A Journey Back to Running
If you need to be inspired today, read this. This is my sister’s story, told by her, about how her faith, perseverance, and grit pulled her through a time of injuries and set-backs. Running mirrors so many aspects of life. We have all been through trials and times of waiting. Sometimes it feels like the waiting will never end. Take a few minutes to read Kelly’s story and know that wherever you are in your journey, we are rooting for you too!
Growing up, I had no idea that people actually ran … for fun. I was that kid that did not like to sweat. I was not a fan of recess and I hated PE even more. As I got older, however, I started to change. I remember watching the boys cross country team run laps around the school track while I attended a band practice in the stands of the football stadium. Strangely, running looked appealing to me, but I wasn’t sure why. I brushed the idea aside. After all, I was very busy with band and other school commitments. There was no way I had time to take on another after school activity. Besides, I probably wouldn’t be any good. A year later, I ran the obligatory mile for the Presidential Physical Fitness Test. My competitive side came out and I finished the mile first among the girls in my class in 7:50. If only someone had encouraged me to pursue running then, I might have tried out for the girls cross country team. Again, I brushed the idea aside. None of my friends were into running and I was superficially worried that I would miss out on time with them.
Fast forward to my senior year of college. My roommate was working on a positive reinforcement project. She decided that she would force herself to run a couple times per week and her reward (the positive reinforcement) was a coke on Fridays. She decided that I should come along and run with her. I really enjoyed running, but still did not make it a consistent part of my life for many years. It wasn’t until I was in my late 20’s that I finally started running regularly.
My sister, Erin, encouraged me to sign up for a race with her. The first few times I ran a race, I really did not put in much effort. I hung back with the slower runners and just wanted to finish. However, as time went on, I started running faster and faster. One year, while running the Providence Hospital Heart and Sole Women’s 5 Miler, I rounded the corner onto Gervais Street, and ahead, I thought I could see Erin. No way! Is that really her? She always runs faster than me so I never even imagined that I might be able to catch up with her. Gradually over the next mile, I caught up and we ran the last portion of the race together. That was very exciting until she unexpectedly took off sprinting at the end. I definitely didn’t have it in me to stay with her, but from then on, I knew that if I worked hard, I could run faster.
In 2010, I signed up for my first half marathon. I definitely did not know what I was doing. I think I just added a mile to my Saturday run each week until I had worked my way up to 10 miles. Strength training? What’s that? Cross training? Never heard of it. Despite my lack of preparation, I completed my first half marathon in 1:34:49 and came in 3rd overall among the women. Around that time, one of my cousins ran her first full marathon and qualified for the Boston Marathon. I decided that getting a BQ was my next goal. I found a marathon in Atlanta in March 2011 and signed up. Again, I was a total novice with no idea what I was doing. I found a training plan from the FIRST program from Furman University. I followed their marathon training plan to the T … well … except for the cross training and strength training part. Who has time for that, right?
Marathon race day finally came! I toed the line and took off. I made some novice mistakes like running the first mile WAY too fast, but all in all, it was a great race. I finished the race in 3:28:05 and accomplished the big goal of qualifying for Boston. BUT, it came at a price.
The beginning of my injuries …
A month later, I ran the Women’s 5-miler again. I was in great physical condition and PR’d and placed 4th overall. However, as I crossed the finish line, I noticed a searing pain on the outside of my knee. I did not give the pain much thought until a few days later when I tried to run. That pain came back again. A few days later when I went out for my run, it came back … again. I had never experienced a lingering injury and wasn’t sure what to make of it. A visit to a sports medicine doctor was in order and I was diagnosed with IT Band syndrome. I worked with a physical therapist for several months, but no matter what we tried, my knee just wasn’t getting better. As the Boston Marathon was getting closer and closer, my doctor was beginning to suggest that surgery may be the only option to fix my knee. I was able to complete the Boston Marathon, but definitely not at the level that I would have liked. My time was 4:28, one hour longer than when I qualified. Gradually, my knee did finally heal with the help of lots of strength training, some well-placed cortisone shots, and a second round of iontophoresis.
Not long after my knee started to feel better, I started to notice shin pain. Since I was lacking in knowledge and self-control, I just ran through the pain and eventually found myself back at the sports medicine clinic with a diagnosis of stress fractures in BOTH tibias. Three months with no running is something no runner ever wants to hear. Once I was finally cleared to go back to running, I worked with my PT to return to my sport, but I had chronic shin pain that just never seemed to go away. After a lot of frustration, I decided to visit Furman University to have my gait analyzed. In retrospect, the professors that I met with were very helpful and gave very good advice, but I lacked the understanding and knowledge for how to proceed. I really needed a coach. I needed someone to talk to each week that could give sound advice. I needed someone that would keep me out of trouble and hold me accountable for the strength training that I needed to work on. Gradually, the pain started to show up in my foot as well. Years later, I found myself in a boot to attempt to rest my posterior tibial tendon in hopes that that would clear up a bad case of tendonitis. The boot didn’t help. A cortisone shot didn’t help. Working with another PT for a month or two helped, but wasn’t enough.
A friend put me in touch with an exercise physiologist who helped by working with the soft tissue in my leg. He did physical manipulations that helped my body to try to heal itself. That was very helpful, but I still continued to struggle. I just couldn’t get to a point where I could run without pain.
All through this process, my family and I had been praying for a solution to all of these issues. Every time I thought I found the right clinician to help me, I would be let down eventually because the injuries just kept creeping back. Not only did they creep back, but they were getting progressively worse. I began to run less and less to the point that I could only run a mile before the pain would be intense enough that I knew that I had to stop.
Erin began to encourage me to take swimming lessons. If I could get more comfortable in the water, perhaps I could consider participating in some short triathlon events. This might allow me to compete in an event that required more endurance, but with less impact from running. Randomly after a swimming class, one of my classmates mentioned that he was seeing a physical therapist in Evans that was helping him to get past some lingering injuries. He told me the name of the clinic and the name of the PT. At the time, I thought that NO ONE could help me and that getting my hopes up and making an appointment would ultimately result in another disappointment and essentially delaying the inevitable … it was time to hang up the running shoes.
God speaks through the people around us every day and I believe that He spoke through my swimming classmate that night when he told me about his physical therapist. I never saw that classmate again so I am forever grateful that he took the time to share that information at his last swim class. I made an appointment and began to work with the new PT. He stuck with me for at least a year. We primarily worked on hip strengthening, foot and ankle stability and stretching. Gradually, I started running a little more … and a little more … WITHOUT pain! I never thought it would happen!
Finally, in February of 2020, just before the pandemic shut down, my PT decided that I was ready to graduate and venture off on my own. I was secretly terrified that I would be right back in his office within a month with more shin pain. Thankfully he prepared me well. I now have many “tools in my tool belt” for dealing with little niggles before they become a full-blown problem.
Before the PT released me from his care, Erin asked if I would like for her to begin to write my workout plan. She had recently become a certified coach so she was eager to share her expertise. I gratefully accepted so she began to send me my weekly workout schedule. During the Covid-19 shut down, I was working hard to improve the speed that I lost over the years. This time, however, I did not neglect cross training and strength training. With age comes wisdom! Erin was very helpful each time a little niggle would pop up again. We would back off and adjust the training schedule to keep all of the injuries at bay.
Gradually, I began to regain the fitness that was lost after so many years of not training to my potential. After 9 years of missing out on races, I was very eager to test out all of my training and participate in a race. However, due to Covid restrictions, we watched as race after race was canceled, postponed, or made “virtual.” While we understand the reasons for this, it was still frustrating. Runners just want to run! Finally, in November, we were able to participate in the Run Hard Lexington Half Marathon. This was exciting on many levels because I have been working as the Augusta area director for Run Hard for the past 5 years. It was finally my chance to participate in this important fundraiser for this youth character-building program that I love.
With a half marathon under my belt, we began to set our sights on finding a full marathon. Again, however, about 6-8 weeks before each marathon, we would get the news … postponed … canceled … virtual. Erin and I were getting a little tired of the postponed races and decided to just give up for now. Perhaps real races would come back in the fall. My husband, Brian, would have none of that. He called me up and said there is a marathon in Skidaway Island and he said that I needed to register. I was very hesitant. Who wants to put more money into yet another race only for it to be canceled in two weeks? This was a small event with a very practical race director who promised a money back guarantee up until two weeks before the event. So, we took a chance and registered.
Three weeks before Skidaway, I did my last major training run of 22 miles. On paper, that training run went well. I was able to keep up my goal pace for the entire run. However, I felt terrible at the end of the run I knew deep down that I could not have run another mile, let alone 4.2 more miles. I was terrified about race day. Erin sent me some very helpful podcasts from famous runners like Ryan Hall who gave great advice about the running taper. This helped my confidence quite a bit.
The Sunday before race day, I went into church and looked up at the familiar rose window over the altar and read the quote.
"God withholds Himself from no one who perseveres." St. Teresa of Avila
I have been looking at this rose window for many years and this quote from St. Teresa of Avila has always meant a lot to me through various trials. That night, as I read the quote, I was overcome with emotion. For the first time, it truly hit me just how much God has helped me to overcome my injuries. Over the years, we prayed and prayed and prayed for a solution. That night, however, I felt the Lord telling me that I no longer had to be afraid of the last few miles of the upcoming race. Rather than feeling dread and doubt, I needed to cast those feelings aside and run those last few miles FEARLESSLY so that I could glorify Him for what he had done for me. From that point on, I refused to let any negative thoughts enter my head. Nothing would derail my confidence now.
Race day finally came and it was amazing! The first 13.1 miles flew by with ease. The last 6.2 miles were tough, but, with God’s help and under the tutelage of a wonderful coach, I survived. This was obviously a big come-back race for me and I set some serious goals. My first goal was to run the entire event without walking (that would be a first for me for a marathon). I also wanted to BQ again so that I could earn the right to return to Boston and run it at full strength. My next goal was to qualify for the New York City Marathon. My “stretch” goal was to beat a time of 3:21. I was very pleased to meet all of those goals except the last goal, but that’s okay. This time, I know there will be another race with another opportunity on the horizon. I finished the race in 3:23:53 and I look forward to my next opportunity in April to race at the Wilmington Marathon in North Carolina and either the Chicago or Boston Marathon in October.
This journey has taught me many lessons.
Strength training is not optional. Cross training is a non-negotiable. A well-rounded diet is obligatory. Erin can help you with all of these things and more. Make the investment in your health that your body deserves and give her a call. Whether you aspire to qualify for a major marathon or if you just want to live a healthier life, give her a call! You won’t regret it!
All of our abilities are gifts from the Lord. We ALL have incredible potential. It is our responsibility to be good stewards of our gifts and cultivate them to the best of our ability.
Listen to your body. Never run through pain. If you are experiencing significant pain, it is best to give your body time to rest. No one likes to take time away from training, but you are better off to miss a workout or two and recover quickly than to end up sidelined for months or years because you did not allow your body to heal.
As it says in Matthew 19:26, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Prayer is so powerful. I am so grateful for all the prayers from my parents and sisters and friends throughout this journey. My husband prayed for me every day. His example of prayerful perseverance is something to be commended. Our prayers are not always answered on our timeline or in a way that we like, but have confidence that you are being heard by a God that loves you more than you will ever understand. If you have been praying for something for many years, don't lose heart. You will be rewarded for your perseverance.