Holy Snackpacks...Im running the full enchilada

Oprah was right when she said, "Running is the greatest metaphor for life, because you get out of it what you put into it."

Tomorrow starts a twenty week training program for the biggest running challenge for me to date: my first full marathon. On October 10, I will be one of thousands of runners that will flood the streets of Chicago for the Chicago Marathon. Having registered for this race over three months ago, the intensity and reality of it all did not hit me until this week after a live podcast with my running coach (@coachprs on Twitter) and a few teammates. After we logged off, I sat back on my couch and thought to myself, "Holy Snackpacks, I'm really going to run 26.2 miles. Not only am I going to run it, I'm going to kill it."

I never considered myself an athlete. Growing up with a super star, athletic twin, no one (including myself) perceived me to have any athletic capabilities. With this mindset, I staggered through the last 10 years never having a consistent healthy lifestyle until a year ago.

In April 2009, I ran my first 5k and became addicted to running. I'm not sure if it was the sense of accomplishment or the race environment that grabbed my motivation, however, from that day on I wanted to become a runner. Since then, I have ran six half marathons, a 20K, a 15K, and two 5Ks.

After all the hard work, I can tell you this: Running is the best metaphor for life for ME. I am not the same person I was a year ago. The confidence I have in myself to achieve anything in life has significantly increased. My relationships with my family and friends has improved because I started to believe in myself. More importantly, I have inspired others to change for the better.

Reflecting over the past year and feeling like a completely new and improved Kris, I can only imagine what training for Chicago will be like over the next twenty weeks. I'm excited and full of anticipation.