Ex-Dancer Tries Running a Marathon

**Title: From Dancer to Runner: A Journey Through Training for a Trail Half Marathon**

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As the title might have suggested, I grew up dancing from the ages of 10 to 17, and the idea of running was never something that crossed my mind until I married a Division 1 athlete. My husband casually talked about running a marathon in two hours and 30-something minutes as if it were nothing, which made me think, "Why not give running a try?" At 19 years old, I decided to take up running, but it turns out that my dance training had left me with the skills of a very slow runner. For two years, I couldn’t even run past 1.3 miles in a row. That was until someone gave me what seemed like *bonkers* advice: "Just run slower and at a pace where you can hold a conversation." To my surprise, when I tried it, I managed to run four miles in a row!

Then, on a random Sunday afternoon, I decided to sign myself up for a half marathon. Little did I know that I had just signed up for a *trail* marathon, which is vastly different from running on roads. With only eight weeks to train, I knew I had my work cut out for me.

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### The Training Journey

Let’s start back at the beginning. Good morning—I’m out here for my third run of the week. Three miles today, but actually, I did 2.5 miles on Monday because my legs went numb from the knees down. No idea what that was about! My calves were already tight, and running was proving to be a challenge. On Tuesday, I pushed through and managed 2.6 miles, but it wiped me out completely. By the end of the week, I had done three miles, but it was a rough one. Tomorrow is a rest day, and then Saturday is four miles—my first mini long run.

Week two brought more challenges. I was supposed to do six miles in Florida’s intense humidity, which felt almost like 90 degrees. At three miles in, I couldn’t imagine finishing the full six. Eventually, I managed to get through it, but it wasn’t easy. Week three had its own struggles. I was supposed to run three miles today, but I missed another three-mile run earlier in the week. The day after landing back, I was supposed to tackle eight miles—a distance I hadn’t done since last year and only once in my life.

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### Race Day Preparations

As August turned to September, the race loomed closer. On one particularly tough training day, I was supposed to run four miles but could barely make it two due to horrendous allergies that left me feeling exhausted even before starting. The next morning, I pushed through and ran 4.16 miles by going really slow—proof that the advice to run at a conversational pace had paid off.

Week five brought more training highs and lows. I was supposed to do three miles on Monday but skipped it, so I had to make it up today. Tomorrow is rest day, followed by a 10-mile run—a distance I hadn’t attempted in years. I couldn’t afford to slack off on the smaller runs if I wanted to tackle that 10-mile challenge.

In week six, I decided to treat myself with some rewards. Originally, I wanted to buy a cute running vest, but when I walked into the store, all I could think about was how awkward it would be to try them on in public. Instead, I left with two Goos and a new pair of Hokas—the Clifton Nines, in white, gray, baby blue, and chartreuse. It wasn’t what I planned, but it sure felt like a win.

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### The Long Run

The morning of my 11-mile run arrived bright and early at 6:25 AM. Waking up at 6:15 to get ready for this mileage was surreal. My new shoes felt great as I laced them up, but the heat was already starting to take its toll. By mile five, I was thinking about water breaks and whether I should eat my Goos. It wasn’t until mile nine that things got tough, but mentally, I pushed through. The pain of long runs doesn’t hit you mid-run—it creeps in after you shower and settles into your body like a slow-moving storm.

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### Race Week and the Big Day

Race week brought mixed emotions. On Monday, I did my three-mile easy run. Tuesday was supposed to be two miles, but rest day. Wednesday: another two miles. Thursday: rest. Friday: the big day—13.1 miles of trail running. When I told myself it was just a 13.1-mile run, it didn’t feel like a race. But deep down, I knew this was no small feat.

The night before the race, nerves set in. I had friends and family coming to support me, and I worried about finishing slower than expected. My husband, who’s run some of the fastest marathons, even decided to join me despite breaking his pinky toe weeks earlier. We weren’t sure what to expect, but we were ready.

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### The Race Itself

The race began with a surreal sense of excitement. My friends cheered me on, and I was shocked when they found me early in the course. The trail was narrower than I expected—just one person wide—and lined with rocks that tested my balance. This wasn’t just a dirt path; it was a real hiking trail with hills, rocks, and tree branches blocking my way. It felt like I was foraging through the woods.

By mile five, I realized how challenging this trail was compared to road running. My calves and feet were working overtime, and I couldn’t help but smile as I focused on navigating the rocks instead of worrying about my time. The goal was just to finish.

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### Midrace Struggles

Midway through the race, confusion set in when a group of full marathoners stopped to figure out where they were going. After standing around for five minutes, we finally moved forward. By mile 11.5, I realized something was wrong—the map said 13.1 miles, but all I could see was the finish line at 11.5. I knew I had to turn around to hit my mark.

The heat was oppressive by this point, and running in circles under a tiny patch of shade felt like the only way to stay hydrated. Finally, at 12:45 PM, I pushed out of the shade and toward the finish line. Playing "Long Live" by Taylor Swift on repeat, I reminded myself of how far I’d come.

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### Reflections

As I crossed the finish line, a wave of relief washed over me. The experience was everything I thought it would be—challenging, exhausting, and ultimately rewarding. Completing that half marathon taught me that with persistence and the right mindset, I could achieve something I never thought possible.

And so, as the title might have led you to believe, my journey from a dancer to a trail runner was anything but linear. It was filled with trials, triumphs, and a whole lot of lessons about what it means to push yourself beyond your limits.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enas the title may have led you to believe I grew up dancing from the ages of 10 to 17 years old and the idea of running was never relevant to me until I married a D1 athlete who talked about running a marathon in two hours and 30 something minutes like it was casual so at the age of 19 I thought hey maybe I should try this running thing and it turns out that dance training produced a very slow Runner I couldn't even run past 1.3 miles in a row for maybe two years until someone told me the advice that you just have to run slower to a pace that you should be able to hold a conversation and I thought that was absolutely Bonkers advice until I tried it and then I ran four miles in a row and on a random Sunday afternoon I decided to sign myself up for a half marathon little did I know I signed myself up for a trail Marathon which is very different than a road and I had eight weeks to train well let's start back at the beginning shall we good morning I'm out here for my third run of the week three miles again I actually did 2.5 on Monday because my legs went numb from the knees down don't know what that's about so I'm already starting with some very tight calves I did three on Tuesday let's get it I'm dying I only made it 2.6 for the community is like wiping me out right now I finished the run I did end up making three today but it was a rough one tomorrow is a rest day and then Saturday is four miles which is my first like mini long run I will see you for that Saturday I just ran four and I'm dead first week of training done I'm doing my first long run six miles in Florida humidity is almost like 90 I'm at three and I don't know I can't imagine I got 4.2 this sucks I've creped water since mild too my third run in Florida for week three of training supposed to do three today and about one and I missed another three mile run for the week and the day after I land I'm supposed to do eight miles which I haven't done since last year and I've only ever done that once in my life look at this view humidity is almost at 90 it's insane thank you it's August 4th now the race is September 9th I was supposed to do four miles today and I only got through two I've been having the worst allergies for like 48 hours so before I even start running I feel exhausted and I was at like point three and I was like I don't think I can do this at all so getting two was something but I'm really hoping the allergies go away I'm supposed to run four tomorrow we'll see if that happens good morning it's Saturday the next day I'm supposed to run four this morning no long run just four and the allergies are still kicking just as hard as what I was supposed to run for yesterday it only ran two so I'm pretty nervous but I think it's going away let's get it I did it I did 4.16 I just went really slow and I felt great so I'm so happy it's August 9th I'm in LA right now because I'm going to the Taylor Swift concert tonight week five of training I was supposed to run three miles yesterday and I did not do it so I have to do the three miles today and tomorrow one rest day and then a 10 mile run so I cannot be slacking on these smaller runs because I need to be ready for the 10 miles so let's just knock out this three miles on the treadmill today and be done I'm supposed to do 10 today how about five stopped at the park for water I've already been running an hour I have an hour left played frisbee put update on the 10 miles it didn't hurt until nine it was all mental basically it went way better than I thought it would go and at this point I actually could imagine running the half marathon it's week six supposed to do well I'm actually not supposed to run today because it's Friday and tomorrow is my 11 mile run but I miss Monday Tuesday so now it's Thursday and I'm doing it I'm about three weeks out from this run so I decided to buy myself some rewards originally I was going to try to buy a running vest I'm sure you guys have seen them like on Tick Tock girls packing their cute little running vests I went into a store they had the cutest ones ever but I didn't want to just stand there and try them on I don't know running stores are kind of awkward for some reason oh I literally just bought two Goos and instead of a vest the guy was like honestly you could just hold a water bottle so that's what I got you hold it on your hand like this while you run so I get to try this out tomorrow and I got a new pair of hokas I'm so excited these are the Clifton nines mostly white gray color with some baby blue and chartreuse it's so cute so I will see you bright and early tomorrow morning good morning guys it's 6 25 I woke up at like 6 15 to get ready for this 11 mile run it's still dark outside but let's go get this 2.3 dungeon new shoes feel great I'm at five miles thinking of water break at the car six miles left not bad long runs are a good practice of being present because when you're at four miles you don't want to be thinking about the future and how you have to run seven more you just have to be like Oh I'm at four it's just an objective fact we'll think about the future should I eat my goo I've never had one before I'm kind of nervous I did it 11 miles took two hours and something the pain of long runs is not right after it's after you shower and then lay in bed and it just like slowly Creeps in and then your head kind of just feels weird your body hurts you feel kind of nauseous like it like slowly Creeps in and just settles into your body and then you're like oh it feels like I'm sick a little bit but it's over praise God I didn't think I'd be able to do it at all good morning doing my last long run before the half marathon next week it's in one week holy crap I'm eating a Bobo's bites and I'm gonna try to do seven or I'm going to do seven I can't say I'm gonna try to or I'll say whoa guys it's race week I have to drive I did three miles it's Monday okay like I was saying it's race week today's Monday I did three miles I have a recommended two miles tomorrow rest day Wednesday two miles Thursday rest day Friday and then it's a half marathon 13.1 okay yeah 13.1 on Saturday I mean when you make it sound like that just like oh I'm just going for a 13.1 mile run this Saturday it doesn't sound like a race and then mentally if I'm like oh you should just do the full Marathon if you're capable then 13 will feel small yeah it's the Night Before the Race I was nervous pretty much all day I didn't want to admit it but I was I think what I'm most nervous about tomorrow is I have a few people coming to support me I don't know when I'm gonna finish what if I'm slower than I think I'm gonna be I don't know I wasn't expecting like friends to want to come because in my mind I'm like it's a half all my friends have run marathons but it's sweet I mean my own husband has run some very fast marathons he was originally gonna run it and then he actually broke his pinky toe and he hasn't run in like two weeks but he's gonna try to run for the first time tomorrow and film me see you in the morning what's your plan what's your race strategy we're going too fast already let's go Haley so the race begins and it feels so surreal because everyone's just going forward so you do too my friends were cheering for me and they even found me early on on the course which I wasn't expecting at all so I'm feeling good and the trail is basically one person wide so I'm just in a little line of people running forward one mile oh yeah it's all 49. oh my gosh not used to finding little rocks but after only a mile a week Came Upon A group of full marathoners who were just standing around trying to figure out where to go because apparently the course was unclear what's going on I have no idea and after standing around for like five minutes we finally figured it out and just went down this random path mile two we have another build up how you feeling tired already good at maneuvering on the rocks Mile Three hey what do you think of the trail definitely harder than a regular one I feel like it's actually my first real trail run it's my house I only thought it meant just a course like a trail I need to emphasize how much of a shot this Trail was to me because when I signed up for it I just thought of Trail as like a dirt path that is man-made and it's very easy to run on but I was expecting some hills that's what I was picturing for this run so imagine my surprise when it's like a hiking trail you know there's small rocks every time your foot hits the ground so you're trying to balance four miles really yeah yeah it's fun to focus on the Rocks instead of running it's true I feel like it's flying by yeah there's big rocks and then there's also Hills on top of that there's even full and tree branches just blocking your path sometimes like we're foraging in the woods five miles Haley five yeah Oh I thought it was sick oh so this was technically my first ever trail run and it was at my actual half marathon so there's little ligaments in my calves and feet and legs that aren't usually used because I'm not having to balance and maneuver on tiny little rocks and not sprain an ankle or fall smiles and multiple people around us are tripping some fully fall onto the ground and get back up some halfway fall and then catch themselves I watched some people roll an ankle and then keep running it was just shocking to say the least over halfway we're always calculate wrong but I feel fine but on the bright side you're focusing on not tripping and falling so much so that you almost forget that you're running and I also wasn't signing up for a race really caring about how fast I was gonna run it the goal was just to complete it five more but the rocks being a factor made it to where I fully was not thinking about a time other than the fact that people were waiting for me at the end I didn't want to take like three hours for a half but it really put the emphasis on fun you know just trying not to trip and fall and another thing is that there are actually specific shoes for a trail run so that your feet can be gripping the rocks and I saw other people wearing them they're more like a flat shoe and I'm out here running in my hokas which are like the tallest shoe you could possibly wear and would probably make you the most prone to Rolling an ankle in miles should I walk should I run games I love in Haley is that past your longest ever so at this point we're at like 11 point something miles and I start to see the finish line but obviously a half is 13.1 so I knew I needed to turn around to actually hit my mark because somewhere along the course things got mixed up and it was not 13 miles we saw the finish line but my map only said 11.5 so now we're running around there's no more shade and it's like 10 a.m oh gosh this is the hard part Coke was so good I want more soda now so I start running on this random road and it's like 10 a.m at this point so it is hot and I start to feel a little faint okay I was doing fine running wise but once that sun was out and the trees were no longer covering me I actually thought I could just fall over and die a little bit so I found this tiny little area of shade underneath some trees and I ran in circles for like a full mile I think I was determined to just run in circles under the trees because if I went back out into the sun I just don't think I would have made it at this point I'm starting to feel a little bit angry because I was tired and I was trying to calculate how many times I needed to run in a little circle before I got to go back out and go to the finish line but eventually at about 12.45 I went back out into the Heat and towards the finish line and I started playing Long Live by Taylor Swift where the first lyric she says is I said remember this moment in the back of my mind it was great it was the perfect thing I needed to run past that Finish Line let's go foreign how are you feeling good in all seriousness the experience was actually amazing to force myself to do something I didn't think I was capable of and then actually complete it we did it I'm so glad it's over that was funas the title may have led you to believe I grew up dancing from the ages of 10 to 17 years old and the idea of running was never relevant to me until I married a D1 athlete who talked about running a marathon in two hours and 30 something minutes like it was casual so at the age of 19 I thought hey maybe I should try this running thing and it turns out that dance training produced a very slow Runner I couldn't even run past 1.3 miles in a row for maybe two years until someone told me the advice that you just have to run slower to a pace that you should be able to hold a conversation and I thought that was absolutely Bonkers advice until I tried it and then I ran four miles in a row and on a random Sunday afternoon I decided to sign myself up for a half marathon little did I know I signed myself up for a trail Marathon which is very different than a road and I had eight weeks to train well let's start back at the beginning shall we good morning I'm out here for my third run of the week three miles again I actually did 2.5 on Monday because my legs went numb from the knees down don't know what that's about so I'm already starting with some very tight calves I did three on Tuesday let's get it I'm dying I only made it 2.6 for the community is like wiping me out right now I finished the run I did end up making three today but it was a rough one tomorrow is a rest day and then Saturday is four miles which is my first like mini long run I will see you for that Saturday I just ran four and I'm dead first week of training done I'm doing my first long run six miles in Florida humidity is almost like 90 I'm at three and I don't know I can't imagine I got 4.2 this sucks I've creped water since mild too my third run in Florida for week three of training supposed to do three today and about one and I missed another three mile run for the week and the day after I land I'm supposed to do eight miles which I haven't done since last year and I've only ever done that once in my life look at this view humidity is almost at 90 it's insane thank you it's August 4th now the race is September 9th I was supposed to do four miles today and I only got through two I've been having the worst allergies for like 48 hours so before I even start running I feel exhausted and I was at like point three and I was like I don't think I can do this at all so getting two was something but I'm really hoping the allergies go away I'm supposed to run four tomorrow we'll see if that happens good morning it's Saturday the next day I'm supposed to run four this morning no long run just four and the allergies are still kicking just as hard as what I was supposed to run for yesterday it only ran two so I'm pretty nervous but I think it's going away let's get it I did it I did 4.16 I just went really slow and I felt great so I'm so happy it's August 9th I'm in LA right now because I'm going to the Taylor Swift concert tonight week five of training I was supposed to run three miles yesterday and I did not do it so I have to do the three miles today and tomorrow one rest day and then a 10 mile run so I cannot be slacking on these smaller runs because I need to be ready for the 10 miles so let's just knock out this three miles on the treadmill today and be done I'm supposed to do 10 today how about five stopped at the park for water I've already been running an hour I have an hour left played frisbee put update on the 10 miles it didn't hurt until nine it was all mental basically it went way better than I thought it would go and at this point I actually could imagine running the half marathon it's week six supposed to do well I'm actually not supposed to run today because it's Friday and tomorrow is my 11 mile run but I miss Monday Tuesday so now it's Thursday and I'm doing it I'm about three weeks out from this run so I decided to buy myself some rewards originally I was going to try to buy a running vest I'm sure you guys have seen them like on Tick Tock girls packing their cute little running vests I went into a store they had the cutest ones ever but I didn't want to just stand there and try them on I don't know running stores are kind of awkward for some reason oh I literally just bought two Goos and instead of a vest the guy was like honestly you could just hold a water bottle so that's what I got you hold it on your hand like this while you run so I get to try this out tomorrow and I got a new pair of hokas I'm so excited these are the Clifton nines mostly white gray color with some baby blue and chartreuse it's so cute so I will see you bright and early tomorrow morning good morning guys it's 6 25 I woke up at like 6 15 to get ready for this 11 mile run it's still dark outside but let's go get this 2.3 dungeon new shoes feel great I'm at five miles thinking of water break at the car six miles left not bad long runs are a good practice of being present because when you're at four miles you don't want to be thinking about the future and how you have to run seven more you just have to be like Oh I'm at four it's just an objective fact we'll think about the future should I eat my goo I've never had one before I'm kind of nervous I did it 11 miles took two hours and something the pain of long runs is not right after it's after you shower and then lay in bed and it just like slowly Creeps in and then your head kind of just feels weird your body hurts you feel kind of nauseous like it like slowly Creeps in and just settles into your body and then you're like oh it feels like I'm sick a little bit but it's over praise God I didn't think I'd be able to do it at all good morning doing my last long run before the half marathon next week it's in one week holy crap I'm eating a Bobo's bites and I'm gonna try to do seven or I'm going to do seven I can't say I'm gonna try to or I'll say whoa guys it's race week I have to drive I did three miles it's Monday okay like I was saying it's race week today's Monday I did three miles I have a recommended two miles tomorrow rest day Wednesday two miles Thursday rest day Friday and then it's a half marathon 13.1 okay yeah 13.1 on Saturday I mean when you make it sound like that just like oh I'm just going for a 13.1 mile run this Saturday it doesn't sound like a race and then mentally if I'm like oh you should just do the full Marathon if you're capable then 13 will feel small yeah it's the Night Before the Race I was nervous pretty much all day I didn't want to admit it but I was I think what I'm most nervous about tomorrow is I have a few people coming to support me I don't know when I'm gonna finish what if I'm slower than I think I'm gonna be I don't know I wasn't expecting like friends to want to come because in my mind I'm like it's a half all my friends have run marathons but it's sweet I mean my own husband has run some very fast marathons he was originally gonna run it and then he actually broke his pinky toe and he hasn't run in like two weeks but he's gonna try to run for the first time tomorrow and film me see you in the morning what's your plan what's your race strategy we're going too fast already let's go Haley so the race begins and it feels so surreal because everyone's just going forward so you do too my friends were cheering for me and they even found me early on on the course which I wasn't expecting at all so I'm feeling good and the trail is basically one person wide so I'm just in a little line of people running forward one mile oh yeah it's all 49. oh my gosh not used to finding little rocks but after only a mile a week Came Upon A group of full marathoners who were just standing around trying to figure out where to go because apparently the course was unclear what's going on I have no idea and after standing around for like five minutes we finally figured it out and just went down this random path mile two we have another build up how you feeling tired already good at maneuvering on the rocks Mile Three hey what do you think of the trail definitely harder than a regular one I feel like it's actually my first real trail run it's my house I only thought it meant just a course like a trail I need to emphasize how much of a shot this Trail was to me because when I signed up for it I just thought of Trail as like a dirt path that is man-made and it's very easy to run on but I was expecting some hills that's what I was picturing for this run so imagine my surprise when it's like a hiking trail you know there's small rocks every time your foot hits the ground so you're trying to balance four miles really yeah yeah it's fun to focus on the Rocks instead of running it's true I feel like it's flying by yeah there's big rocks and then there's also Hills on top of that there's even full and tree branches just blocking your path sometimes like we're foraging in the woods five miles Haley five yeah Oh I thought it was sick oh so this was technically my first ever trail run and it was at my actual half marathon so there's little ligaments in my calves and feet and legs that aren't usually used because I'm not having to balance and maneuver on tiny little rocks and not sprain an ankle or fall smiles and multiple people around us are tripping some fully fall onto the ground and get back up some halfway fall and then catch themselves I watched some people roll an ankle and then keep running it was just shocking to say the least over halfway we're always calculate wrong but I feel fine but on the bright side you're focusing on not tripping and falling so much so that you almost forget that you're running and I also wasn't signing up for a race really caring about how fast I was gonna run it the goal was just to complete it five more but the rocks being a factor made it to where I fully was not thinking about a time other than the fact that people were waiting for me at the end I didn't want to take like three hours for a half but it really put the emphasis on fun you know just trying not to trip and fall and another thing is that there are actually specific shoes for a trail run so that your feet can be gripping the rocks and I saw other people wearing them they're more like a flat shoe and I'm out here running in my hokas which are like the tallest shoe you could possibly wear and would probably make you the most prone to Rolling an ankle in miles should I walk should I run games I love in Haley is that past your longest ever so at this point we're at like 11 point something miles and I start to see the finish line but obviously a half is 13.1 so I knew I needed to turn around to actually hit my mark because somewhere along the course things got mixed up and it was not 13 miles we saw the finish line but my map only said 11.5 so now we're running around there's no more shade and it's like 10 a.m oh gosh this is the hard part Coke was so good I want more soda now so I start running on this random road and it's like 10 a.m at this point so it is hot and I start to feel a little faint okay I was doing fine running wise but once that sun was out and the trees were no longer covering me I actually thought I could just fall over and die a little bit so I found this tiny little area of shade underneath some trees and I ran in circles for like a full mile I think I was determined to just run in circles under the trees because if I went back out into the sun I just don't think I would have made it at this point I'm starting to feel a little bit angry because I was tired and I was trying to calculate how many times I needed to run in a little circle before I got to go back out and go to the finish line but eventually at about 12.45 I went back out into the Heat and towards the finish line and I started playing Long Live by Taylor Swift where the first lyric she says is I said remember this moment in the back of my mind it was great it was the perfect thing I needed to run past that Finish Line let's go foreign how are you feeling good in all seriousness the experience was actually amazing to force myself to do something I didn't think I was capable of and then actually complete it we did it I'm so glad it's over that was fun\n"