I’m also an ambassador for Badass Lady Gang, Sprints, Sarah Marie Running Co, BibBoards, and more! All within the last year.

I started racing last February.

Not training. Racing.

My first run since leaving college (which was now a healthy 10+ years ago) was the runDisney Princess 10K at Epcot in late February 2024. I had no idea if I could finish the race, certainly not within the allotted 16 min/mile pace, after which you can be ‘swept.’

This is when they throw you on the Loser Bus because you couldn’t maintain the required pace and take you straight to the finish line.

Ok, ok. I know being swept is not for losers. But it’s how I felt about it at the time.

I wasn’t just afraid of the Balloon Ladies - the last pacers - I hated them. Without even knowing them, I hated what their presence signaled.

That there is, in fact, a way to not be good enough.

At Disney World, of all places.

At the time, 6.2 miles felt like a near impossibility. I can’t believe that just 7 months after this photo was taken, I went on to run **26.2**!

The race went fine. I didn’t get swept, but I understand now that it really would not have been a big deal if I had.

I had a great time in Orlando, and I knew I wanted to go back as soon as possible to see what else my body could do.

So, I signed up for both the Disney Wine and Dine Half Marathon and the Walt Disney World Marathon. I may or may not have bullied my best friends into it, too. (Sorry, y’all! See you in a week at the marathon!)

Knowing these races were at the end of 2024 sparked me to start training. I didn’t want to be the one everyone worried about finishing. I didn’t want to be the one slow runner in a group of speedsters.

Spoiler alert: I’m still the one slow runner in a group of speedsters.

But it doesn’t bother me anymore! In fact, I kind of love it. Being slow has allowed me to find a community of other amazing people - amazing runners - who make the back of the pack a party worth attending.

So, from here you’d think I started training for the half and the full marathons. That I was consistent and safe and used my physical therapy knowledge to aid me in ramping up slowly.

I think we both know that didn’t happen.

I wanted to see what I could do, and I ended up signing up for a local half marathon in secret. I didn’t tell my friends, because I didn’t want there to be any pressure in case I couldn’t finish.

Did I finish dead f’ing last?

Hell yeah.

Did I finish 13.1 miles??

HELL YEAH.

Then, I got my heart broken.

So I did what any mentally healthy runner gal would do to distract herself.

I signed up for a marathon.

While I anxiously awaited October to approach so that I could try my hand (feet?) at 26.2, I went on to run another half marathon. This time, in Brooklyn with one of my best friends from PT school.

This race was a BLAST.

Incredible crowd support the whole way, a 5K PR, and just a true sense of, “I’m a runner.”

I spent the summer completing another 10K and a few 5Ks. Then, I really started training for the beast: the Detroit Free Press Marathon.

In Detroit, I wasn’t dead f’ing last, but I was pretty f’ing close. I finished after the time cutoff, but thanks to the kindness of total strangers/race volunteers, I got to cross the finish line timing mat, get an official time, and get a medal, too.

Oh, and I got a TRACKSMITH POSTER.

But that’s a story for another time. ;)

In addition to Detroit, I went on to run 3 more half marathons in November and December 2024.

And, really…that’s it.

I didn’t do anything special to stand out.

I didn’t have a crazy story that fueled me.

I was fueled by a broken heart and the audacity to show up and try.

And if that’s good enough for Brooks Running, then, heck, who am I to think any different?

(For anyone wondering how I literally became an ambassador - I found the application online, answered the essay questions, and found out a couple months later that I had been accepted. The application is currently closed, but if you look up ‘Brooks Running Collective,’ it’ll come up!)