Mondauk to Marathon:
Tara’s Fitness / Nutrition Journey
Because I am an athlete, specifically a runner, people
tend to assume that I have always been active. In my case, this could not be
further from the truth. It wasn’t until I got some disappointing news from my
doctor at the ripe age of 26 that I had high cholesterol and I needed to change
my habits. Which meant, no more trips to Mickey D’s for the 2 for 1 special on
Big Macs, cut down on the sweets and that investing in a gym membership wasn’t
such a bad idea. I honestly had no interest in doing any of these things but I
knew I should. At the time I happened to be dating someone who cared about
health and fitness. He also seemed to care about mine as well because he finally
said to me one day, “When are you going to actually join a gym instead of just
talking about it?” Along with an eye roll, I joined a local gym.
One of my girlfriends was a weightlifter so she let me
borrow some books that helped get her into this fitness nonsense…errr….I mean,
business! Fitness business!
As time moved on, I continued to weight train, and
took cardio classes at the gym and I saw results. I was much stronger than I
ever thought possible and more importantly my cholesterol numbers really
improved. I even had a group that I ‘lifted’ with at the gym but I needed to
find a way to burn more fat. So I decided to start running. Mondauk Park was
near my workplace that had a dirt running track around it. It was a mile long
and had ¼ mile markers. So wearing my cute Nike workout outfit and my CD player
in hand, I took off….for about 1/8th of a mile. I wish I was kidding but I’m not. I was sucking
air so hard people were staring and my entire body hurt and felt like it was
burning! Quite honestly, nothing was more painful than this.
I don’t remember how long I ran that day or if I even
finished that mile. I do know that I kept at it, 2-3 times a week I went to that
park till I could complete a mile. Pretty soon, I was up to 3 miles. I also
spent time running through Wissahickon Valley Park which had ½ mile markers. I
finally got up to 6 miles at Wissahickon! I almost threw a
party!! After that, I never really looked back. I did get together
with some gym members and we ran together on Thursdays and held each other
accountable to running (hills) each week and sometimes on the weekend. We also
worked out together during the week and took cardio kickboxing classes together.
I entered my first race in April 2005, the Cherry
Blossom 10 miler in Washington D.C. A co-worker that was an experienced
marathoner offered to create a training plan and let me pick his brain. I spent
two months training for this race and got ‘lucky’ enough to experience some of
the crappiest D.C. weather ever. Wind that would blow rain sideways as we ran
over the bridges. It was a tough 10 miles but after I crossed that finish line
in less than 90 minutes (which was my goal) I felt like I could conquer the
world! After this experience, I was hooked on running races. I signed up for the
Virginia Beach Rock n’ Roll ½ Marathon and the Philadelphia Distance Classic
(also a half marathon 2 weeks later). Both were fairly successful by reaching my
goal and running them under 2 hours. Next up was the wicked Marathon Distance!!
July 9, 2006, I crossed the finish line of the Seafair Marathon in
Bellevue, Washington.
Less than 5 years later, I’ve put a few more marathons
(6, almost 7 to date) and several shorter distances under my belt. I started
coaching kids when I moved back to Seattle from the east coast in 2006. Thru the
inspiration and trust of others, in 2011, I started my own coaching business
(Askcoachtara.com…named by a client). I feel that if I can pass on my experience
and knowledge to others that maybe their world will change just like mine did:
for the better. I am closer to my family, friends and more importantly,
myself.
My fitness (and nutrition) journey has been and
continues to be amazing, challenging, frustrating and absolutely the most
incredible ride of my life! I wouldn’t change a single moment!
Be Extraordinary!
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