him lodging and a warm meal to help, then why can't I ask those that know me to help out as well? Your help may not be monetary, it may be sharing this blog on Facebook or Twitter, it may be posting a comment of encouragement for your friends to see, your help can be done in many ways that aren't just writing a check or entering your credit card numbers.

Every day there are miracles if you look close enough and if you believe that a difference can be made. These last 20 days David's run has been a miracle of mine that I've believed in and followed. I've believed that once he started his run that people would notice and people would help, now I'm trying to help that miracle. Please consider helping as David prepares for his first ever tethered open water swim this weekend, as he and I prepare to race together for 70.3 miles of swimming, biking and running, and please consider helping because there's a blind man running 11,000 miles because he wants to help create a miracle for his granddaughter.

To donate in the effort to fight Cycstic Fibrosis please go to David’s website: http://itsallicando.wordpress.com/about/

To volunteer or donate to David's expenses on his run please go to David’s website: http://itsallicando.wordpress.com/about/

To spread the word share this blog to your Facebook page

To spread the word post this blog to Twitter

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

It's All I Can Do

In an ongoing effort to help people who are trying to make a difference by raising awareness and raising money for causes close to their hearts, I wanted to share my partnership with “It’s All I Can Do” found online at - http://itsallicando.wordpress.com/ and David Kuhn. I'm doing this as Kelly, I'm doing this as The Living Athlete, I'm doing this as a guide, I'm doing this as a friend and I'm doing this because you read this blog.

David Kuhn loves his granddaughter very much, a granddaughter, Kylie, he may have limited time with. Kylie has cystic fibrosis which means her body creates excess fluid which affects her lungs by making it difficult to breathe and her digestive system making it challenging to process foods as well as many other symptoms. The life expectancy for someone with cystic fibrosis is 35, Kylie is 11. David started It’s All I Can Do in an effort to run the perimeter of the United States. He has plotted a course that starts in Seattle Washington and heads East on his way to Maine. Along with this ongoing journey he will be competing in the High Cliff Half Ironman Saturday June 14th as well as Ironman Wisconsin Sunday September 7^th. His goal with all this running and racing is to “put a nail in the coffin of cystic fibrosis.”

David’s cause needs our help. Any goal such as running around the United States requires more than just the person running, but unique to David’s fundraising and running efforts is that it’s literally not possible for him to do on his own. He can’t fly to Seattle with a backpack and credit card and start running like I could because David’s legally blind. He needs sighted guides to be there with him for his safety. He needs us to tell his story and spread the word in order to find that next runner that may be the difference in finishing his run. He needs us to follow him online and share through our own communities and networks to keep him moving across county. He needs runners! Right now he’s working to assemble a core team to run as many consecutive days as possible starting in Seattle as early as NEXT WEEK! He’s committed to running/walking/jogging a marathon a day with a group of volunteers who want to make a difference in his life as he makes a difference in Kylie’s life and all others effected by cystic fibrosis. If you’re reading this and have a calling to help here’s what you can do to turn that calling in to action right now:

1. Go to his website: http://itsallicando.wordpress.com/

2. Share his website with friends, family, running clubs, anyone

3. Reach out via his website to volunteer to run with him; especially if you’re in the Seattle area, you could be the person to start the momentum a journey like this needs!

4. Follow David’s progress

Lastly, if you have money – donate, if you can run – reach out and volunteer to guide, if you are on Facebook, have a blog, on Twitter – SHARE David’s story. Each one of us is the difference, we just get caught up in wanting to know exactly what difference it is we are making – truth is, you will probably never know the exact impact you had on David’s run, but you will know that you did something to help.

Website: http://itsallicando.wordpress.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/itsallicando

Twitter: @allicandoisrun

Thursday, April 24, 2014

Boston Strong

When I began running and training for my first marathon, Boston was always on my mind. I didn't hold it for a goal but often thought about what it would be like to run in the Super Bowl of marathons. The history, the stories, the prestige of it all. A race that I would have to qualify for, the concept of being required to run a given pace at a given age excited me. To hear that someone ran Boston, or see someone in a Boston race shirt or jacket, that was the shit. The distinct blue and yellow of the gear could be picked out at any race expo and I couldn't help but nod and be in aw of those who earned it.

When I began running I was also naive; Boston only meant running a fast time at another race and having the opportunity to be accepted to race there. What I've realized is the much deeper meaning of the Boston Marathon. Although it holds a standard of the race of all road races for runners, it continues to serve as a means of equality. Since 1975 the marathon has allowed for physically impaired athletes to participate. They have qualifying standards for all types of disabilities and even two person teams comprised of an able bodied runner and a non-able runner. I've been integrated in to the blind and visually impaired athletic world for a few years and can report that this year's Boston Marathon field had the highest number of visually impaired/blind runners ever. Boston has opened it's race to all athletes who are elite in their respective athletic world. I commend The Boston Athletic Associate for this equality as it doesn't exist across all race types. In contrast, Ironman does not have qualifying spots for Kona to anyone who falls in their "Physically Challenged" division. They offer a separate lottery for all those that are Physically Challenged, which is comprised of all disabilities: blind, amputee, wheel chair bound.... Recently, as a part of that lottery they selected a visually impaired women, the first to my knowledge, who will get to compete in Kona this year. She's very qualified as a multi-Ironman finisher and very deserving. She, like the other "Physically Challenged" triathletes, just haven't been given the chance to qualify on their own accord.

Lastly, my being naive in only thinking about my personal qualifying standard for Boston was not knowing about their fundraising program. The Boston Athletic Association will partner with you or your organization as a means to raise funds for causes you care about. I love this idea and had the chance to watch a friend of mine spend her free time and efforts raising money for the Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts. She personally raised over $5,000. Allowing the opportunity to leverage The Boston Marathon in a manner to raise money and awareness is simply a great idea.

This year helped me recognize the celebration that the Boston Marathon is for so many people. I've loved reading the stories of my visually impaired friends, my friend from growing up, learning about people who fought addiction and started foundations to help others fight addiction, runners who carried another runner across the finish line as the athlete was collapsing before the finish line. All of the hope, all of the effort, all of the work by the athletes, the fundraisers is all on stage in the best way possible at the Boston Marathon. I'm proud to know that the biggest running race is truly available for anyone even if they can't see, or can't walk, as long as they have the heart, they are welcome.

Thank you BAA and thank you Boston.

Friday, February 28, 2014

Trust someone else

When I started running I took a 12 week half marathon training program and condensed it to 4. When I finished the race limping I wanted to do a full marathon. I researched different programs to find the right one for me. I found some that seemed to work and changed them as I saw fit. What experience did I have in creating and modifying training plans...refer back to my first sentence.

A lot has changed since 2009; experience, injury, divorce, mohawk, wisdom, The Living Athlete. Life changes, priorities change, goals change. So I too continue to change.

I made the decision to hire a coach. I've placed my trust in this coach with a single goal and many circumstances surrounding that goal. Circumstances: 50% of my days are non-negotiable children time from the hours of 6 am until I go to work and after work until they go to bed - non-negotiable. On my weekends with my children this training window narrows to outside the hours of 6 am until 8 pm. Mondays, Tuesdays and every other Friday, Saturday and Sunday - kill me. I work a full-time job 8-5 Monday - Friday, two of those lunch hours I'm at TRX at the YMCA which leaves Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday over my lunch break for something.

The goal I'm partnering with my coach to achieve: #1 be available for any and all training and build up races for a good friend who's training for Ironman. This particular athlete has a lead foot on the bike and has been known to run marathons...many of them.... on back-to-back days. I want to be at my best so he can be at his. Once IMWI is in the books, maybe I'll find my own race to burn up some of this training on, but until then, my first training day is tomorrow. Here's to 2014 and a new way of doing the old things I've always done before, but doing them more better ;-)

I have the coach I want giving me the training plan I need to accommodate the life I want to live with the support I have. I have two simple words to push forward with this year that were passed to me by someone very special... I'm Ready!!

Sunday, February 23, 2014

My new rule to live by

Demons, skeletons, baggage... call it what you want, we all have it. There are conversations that come up that give us that tingle, our stomach drops, palms sweat, nerves kick in. As those conversations may continue and dangerously approach, our bodies may kick in some endorphins as we go "fight or flight" mode. Then it happens, that one question that we have steered clear of, done everything in our power to avoid is about to get asked. Now what?

Maybe we have started a new dating relationship or maybe we've been in a long term relationship, maybe even married. What's our biggest secret? What is it that we are so sure of that if the person sitting across from us knew, they'd run away? What are the three things that we are so certain would eliminate us from being a partner that we guard and hide? Or the three things that we've only told our best of best friend but would never dare to tell our partner out of fear?

As this fear exists, what conversations do we avoid? What words are out there that at any moment we hear one, our attention gets quickly diverted to the source? If a conversation or question may touch this fear what do we do avoid it... quickly remove ourselves from that conversation...head to the bathroom...change the subject? What behaviors have we adapted to avert the risk? What relief falls upon us when a potential conversation that may uncover this fear goes in another direction and our secret lives another day? A sigh... a deep breath, a thank you God..knock on wood?

As these fears exist, what is it that we are afraid of? Are we afraid that our partner would look at us differently? We afraid that the person we love won't love the person we actually are? Are we truly showing this other person who we really are if we conveniently find ways to avoid certain conversations? Who is it that this partner loves?...us...or this projection of us that we created to hide our baggage... an alternate us that we think is the us that is worthy of love?

Now, what if our partner has fears just like we do? Who the hell are we?

What if we laid those demons, skeletons and baggage on the table? What if we took those three things we fear most and made those the first things we shared with our new special person? I don't mean share in a 30,000 foot level share or a tap-dance around them like we've done so many times before, I mean share, say what it is and own that those three things are part of us. Are we scared if we did that, they wouldn't like us? Scared that they'd turn and run? Then don't tell them and hope we never have to talk about it. Who is it we want this person to love? us? or fearful secret us? Let's say we lay it all out there and let's say they turn and run. . . was it that bad? What did we loose?... the opportunity at a relationship of fear? What if we tell them? What if we just started a relationship with a person who knows the worst imaginable things about us and at the end of the conversation they are still sitting there?

What if they follow our lead and at the end of the night, both of us are still sitting there? Imagine that beginning...

What if we're in a relationship of fear and hiding skeletons? What if we opened up and shared? This person tells us they love us each day? They tell us they love us no matter what? Isn't this no matter what? What if we tell the person and they run? What if we tell them and they say they will never forgive us? What if they tell us those things are so bad they can't be with us? Ask them what their fears are because if we've never shared them, they probably haven't either...