Gislene Goes From Non-Runner to Marathoner with the Help of the Beach Runners Marathon and Half Marthon Training Program in 17 Weeks

Steve,

Thank you, for your support to this journey! I’ve learn a lot about myself and I will carry this experience throughout my life!

The next morning:

My journey to the finish line started when I joined the Beach Runners group in June, three weeks after the rest of the group started training. My first Saturday, I met the group and our coach that were going to support me through the next 17 weeks ahead. My first question was to our coach, Steve was, “Is it too late to join the group? I have never run before in my life.” His reply, “It is never too late. Today we are running 1h10 minutes. After 35 minutes, turn around and come back. Just do what you can, and have fun!” I knew right there, that this was the right group for me.

The next 3 weeks were really hard and I almost gave up. I felt terrible pain in my knees, and after every long run, I spent an hour icing them and walking funny. When I told others about it, the reply was that maybe I had knee problems and should get a scan. So I gave my self a deadline. I would try for 3 more weeks and if they didn’t get better, I would have to give up.

The next week, I tried working all the techniques taught by our coach, including breathing, posture, and stepping. His technique is called “ChiRunning.” I added vitamins (Triplex) to my diet and a new pair of shoes, and something really amazing happened… I never had a knee pain again. Not even during the Marathon.

Today is my first day after the Marathon, and as I play back all the stages I went through to reach that finishing line, it gives me chills. Many fears and insecurities go through your mind throughout the program. But you learn to deal with every fear, and at the end of the day you learn to overcome them in your own time.

My actual running time to reach that finishing line was long. I was doing pretty well when I reached mile 20, but after that, I couldn’t run anymore. I was exhausted . I started to walk… slowly. Those last 6.2 miles took me 2h 23 minutes, but, I made it to the end. When I finally saw the end (7hours in the race), 99% of the runners had already completed the race. But, then I saw the Beach Runners group cheering for me, and I switched from walking to running with my last drop of energy until I reached the finish line.

I did it ! So can you!

Gislene

October 17, 2006 | Filed Under ChiRunning, Race Reports, Steve's Posts 

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