I run for the freedom I feel while running, I run because thoughts flow in a different way

My name is Vanessa. I am a marathonist since 2014, I started running 10 Km and then I did my first Half Marathon. I did many Half Marathons and at that time never passed my mind to run a Marathon.

I started running by myself and then decided to join a running team in order to have training support and to learn more about this world, after a few months my team mates told me as a joke that by running so many half marathons I was actually running like 5 Marathons a year and that I should go for a real one. So, I accepted the challenge but with one condition, I would only start doing Marathons if my first one was one of the Majors.

I signed for the 2017 Berlin Marathon draw with such luck that I ended up winning one of the quotas. I started my 16 week preparation training to be ready for the challenge, I trained after work and increased intensity from 3 to 6 days a week.

The long-awaited day arrived, I almost got stranded in Colombia due to a strike by the flight operator never seen before; I cried in front of the flight attendant thinking that I would not make that dream come true, I was not certain of anything, luckily I managed to get there , I picked up the kit with the super bib (it was giant) and prepared everything to run my first marathon.

It was a unique and wonderful experience, I hit the wall at km 37 and overcame it, I reached the finish line happily with the flag of my country and I received my first medal that made me a MARATHONIST. It’s been 3 years since that first experience and in the following years I’ve managed to participate in two other majors: Chicago and New York.

I don’t even know how to explain into words, the excitement and happiness that you feel crossing each finish line. The preparation, nutrition, early birds training mates, very well deserved post-workout meals after 30 Km, and off course all the spaghetti before, all of it, it’s all part of such priceless memories that I always carry during the races and off course when I cross that finish line once again.  I don’t run at night anymore; I get up early a lot.

Running plays, a fundamental roll in my life, I run for the freedom I feel while running, I run because thoughts flow in a different way, I run because it makes me feel mentally stronger, I run because without even knowing so I have motivated so many people to start running and to have a healthier, more balanced and more active life.  

I count the days until my next finish line, and I can’t thank enough God for my health, for every mile I achieve to run and for giving me the opportunity to live my life the way I decided to live, as a MARATHONIST.