Today I want to share a really inspiring success story with you. Kimberly Nugent King who has been training with me personally for the past 2.5 years just completed a major goal that she set out for herself about 12 months ago. She ran the JFK 50 mile Ultra marathon. As you probably already know, a marathon is 26.2 miles so this is just shy of running 2 marathons. INSANE!
Imagine you run a marathon, get to the finish line, then just turn around and run back to the start line. Add below freezing temperatures, running challenging trails with boulders in the dark at 5am, and finishing in the dark at 6:30pm and That sort of sums up this race of extreme endurance and mental toughness.
Kimberly has been at this for a long time. In our first year of training, her goal was to do a marathon, which she accomplished. In her 2nd year, she ran the marathon again and then decided that for her 3rd year, she was going to not only do the marathon but also run the JFK 50 miler which is just 1 month after the Marine Corps Marathon.
She trained hard with me in the gym and also joined a running group to get her mileage up. To assist the competitors to stay motivated in focused, they are allowed to have pacers to run big chunks of the race with them to help them stay on pace and meet all the time cut offs. I ran 12 of the 50 miles with her. I met her on mile 15 at 9am and ran through mile 27 with her. She started at 5am (19 degrees) in the dark through some of the knurliest trails (Appalachian) on the east coast. Yes, she’s one tough broad. It was a bone chilling 27 degrees when I met up with her. My body ached like I couldn’t imagine from the 12 miles I did in this weather so I can’t imagine doing an additional 38 miles on top of that. Here are Kimberly’s comments about our training regimen and her account of the race…
Dennys and Kimberly at mile 27 after having just run the past 12 miles together
Testimonial about Dennys and Achieve Fitness
“Dear Dennys, I would not have been able to do this without the training and support that you personally gave me over the last 7 months for this race in particular. Part of my drive to finish is that I did not want to let you down since I suspect that you believed in me during the training phase when I started to doubt myself. It takes a really dedicated and exceptional trainer to support someone through something like this. Thanks for the tough love in the gym to make sure that I was prepared for this. ”
Race Recap
“The short answer is that I finished my 50 mile ultra marathon. The more important answer is that I will never do it again J. Here is the rest of the story.
I started at 5:00 AM. It never got above 19 degrees with the wind chill factor. I hit the Appalachian trail (AT) at 5:30 AM after doing an almost 800 foot elevation change in about a mile. It was pitch black when I entered the trail. I had a head lamp and a flash light as I made my way through the trail. I prayed out loud for God to keep me safe. I did great on the trail. I was about the 25th person out of 250 5:00 AM starters to come off the first portion of the trail. I saw the sun rise from the top of a cliff on the (AT).
Running along the C&O Canal
The second portion of the AT was a challenge. My ankles were tired from rolling on rocks. I fell and turned my ankle real good. I dusted myself off and came off the trail feeling happy that it was over. The next section on my run was 26 miles along the C&O Canal. I fell a couple of times and banged up my knees and hands. There were signs on the side of the road that mocked me. There were ones that said “if you had just run a marathon you would be home by now”. There was one that said “never under estimate the stupidity of people in large groups” J (or something like that). Then there was the road runner club shirt saying that said “what is nuts is a matter of perspective”.
Finish Line
I had three sets of pacers (Dennys Passeto, Steve Schraf, and Jud and Sharon Larrimore) run with me and an amazing husband who met me at 5 different points on the course. I would not have made it through without my pacers. Jim said that the last 4 miles I looked like I was part of a death march to the finish line.
I stared at my feet and willed them to keep going forward. I turned to praying out loud again for the strength to finish.
After an hour ride home, my muscles had enough time to completely seize up. I could not get out of the car on my own. I went up the steps on my behind. That night my legs would not support my weight any longer and Jim became my personal walker.
I am happy that I finished. I will never do it again. It took me 13 hours and 46 minutes”
[End Quote]
If you’ve ever had the desire to participate in a marathon, further yet an ultra marathon, I’d recommend this event. It was very well organized and the scenery along the C&O Canal was breath taking(in more ways than one…LOL). Here is where you can sign up for these events…
Marine Corps Marathon – www.marinemarathon.com
JFK Ultra Marathon – www.jfk50mile.org
Obviously you want to set small goals for yourself and work up to the marathon and beyond. Whatever shape you’re in now does not matter. With work, you too can do it. And if you need any help, let us put you on a training program to get you there. Contact us today for more details about our personal training programs in Maryland, DC and Virginia that can help you make the most daring goals a reality.
Massive Holiday Sale
Buy any package of 12 sessions or more before December 31st and receive $150 OFF! Just call us at 1-888-872-7961 and mention “50 Mile Email” and we’ll knock that off our current prices for you. Discount available for gift certificates as well.
Dedicated to your health and fitness,
Dennys Passeto, CPT
Achieve Fitness
www.achieve-fitness.com
1-888-872-7961
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