When I started running, I laced up and ran as hard as I could for as long as I could. I was overtrained, not eating enough, and getting faster. So I ran harder. I raced my first half marathon in 2017 – haphazardly following an internet training plan, drastically underfueling – and finished in 1:39, faster than I’d hoped.

Then I sustained my first stress fracture. A doctor told me that I may not be built to run (I knew that was BS, even then). No one asked how I was training, what I was eating, or if I was doing any strength work. I healed and got back to running but didn't change a thing. A second stress fracture, a year later. A laundry list of injuries after that. More suggestions I find a different hobby.

Finally, after a fourth attempt at running a marathon was thwarted by injury, I decided to get a coach. I felt self-conscious; what business did I have hiring a coach? But getting a coach was the best running decision I've ever made, and one of the best personal ones, too. It gave me the support and structure I needed to be a healthy runner.

My training cycles are still imperfect (a perfect one doesn't exist) but I have learned how to listen to my body, to slow down, and find the joy in running again. It's created consistency, and progress builds. I ran my first official marathon in 3:42 before coaching, and just a few years later, I ran 3:10. And I am daring to dream even bigger dreams.

I can’t go back and tell the earlier version of myself the things I know now. But I can help you tune in to your body and find joy in running to power big, scary goals.