The Running Whys – Carolyn Campbell
Editor’s note: Nearly six years after crossing the finish line at Marathon By The Sea in her first marathon, Carolyn Campbell still gets emotional when she thinks about how she got there. For some people, running represents many different things. For her, it provided an outlet to set goals, deal with the curve balls life throws at us and learn more about her inner strength. What follows is a poignant account of her experiences with Marathon By the Sea.
There is this: “Twice a week for 12 weeks, we met and we ran. We cried, we laughed, we swore. But we also ran!”
And this: “I cried as I crossed the finish line because to me this gave me the ammunition to call myself a runner.”
Her journey from non-runner to marathoner is another of the inspirational tales Marathon By the Sea has experienced in its celebrated 20 year history.
Enjoy.
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I had never really paid any attention to running events. They were for elite runners. I was 100 pounds overweight and running was not in the cards for me. In 2004, I moved to Ottawa and arrived on Ottawa race weekend. I had no idea what was going on, I was just caught up in the crowd and could feel a buzz of energy like I’ve never felt before. I realized it was all for this running event, and that people of all walks of life were participating.
Soon after, I met a girl at work who had run a marathon and wrote about her experience. When I read her story, something in me changed. I made a vow to myself in that moment that someday I would feel that feeling first hand. I would run a marathon.
I had made pretty pathetic attempts at running before but had never stuck with them. I knew that running wasn’t going to be an instant thing but I knew I wanted it. I started slowly at the gym, with some basic cardio and strength training. I couldn’t do more than two squats at this time. I continued this very basic routine for about a year before I signed up for a learn-to-run clinic at the gym I was attending.
I was so excited to finally be at a place where I could start running. It was a group of people in all levels of fitness, but we were all there for one goal – To be a runner! Twice a week for 12 weeks, we met and we ran. We cried, we laughed, we swore. But we also ran! By the end of the clinic, we were hitting 7km without stopping!!! This was serious stuff. In October of 2005, I ran my first-ever official run at the Ottawa CIBC Run For The Cure.
I cried as I crossed the finish line because to me this gave me the ammunition to call myself a runner :). I stuck with running 5-10km races for the next year and finally got up the courage to train for a half marathon. In September of 2007, after moving back home to Saint John, and now at a total of 75lbs lost, I completed the half marathon distance of Marathon By The Sea. As soon as I crossed the finish line, I said next year it will be the full marathon.
Training for the full was like nothing I’ve ever experienced, and I did it all solo. I learned how to do math in my head, calculating my pace, splits, etc to keep myself distracted. I learned just how long it took to run from the Gondola Point ferry to the Rothesay Avenue exit and back again, but most importantly I learned how to talk myself through the most difficult physical pain, resistance and emotional struggles I thought I would ever feel.
Carolyn Campbell hugs her daughter after the annual Resolution Run in Saint John that was held Dec. 31, 2010.
And in September of 2008, I crossed the finish line with a co-worker who would most likely have finished well ahead of me, but was a little under the weather and graciously kept me company for over 5 hours. I did it! The emotion you feel when you cross the finish line is unexplainable. Only another runner could possibly understand. Writing about it now brings tears to my eyes, recalling the pride I had in myself, and the journey I had been on to get there.
My running story does not end here. I’ve never run another full marathon, but I love the half marathon distance and have completed the half at Marathon By The Sea every year, except one, since.
I took the year I was eight months pregnant off ;). But did volunteer and was blessed to put the badges of honour (medals) around the necks of many of the finishers in 2010.
My daughter was born a month later and I was in a tough spot. My marriage had fallen apart when I was five months pregnant and I needed to figure out how to be a mommy, how to deal with the failed marriage, and how to feel like me again.
I knew exactly what I needed to do. I needed to run. Five weeks after my daughter was born, I signed up for a 1/2 marathon clinic at the Running Room to keep myself accountable, and trained for the hypothermic half which I ran in February of 2011, which was five months after my daughter was born.
I mentioned earlier that while training for the full marathon I learned how to deal with what I thought was the most difficult emotional struggles I’d ever have to face. I was wrong. But the great thing was that running was also helping me deal with the pain I was now facing. It gave me confidence. It was an outlet for the pent up anger and frustration.
It calmed the chaos inside of me. I was proving to myself that I may get knocked down, but I could also get back up again. The long runs leading up to that half marathon, and to this day, provide me with the mental clarity I need to be a great mom, and a great me. Running has not only provided me with amazing physical benefits, it has given me the ability to be in control of my mental well being as well. I am forever grateful to everyone who ran in Ottawa race weekend in 2004, as well as the girl who shared her marathon story with me.
They lit the match to the fire that has been burning for 10 years :).
