Jennifer's Bio

My entire life I’ve been active.  At the age of 3 I began dancing and continued through college.  As a child/young adult, I never liked doing things active outdoors.  My happy place was in a studio with hardwood floors, mirrors and a ballet bar.  I danced competitively and was at the studio more often than not as a child.  When I went into high school I was on cheer and dance team.  In college I kept up with my discipline by enrolling in dance classes and I kept my fitness up by attending the gym regularly.  A marriage and 2 children later; fitness, let alone dancing, was the furthest thing from my mind.  I would exercise every now and then but not anything near like I used to.

In 2004 I became mysteriously ill.  I had no energy, all my joints ached and I slept most of my day away.  I had to quit a job I loved dearly because I just couldn’t get out of bed.  After a year or more of seeing many doctors and every one of them saying there’s nothing wrong with me, I finally received a diagnosis of Fibromyalgia.  I had a choice to make:  I could succumb to this syndrome and spend the rest of my life on the couch or I could get up and fight.  I chose to fight.  I read all I could on the syndrome and determined that a lot of my illness could be controlled through diet and exercise.  That’s when I began to run.  It was very difficult to get up and move at first.  I began very slowly with just walking one lap in the mall.  Then I went to 2 laps.  After awhile I decided I wanted to run a little bit.  I couldn’t run a minute without being completely out of breath but I kept at it.  When I would run, I’d think about what it would be like to finish a half marathon.  I made it my goal, although at that time it seemed highly unreachable. 

January 2010 I decided I was ready to conquer my half marathon goal.  I began training regularly.  In July I began running with the “Running Dawgs”, a local running group comprised of amazingly godly women.   With their help, I became a stronger runner than I had ever imagined and completed my half marathon goal just this past September.



Faithful Running Dawgs!
Heart & Sole 1/2 Marathon
September 2010



I never thought, in a million years, that I would be training for a marathon but here I am!  I rarely have flare-ups from my Fibromyalgia and when I do, stretching and a good run usually takes care it.  I love being outdoors now!  I love seeing different parts of the city I wouldn’t otherwise see.  I enjoy getting acclimated to the different seasons; I feel it’s made me a stronger runner.  I love sharing my passion for running with other ladies.  It makes the 4am wake-up calls much easier when you know you are spending it with great women!  I’m excited to mark this next conquest off my list!