All in for 26.2 miles

Palm Coast Observer
Opinion

Eighteen weeks ago, I made a commitment to myself.

I was going to run my first marathon on Dec. 18 —the Jacksonville Bank Marathon.

Of course, there’s a huge difference in saying I’m going to run a marathon and actually running it.

It wasn’t easy.

My dad told me in the beginning that training for a marathon was a huge commitment. He wasn’t kidding.

For the past 18 weeks, I endured several injuries. I had to skip training because I was up late writing. I had meetings. It was too cold, too hot. I prioritized video games over training. I was lazy.

I didn’t follow the training schedule perfectly, but I did dedicate a lot of time.

And this past Sunday made it all worth it.

My main goal was to finish the race, but I really wanted to finish in less than four hours. When I came across the finish line 26.2 miles later, the clock read 3 hours, 49 minutes.

My dad shattered his personal best by about 30 minutes. His chip time was 4:37.

My best friend, Ricky Vanderoef, also ran his first marathon. His chip time was 4:14.

But the times are just numbers.

For me, the past four months have taught me a lot about myself, and a lot about dedication.

We all set goals because we want to achieve something. If you don’t set goals, you have nothing to work toward. There’s no reward at the end of the day.

Crossing the finish line Sunday afternoon helped me prove to myself that setting goals, and being disciplined in your pursuit to achieve those goals, is very rewarding. Hard work pays off. Sometimes it takes longer than you want, but be patient.

If we set our minds to something that we truly want to achieve, anything is possible.

Set your goals, aim high and never give up, because, as Matt Walsh, editor and CEO of The Observer Group always says: Ad astra — to the stars!