All About Balance

My friend Jadah is a busy nurse, wife and mom of four. I think her story is inspiring and speaks to the importance of finding balance with all aspects of our lives.

I started long distance running kind of by default. When it came time for track and field in high school, I was the only one to sign up for the 3000m and 1500m events. I was never fast and couldn’t jump, so I defaulted into the distance events. Growing up in a small town, there wasn’t much to do…that combined with an easy route to run…I found myself running on a fairly consistent basis. Running was something I liked and I felt like I was fairly good at. It was during this time that I set a running goal for myself…by the time I was 25, I would run a marathon. 

Fast forward 15 years and my journey has seen me through many peaks and valleys. In my first year university I gained 20 pounds before Christmas. It wasn’t until my brother commented on how “fat” I’d gotten that I realized I had a problem. Needless to say I adopted some unhealthy practices that I didn’t know how to get rid of. While I would still hop on the treadmill at school every now and then and play soccer every week, I was slowly losing that ‘athlete’ inside of me. After my first year university, with my wedding looming, I found myself with 30 pounds to lose. At this time, I came back to running…and (thankfully) it didn’t take long to shed those unwanted pounds. But it didn’t take long to gain them back (and they brought friends). 

It has taken me many years to find balance. I was a sucker for any ‘get skinny quick’ scheme. I would get on and fall off the ‘weight loss’ wagon faster than the seasons would change. I adopted many unhealthy practices and while I knew the key to healthy living, I found myself lacking the motivation and mindset to sustain one. I was a binger and adopted an ‘all or none’ philosophy. I would alternate between extreme restriction in diet and dedication in exercise to periods of extended idleness and binge eating. In finding balance in my life, the most critical part for me was changing my relationship with food. Being active is something I love to do, but so is eating. I have learned to embrace the ‘food is fuel’ philosophy and it has helped me change my habits. 

In 2007, I set a goal…one of the first I set in a very long time. Having 3 little girls in 3 years, I was determined to get myself back. I set my sights on running the 10K with my sister and a dear friend at the SaskMarathon. Going from almost completely inactive to having to run for a whole hour seemed crazy, but with a lot of training and determination I did it. 

Since then, I have never stopped running. I am no longer an extremist and feel content within the boundaries I have for myself. I feel like I have found the balance that was previously missing. I eat a lot better and have learned how to embrace moderation. I have learned to identify in myself the times when I am tempted to be idle and fall into my old eating habits. Finding ‘me’ time isn’t always easy but it’s something I make a priority. There are many days where I don’t go for a run until 10pm. While I find it extremely tempting to curl up with a bag of chips, I love my late night runs. There is nothing more refreshing and rejuvenating than going for a great run to unwind at the end of my day. I have learned a lot about myself and love what running has done for me. I love being active with my family and I enjoy building into them that way. 

Before this year, I was content to run at my leisure and to not really push my limits. That was before I met Janaya. She motivated and inspired me to relight that spark that has always been there. When I mentioned to her that I would like to run a half marathon with her, it was just words and it sounded so easy. Boy was I wrong. I never realized how much mental strength is involved in running a half marathon. I was counting on the physical training to be really difficult, but that part was less than half the battle. While the physical challenge was great, it took all the mental strength I could muster to keep going. At any given point, I was tempted to stop and walk or just stop all together. When your whole body aches, it is really difficult to want to endure. I was definitely not counting on it to be as challenging as it was. But, the reward of completing and finishing has been so gratifying. Thanks Janaya for motivating me to do it …you’re awesome (plus slightly crazy cause you’re doing 12 of them)! 

I always thought it funny that every year people spend money to run a race when (realistically) they could run anytime anywhere for free. Since May I have ran another 13 miles on my own, but without the satisfaction of crossing an actual finish line, the feeling isn’t quite the same. This has made me realize that I need to keep setting goals for myself in order to push myself to limits I wouldn’t otherwise reach. 

This leads me back to my opening paragraph…that dream of running a marathon is something I still want to do…and I know I can. But I also have been awakened to the reality that it takes extreme dedication to prepare both mentally and physically…something I’m not quite ready to commit to. My new goal is to do it before I’m 40…fit and 40 sounds great! Hopefully I can maintain the balance I need to get there! 

Thank you Jadah for being willing to share your experience with us. I have NO DOUBT that you will achieve your marathon goal! I can't wait to run with you again in Vegas!!