The Beginning: I began running in January 2018. At the time, I had been in nursing school for about a semester and I needed a way to release stress and to prevent weight gain (you do a lot of sitting and studying in nursing school). But I told myself, “This won’t be just about losing weight. I need a higher goal than just weight loss because you will just quit once you achieve that goal. I should try to run a marathon someday. That would be cool.” I started out modestly. I wanted to run a mile. That did not seem out of reach for someone who hadn’t run a day in their life outside of gym class. I was actually surprised by how quickly I achieved that goal. I wanted to participate in events, so my next natural goal was a 5k run. In a month or so, I was able to achieve that goal. Now I run a 5k on most days. If I have the time, I like to go for longer runs, my furthest run so far has been 17k. I still have not run a half marathon yet. But I am working towards that goal. Anyone else a runner and want to share your story? I would love to hear it!