Trail running unlocks keys to the soul. It is a teacher. It is a pathway to learning to face and overcome obstacles that life presents us, and experience growth.
A month ago I finished my first ultramarathon 50K. The journey to this point started years ago with the story of becoming a runner. But it wasn’t until new year’s day, January 1st, of this year, that I signed up for this feat.
It’s a story rooted in friendship, surpassing limitations, and in making small choices each day. It’s a story about running being the guide to a fuller life existence.
The idea for this race was planted years ago when I first began discovering the world of running. Five years ago I had never run more than 3 miles. Now I contemplated running 31, and something inside told me I was ready to do it.
New Year, New Friendships, New Goals
On the final days of December 2022, my new friend Sara and I were in the middle of a fifty-mile bike ride when the topic of ultra-running came up. We had both run marathons and done other endurance sports, but one thing we hadn’t done was an ultramarathon. A seed was planted.
On the first of the year, I got a text from Sara. “Want to run a 50K in April?”
Five minutes later, we both signed up.
Now, a goal like this is not about completing the distance. It is more so about the training that it entails. We knew that registering, it meant committing ourselves to four months of intense training.
Every Saturday would be a long run. Four or five hours on the trail. We would be excused after and nap the rest of the day. We’d be training early at 6 am during the week. We’d be training hills and running marathon distances as part of our regular training. We’d have to decline social events for the sake of training, and train while we went on trips. We’d have to run when we didn’t feel like it. Run in the cold of January and in the early days of Texas Summer.
But what we also committed to, was for months of training together. Of spending hours with one another growing our friendship and getting to know one another without distractions, on the trails.
One morning at coffee after a November Project workout, a friend overheard our conversation and we invited her. Then she invited another friend, and then another. Suddenly there were five of us. Two of us signed up for the 50K and three more signed up for 25K. Together we would be embarking on a life-changing journey of going to lengths we had never ventured to before.
Running as a teacher
We unzipped our tents in silence. It was dawn and the stars were still up. We were camping in the North Texas canyons of Caprock and race morning had arrived.
It’s rare in life to experience a full spectrum of emotions from pain to joy all within a few hours. Running a trail race is one of those moments. It is a celebration of all of our training.
Running as a teacher
But running is also a teacher. When we learn to overcome the obstacles running presents us, and apply them to the mental struggles life presents us… that’s where growth is.
When we feel pain in our feet and lungs, our body wants to stop. But our minds can keep us going. The mind is the ace up our sleeve when we think we’ve played all our cards.
Just as we overcome “the wall” of the long run, we can overcome the walls and obstacles that we come across throughout life. That’s why running is a great teacher. It teaches us to feel it ALL.
The struggles and joys translate to our daily life. Whether it’s the endurance game that is running a business. Or the uncertainty of a job. Or the hurt from emotions. Or the thrills of adventure.
If we know we can go through a run and face it all, we know we are stronger than we may believe. We know we can face whatever other challenges life has in store for us.
We ARE nature
During the 50K, I began thinking about how connected I felt with nature. I was so present. We often describe trail runs as enjoyable because we are out in nature. Then I realized, we ARE nature. We aren’t separate from it. That’s where we go wrong sometimes. We feel so disconnected from the synchronicities of the world that we forget we are one and the same.
As our feet moved through the canyons, we could feel the energy from the earth under our feet and the energy from the sky in our lungs. Together they culminate in our center, our core. That’s what lights the fire within us.
Limit Lines
With each challenge we give ourselves the chance to pursue, we give ourselves a shot at pushing our limit lines a little further.
When I started running five years ago, I had never run more than three miles. When I ran them, that moved my limit line forward. I explored the uncharted territory enough that it became familiar. Then it became a half marathon, then a half ironman, then a 10-mile swim, then a marathon. Naturally, the 50K would be next. It makes it not so daunting when we realize with little steps along the way, we can explore the edges of our comfort zone and experience growth.
Our limit lines don’t have to be anything extreme. It can be talking more with strangers at the grocery store if you are normally used to being shy. It can be choosing to put your art into the world when you’ve never shown it to anyone before. It can be starting the book you’ve always wanted to write or giving that speech you’ve always been nervous to give.
For each of us, this race meant entering uncharted territory. None of us had ever done those distances. It meant we would be pushing our limit lines and seeing what was beyond them.
The run is a celebration of gratitude for everything our bodies and minds can accomplish. For friends who say YES to a challenge like this.
Friends and Strangers
This 50K also reminded me we can’t do life by ourselves. In the first half, Sara and I ran together. In the middle, I started struggling and fell behind. That’s when a stranger named Lisa came out of nowhere and we started talking and running together. Suddenly the last 13 miles flew by and we crossed the finish line strong. Together.
There was a huge vertical climb in the middle of the run, where we all faced our demons. But at the top was the most insanely beautiful view. I remember doing a little dance at the top and smiling dumbfounded to myself. This is why we run. To feel it ALL.
This run happened in April, and our friend group completed our runs. We all experienced transcendental growth and celebrated our achievements with camping under the stars. My next adventure is already in swing. I’m en route to Frankfurt, Germany for an adventure with Yes Theory.
Almost three months ago myself along with two others were invited to join Thomas and Staffan from Yes Theory on an adventure. Except we didn’t know where or when… until last week when they told us that it would be happening this week. The time has come. We have no clue what we are doing. All we know is we land in Germany and the rest is a surprise. It’s about leaning into spontaneity, making new friendships, and living life to the fullest. We are ready to “suck the marrow out of life,” as Robin Williams said in Dead Poets Society. To live it all.
I’ll be more active on social media the next few days as we embark on this adventure with people I’ve never met in person. Follow along on Instagram @iavargas as it might be a few weeks until I get to write here again.
Until next time.
Maria