February 20, 2025 • 30 mins
Emily Brennan's journey into the world of marathon running is nothing short of inspirational. After college, she took up running to get healthier, finding it was more than just a physical endeavor; it became a balm for stress and a mental clarity booster. Her story is a testament to the transformative power of running, highlighting how it has become an integral part of her life and well-being. From her initial races with Team Alzheimer's to securing a coveted spot in the Boston Marathon, Emily's dedication shines through.
The push to run the Boston Marathon was fueled by a heartfelt mission—raising funds for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Emily's determination to support cancer research was sparked by the battles faced by her close friend's father and her cousin, making every mile run deeply personal. She shares the challenges of balancing rigorous training with the demands of fundraising, likening it to juggling multiple part-time jobs. Yet, the joy of being unexpectedly offered a charity spot filled her with gratitude and reinforced her commitment to making a difference in the fight against cancer.
If you’d like to support Emily’s mission, you can donate directly through her Dana-Farber Fundraising Page and follow her updates on Instagram and Facebook.
As Emily prepares to tackle the infamous Heartbreak Hill, she reflects on the camaraderie and support of the running community. Training with a team that shares her passion for fighting cancer has been invigorating, bringing her closer to like-minded individuals whose personal stories inspire her further. Throughout her training journey, Emily has embraced positive self-talk, focusing on enjoying the marathon experience rather than chasing personal records. Her story encourages us all to savor the moment and use our passions to contribute to causes that matter deeply.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome back to Extraordinary Strides, the
podcast where we celebrateordinary people achieving
extraordinary feats throughrunning and movement.
I'm your host, coach Christine,or your fairy run mother.
I'm here to sprinkle a littleinspiration into your day, and
on the podcast we've beenexploring running the majors.
It's our new series and we areloving the opportunity to take
(00:21):
you on a global adventure.
We're covering the incredibleexperiences tied to the world's
most prestigious marathons, buttoday we're adding a special
bonus to the mix, as wehighlight Emily Brennan's
inspiring journey to BostonMarathon.
For years, emily has watchedthe Boston Marathon and
whispered to herself one dayI'll be there, and this year,
(00:43):
her one day has finally arrived.
As a charity runner for DanaFarber Cancer Institute, emily's
story is one of resilience,passion and purpose, and she's
running not just for herself butin honor of a loved one
affected by cancer, payingtribute to her best friend's
father and celebrating hercousin's recovery.
In this bonus episode, we'lldive into Emily's preparation
(01:04):
for Boston, the emotional fueldriving her and what it means to
be part of something so muchbigger than the race itself.
Let's welcome Emily Brennan tothe show.
Welcome, emily.
Hi, thank you for having me.
I'm so excited to meet you.
For the record, sue FabulousFreitas, who is one of our most
(01:24):
beloved members, is just.
She spoke so highly of you thatwe're like we have to.
We have to talk to Emily, sothank you for taking time and
chatting with us out of yourvery busy day.
Emily, I want to ask you if wecould start at the beginning,
because Boston is so iconic.
What got you into running towhere we are here now talking
about Boston?
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Sure.
So I never was a runner like inhigh school, college, never ran
, nothing like that.
So after I graduated college Ikind of wanted to adult and get
a little bit healthier.
So I was like maybe I'll tryrunning.
And my first run was awful.
I tried to run around my blockand I was like absolutely out of
(02:08):
breath.
I was like I can't do this.
That was awful.
How do people do this and makeit look so fun?
But since that run was so awful, it kind of gave me like
motivation and determination tobe like okay, I know people do
this, I can do this.
And ever since then I just kindof kept working at it and
working at it, and now it's morethan exercise for me.
(02:30):
Now I kind of do it to likeclear my head.
Speaker 1 (02:33):
So you, when you say you got into kind of a little
bit later on in life as a partof adulting, did you have a
background in athletics orsports at all?
Speaker 2 (02:42):
No, I mean, I played lacrosse in high school but when
we had to run we used to haveto run like around a few blocks
around the high school and wewould actually cut myself and a
couple of my friends would cutthrough the track and field to
skip out on some miles.
So I was definitely never intoit.
I didn't run in college, so itjust kind of happened post grad.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
What do you think kind of clicked for you where it
started to feel like more thanjust exercise and more a part of
who you are and a bigger partof your life.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
Yeah.
So I mean, like I said once, Ikind of was determined to go
around the block or go a milewithout stopping, was determined
to go around the block or go amile without stopping.
It kind of gave me a sense of,you know, like all day I'm at
work and the weekends I have myother life.
It gave me something more tomotivate myself to do.
And now you know, obviously ifI'm training for a race, I'm
(03:39):
kind of pushing for PRs, butoutside of training, whenever I
have a stressful day or like abad day, I'm like, okay, I just
need to go for a run and clearmy head.
It kind of gives me like theonly part of my day that I
really have to myself to reflector get any anger or stress out.
Speaker 1 (03:58):
Do I love that so much?
Because I do think that's whatrunning is for a lot of us.
It's like it allows us to bewho we are, where we don't have
to worry about being judged orhaving any kind of pretense.
So you've touched on the factthat, of course, you're training
for Boston, but you've trainedfor other races.
Can you tell us what was yourforay into?
Where it went from runningmaybe even for joy into I'm
(04:20):
going to try to sign up for thisrace, and what was the distance
?
Speaker 2 (04:24):
Sure.
So my first official race wasin 2018.
It was the Found With Road race.
I worked at a nursing home backthen and I worked in the memory
care unit and I remember one ofmy co-workers saying she was
going to run for TeamAlzheimer's and I was like, oh,
maybe I should do that, maybeI'll train and you train and see
(04:46):
if I can go.
I think that was the first timeI ever did more than 5K, so it
was a very big deal.
So I don't think I really eventrained for that.
I kind of just went for it andit was the races in August, so
it was so hot out.
I think I like there's a bighill at the end that I
definitely walked, but I was sonervous at the start.
(05:08):
But then you know, once youstart running and there's so
many people around you differentages, different abilities and
you know the crowd is amazing.
My family was there cheering meon and it just kind of the
nerves kind of changed into likeexcitement and I was just happy
to be there and it was.
(05:28):
I remember being so tired onceI finished because it was so hot
out and I did not train.
I probably didn't have anyfluids or fuel.
But ever since that feeling ofrunning through the crowds with
all those other runners, I waskind of hooked on the racing
aspect.
It's an iconic race, that I meanfor your first one out like so
(05:48):
much fun, you went big, myfriend.
Speaker 1 (05:54):
That's pretty incredible.
Like I thought you were goingto say a typical, like I signed
up for my local 5k.
No, you went for like one ofthe truly iconic races of the
whole racing world.
So, for friends that aren'tfamiliar, falmouth Road race is
actually attended, really highlyattended, by a huge field of
Olympians and elites.
Um, of course, there's also theextraordinary runners out there
that are more of therecreational runners, but it's a
(06:15):
beautiful, not typical, usualcourse.
But I think it's only sevenmiles, right, yes, yeah.
Speaker 2 (06:20):
Right.
Speaker 1 (06:21):
It's just I know I shouldn't even say that, but
it's usually we think of likehalves or foals or anything of
that sort.
But it's a seven mile race,it's just.
It's a different distance thatwe're usually used to hearing.
But I absolutely love that.
It was your first foray intothat world and I think we all
can identify with signing up fora race and not necessarily
knowing what we got ourselvesinto.
(06:45):
So what came next after that?
What made you decide?
Okay, I really did enjoy this.
I love the crowds, I love theenergy.
Where did you go after that?
Speaker 2 (06:55):
Um.
So after that I did I thinkthere I've always done like the
BAA 5k and 10k Um, so I did acouple of those and that's when
I kind of started to get on moreof like a training schedule,
probably not really for the 5Ksbut the 10Ks.
I would kind of, you know, setup my weekly workouts like how
(07:17):
many miles I should run.
I focused more on likestretching and I kind of started
to focus more on like timegoals and PRs, not like super,
super, like strict with it, butjust, you know, focusing a
little bit more on like thetraining and hitting PRs.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
Okay, well, that's amazing.
I'm curious how did you evolvefrom the 5k, 10k, seven mile
range into where you are nowtraining for Boston?
Speaker 2 (07:49):
So I always went to Boston to watch the marathon.
Obviously it's such a fun dayfor spectators, the energy is
amazing and I remember I thinkI've gone every year besides the
year that it was supermonsooning and rain.
And now, looking back, I'm like, oh, I feel bad.
I wish I went because they wereprobably in desperate need of
(08:11):
supporters.
Speaker 1 (08:12):
Was that the year that Des Linden took home the
win?
Speaker 2 (08:16):
Yes, I believe so so.
Speaker 1 (08:17):
I missed that too, okay.
Speaker 2 (08:20):
But you know, I always just kind of went and it
was always super fun and youknow, I remember seeing, like,
watching all the runners crossthe finish line and I'm like, oh
, that I wish, I wish I had itin me to, you know, motivate
myself to run that much andtrain that much, and etc.
(08:40):
But I was kind of like I don'treally, I don't really feel the
need, like it's a, it's a bucketlist, but not for me.
Um, and then my uh, best friendfrom college, her father
unfortunately lost his battlewith pancreatic cancer almost a
year no, it was last February.
So, being in that position, Ijust felt so helpless because
(09:02):
there was literally nothing thatI could possibly do to, you
know, take away her and herfamily's pain.
And so I just was thinking ofanything I could do to you know,
support her or be there for her.
So I started looking up youknow charities for cancer and
stuff like that, and she, Ifound um a charity and they were
(09:23):
um, you could apply for a bidfor them to the New York city
marathon with them, and myfriend lives in New York.
So I was like, okay, like maybeyou know, this is it, this is
something I can do like for herand her family and you know in
memory of her father.
So that was a great experience.
It was really rewarding.
It was very challenging.
(09:43):
Obviously my first marathonkind of didn't really know what
I was doing, but it was.
It was really rewarding and itwas really challenging and it
was one of the best days of mylife just crossing that finish
line and going through the wholetraining program.
It was mentally exhausting butalso rewarding.
Speaker 1 (10:05):
I feel like there's a theme to you, emily.
I feel like you are a littlelike Emily.
Go big Brennan, like that'slike we're going to give you a
new nickname because, like whogoes into New York City as their
first marathon, or who does?
the Thelma Road Race as theirvery first race ever.
You really do choose the mosticonic races, and New York City
is a tough course.
It's actually.
It has more elevation changesand more elevation than Boston
(10:28):
does, so it's a tough one.
Congratulations on finishingthat up, and I love that you
dedicated the training and sucha beautiful memory to honor a
loved one, like with yourfriends, and honor their, their
pain and their loss.
So that's, it sounds like whatalso propelled you to move from
New York city here to Boston.
So did you cross the finishline and you're like you know
what this move from New YorkCity here to Boston.
(10:49):
So did you cross the finishline and you're like you know
what this is.
This is just my jam.
Now I, I'm gonna, I'm gonnamake this happen again.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Pretty much, yeah, um , I remember, after I crossed
the finish line, I was obviouslyI was so like high off
adrenaline.
I was like just so happy andexcited and all my friends and
family were there.
Um, and then the next day, likemarathon photo released all
their photos.
Obviously I bought them.
It was like a hundred dollarsfor maybe five good photos where
(11:19):
I didn't look like I was dying,um, but in every single photo I
was smiling and I was showingthem to my parents and they're
like did you just smile thewhole entire race.
And I was like, yeah, Iactually did.
I was like I need to do thisagain.
Like this was like, like I said, it was one of the best days of
my life, so like I'm doing itagain.
So I was like, well, might aswell bring it back home to
(11:42):
Boston.
So, um, I oh sorry.
Speaker 1 (11:47):
So no, no, no, I'm just, I'm just amazed.
Like you're going from New YorkCity, like there's not even,
you go straight into anothertraining cycle.
Speaker 2 (11:54):
Essentially, yep, my um friends and family were like
you're crazy.
You, your body's gonna like,your knee is gonna like break,
you're never gonna raise themoney like you're a psycho.
And I was like, well, thatmakes me want to do it even more
.
So, thank you.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
So you applied to the charity because you had already
worked with this organization,this nonprofit, you knew that
you could get a spot.
I mean, tell us, walk usthrough this.
Speaker 2 (12:26):
Like, how does this happen?
So yeah, so for the charity Iran for New York, they actually
only had five bibs for Bostonand those bibs were already
filled by the time New York wasover.
So I was kind of late to theball with applying to charities
and I know I know people who runBoston.
They apply to multiplecharities like far in advance.
But I knew I only wanted to runwith one.
(12:46):
So that was Dana Farber andthat's the only one I applied to
and I just kind of you knowagain, I was late to the game.
I don't think I applied untilright before thanksgiving, just
because after the race, tryingto get you know everything
together.
So I had applied with them,kind of explained my story um,
(13:07):
you know, my cousin was treatedthere, um, I had just run New
York and raised all this money.
So you know, I'm confident Ican meet my fundraising goal
again, etc.
Etc.
So they actually came back aweek later saying I was on the
wait list.
So that was actually superupsetting.
I was totally crushed.
But I was like you know what itokay, like I can wait till next
(13:31):
year, like it just wasn't meantto be.
And then another week later ormaybe two weeks later, right
before Christmas, they hademailed me again saying that I
was awkward spot.
So it was like an earlyChristmas present.
It was like just such a greatfeeling.
Speaker 1 (13:48):
I'd love to hear that .
Well, congratulations.
I want to just kind ofreiterate to folks because as we
continue to get into the WorldMarathon, majors becoming more
and more and more popular spotsare so much harder to get in
every capacity, and I really ama big believer if there's a will
, there's a way.
So, being patient, going afterexactly who you wanted to work
with, that you're passionateabout, because that makes such a
(14:09):
huge difference, and I'm surethat they could tell when you
were speaking to them that youwere passionate about it.
So here we are in Christmas andnow we are ready to kick off
training again.
Or did you already kind ofstart your training at that time
, knowing that you were going tomake Boston happen?
Or what are you thinking here?
Cause you're like, now I havefundraising, which, for Boston,
(14:29):
is no joke.
Speaker 2 (14:38):
Yes, so I didn't.
I'm on week three of mytraining for marathon and I'm
also on week three offundraising, so I'm a little
behind but I'm confident I canmake it happen.
Um, it is.
It's a little overwhelmingbecause, like every time I see
someone post like, oh, 100 daysleft to the marathon, or like
I'm like, oh my gosh, that likeI still have 100 days to raise,
(14:59):
like this money and like thatpart is more, I think,
overwhelming than the training.
Um, the training gets tough andit requires a lot of dedication
and I mean I really have tolike remember why I signed up to
do this.
But then you know, once I getout there and I start running,
it's fine, but it's definitelyit's kind of like like it's like
(15:25):
having two other part time jobson top of your full time job.
Speaker 1 (15:28):
Yeah, yeah, for sure.
Ok, so tell us more about whywas this charity the one that
called you?
Why are you so passionate forfundraising for them?
Speaker 2 (15:37):
Yeah, so, um, like I said, my um best friend's father
passed last February.
Um, he lives in New York, soobviously he wasn't treated at
Dana-Farber, but you know theyactually used to work at
Dana-Farber too.
So I kind of saw the amount ofmoney required to fund just one
(15:57):
research project.
And you know it's hundreds ofthousands of dollars to fund one
research project and you don'tknow if it'll flop or it'll turn
into something.
So I'm always, you know, anavid supporter of cancer
research in any capacity.
I mean looking even just, forexample, at breast cancer, like
many, many years ago.
It was just completelydifferent outlook of how it is
(16:20):
now.
And also my little cousin he is11 now, but when he was seven,
he six and seven.
So at age six he was diagnosedwith lymphoma.
And then he, when he was seven,actually on his seventh
birthday or the day before hisbirthday, he returned home from
(16:40):
Dana-Farber and he has been inremission ever since.
So obviously, even though itwas, you know, a few years years
ago, watching him go throughthat, especially at such a young
age, and just knowing like hedid it, he made it through and
he, you know, he conquered it,that was also motivating because
(17:03):
I'm like he can do this, like Ican show him that I could do
this, like I'm doing this forhim, like he, you know, he did
something much more difficultthan I will ever deal with.
You know, I can run 26 milesfor you know, in honor of the
care he received and in honor of, you know, the research they
fund.
Speaker 1 (17:23):
I think you touched on exactly what is so special
about specifically the work thatthey're doing is the fact that
they're it's funding research,and I know a lot of times we, uh
, we hear that and we think, oh,but it's research, it's not
going directly to the patient,but it's actually so much bigger
because it's going topotentially changing the lives
of hundreds of thousands ofindividuals with really cutting
(17:46):
edge technology and findings,and you know, money does not
grow on trees for them to beable to do this, but yet we are
able to really save the lives ofso many individuals.
So I am so grateful that you'redoing this and can't wait for
folks to check out yourfundraising link in episode
notes.
So, friends, definitely checkout episode notes while you are
(18:08):
either out for a run or a walkor just like go ahead and pause
it, even screenshot it.
You could come back to it at alater time, but we definitely
want you to make some incredibledonations here for Emily, okay,
but we definitely want you tomake some incredible donations
here for Emily, okay.
So we know that you are gettingready.
I don't want to do the countdownbecause I know that it's a
little panicking as we thinkabout it.
(18:28):
But I'd love to know, like,where do you feel that you want
to do things differently forthis marathon?
That maybe you learned fromyour experience at New York City
?
Speaker 2 (18:45):
I'm definitely incorporating more strength
training and more stretching.
I actually had a little IT bandinjury going into New York so
that was not fun, but so Ididn't strength train at all, I
barely stretched.
So definitely prioritizing bothof those things, especially for
, you know, Heartbreak Hill andthe Wellesley Hills those are,
you know, just a different beast.
(19:06):
So definitely more strengthtraining and stretching and
focusing more on my nutrition aswell, Just making sure I'm
eating enough carbs, eatingenough protein.
Just you know what I need to behealthy for race day.
Speaker 1 (19:22):
Okay, so you've made some tweaks so that you could
definitely show up and feel yourstrongest.
I am curious what are you mostexcited about, Since this is
your iconic hometown race?
You grew up watching it,spectating it.
What are you most excited aboutfor this course?
Speaker 2 (19:46):
I, weirdly enough, am very excited for Heartbreak
Hill because everyone alwaystalks about it and I just want
to be able to say that Iconquered it.
I want to be able to see whatit is and just run up it and
just you know, like this is whatI've been waiting for my whole
life to conquer Heartbreak Hill.
I'm so excited to do it.
Speaker 1 (20:03):
I loved Heartbreak Hill.
I have to say I have a lovehate for the Sitco sign.
That Sitco sign was like thebiggest tease I'm like.
It felt like it was like I'malmost there, but it's also
going on for 400 miles.
So, yeah, the Heartbreak Hill Ido think is exciting to conquer
because it is we've heard aboutit Even if you haven't run a
(20:26):
marathon before, even if youjust are kind of learning about
marathons.
We've all heard of Boston.
We've all heard of heartbreakhill.
What are you looking forward toin terms of celebrating
afterwards?
Speaker 2 (20:35):
Well, obviously all my friends and family are going
to be there For New York.
I had a handful of friends thatcame, but obviously not all of
them can make it just with thetravel and everything I got.
Just my parents and one of mybrothers went.
So it'll be nice to have all myfamily be able to come and
cheer me on, all my family beable to come and cheer me on,
(20:57):
and it'll just be, you know,exciting to frolic around the
city with my medal on the citythat I've, you know, lived in
and known my whole life.
It's just, it'll feel differentbecause, you know, like I said,
I watched it every year.
Now I get to experience andshow off my medal and all the
local bars that I go to.
Speaker 1 (21:15):
So you want to soak it all in, essentially from
start to finish, Okay, and withthe power of the community that
you have?
It sounds like you have a greatfamily network and a friend
network.
Tell us more about how you'reconnecting your passion for
running fundraising in thecommunity.
Speaker 2 (21:32):
Sure.
So obviously, my friends andfamily are very supportive, even
though they think I'm crazy.
Uh, they've always been, youknow, supportive.
Um, my boyfriend actually wentduring New York.
He would roller blade on mylong runs with me, um, which was
nice.
But, um, going off of that, Inow have um, dana Farber
(21:55):
marathon challenge has a teamand they do weekly team long
runs every Saturday and that hasjust been so incredible.
No offense to my boyfriend, butit's just been amazing to you
know, run with people that are,you know, running for the same
reason, and I've I've met somany people through that.
And that's like another supportsystem, I can add, because,
(22:18):
like my friends and family,they're always going to be
supportive of everything I do.
They're obviously supportive ofthe work that Dana Farber is
doing, you know so, to save mycousin's life, but none of my
friends and family run, so theydon't really understand that
whole side of it.
So the Dana-Farber team hasjust been such a great support
system to lean on and just hangout with every Saturday.
(22:38):
And you know, I'm running withpeople who are running for the
same reason, like we all want toend cancer.
So, and everyone has their ownunique story of why they're
running, who they're running for.
Some of them have been runningfor the team for over 20 years.
Some of them it's their 10thmarathon, so it's just it's
really inspiring and it's it'sit's a great addition to my
(23:01):
support system.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
I was going to ask what made this training cycle
different than New York City,but I think I just got it right
out of the gate.
Like this is it really has been.
You've been able to leancompletely into this community
that's also as passionate aboutthe cause that you guys are
fundraising for.
Are you able to do some of thelong runs on the course or
sections of the course?
Speaker 2 (23:23):
Yes, we have been doing them on the course.
We haven't done Heartbreak Hillyet, but we've been doing them
on the course and some of thehills in Wellesley are very
difficult and some of the hillsin Wellesley are very difficult,
okay, okay.
Speaker 1 (23:38):
So you've been challenging yourself a little
bit in multiple different ways.
There's a lot of growth goingon.
It feels like in 2025, as youmake your way to Boston,
definitely.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
Do you?
Speaker 1 (23:47):
feel like as you lead into Boston.
Are you thinking that this maychange your perspective on
running, racing or marathons?
Speaker 2 (23:58):
I'm hoping that I have a good experience, like I
did in New York, and that I'minspired to run more.
But I guess it kind of justdepends on my race day
experience.
But I'm hoping it all goes welland I feel as good as I did
after New York.
Then I'm sure I'll be signingup for another one.
Speaker 1 (24:22):
The next day again Are we thinking do you have any
insight that you're consideringWell?
Speaker 2 (24:29):
I am already registered to run Chicago Funny
story.
So when I the week after I hadapplied to Dana-Farber and they
put me on the wait list, I waslike okay, next year, thinking
there's no way I'm going to getoff the wait list I'm sure they
have.
Like you said, boston's sodifficult to get into I was like
(24:50):
you know what?
I'm probably one of like 700others on the wait list.
So I applied and got a charitybid for Chicago and then a week
later I was in Boston.
So now I'm just running allyear, which I'm very excited
about.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
Oh, my goodness.
Okay, so it sounds like you'rechasing some stars.
Here is what I'm hearing.
Okay, I'm curious.
When you are done with thisjourney, I definitely want you
to come on back and let me knowwhat your favorites were from
the star journey, cause they allare so incredibly unique.
Um, would you be willing tostick around a little bit longer
and play a bit of maybe Bostonmarathon or Boston this or that
(25:27):
with me, cause I'm kind ofcurious.
Now I was getting if you weremore excited about heartbreak
Hill or Boylston, but I alreadyhear that you're definitely
excited.
You're going to be excitedabout Boylston once you're done
with Heartbreak Hill, though, Iwill tell you.
Speaker 2 (25:39):
That's true, I'm sure I will.
I'll probably be done to getover with.
Speaker 1 (25:45):
So I am curious what are you more excited about, Like
the spectator crowds at Bostonor the scream tunnel at
Wellesley?
Speaker 2 (25:51):
Oh, that's tough.
I think the scream tunnel.
I think I like I need the crowd, I want the crowd to be
screaming at me, that I likedon't even need my headphones
because I can't hear the musicanyways.
Speaker 1 (26:06):
That's the kind of vibe I need.
I'm totally with you.
Now, do you feel like you wouldprefer more of like?
Do you gravitate more towardslike, a morning shakeout run or
a post-race beer Like?
What are you more excited about?
Speaker 2 (26:19):
Definitely post-race beer or five.
Speaker 1 (26:23):
Okay, are you thinking you're going to have
the metal or your finisher'sjacket as your most prized
possession?
Speaker 2 (26:31):
Jacket?
For sure, I already have it.
It's hanging up in my closet,but I will not touch it.
Speaker 1 (26:36):
I love that.
You just kind of like in themorning when you don't
necessarily want to get yourtraining, like you're running
shoes on and you look at yourjacket.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
You are a smart smart woman, my friend.
Speaker 1 (26:45):
Okay, so what have you found is more difficult to
train in?
And maybe some of your newEngland winters or the heat of
the summers with those hills,you know?
Speaker 2 (26:57):
originally I was going to say the summer, because
I hate the winter.
I hate everything about winter.
I hate being cold.
I don't ski anything like that.
I love the summer, but now thatI've been training in the
winter it is so much like morecomfortable than the blazing hot
sun it's.
I've actually I ran in the snowon Saturday and I actually
(27:18):
loved it.
So, shockingly, I'm going tosay the winter.
Speaker 1 (27:22):
What I love is hearing you kind of have a
hesitation.
You're like I ran in snow and Iloved it.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
You're like who is this?
Speaker 1 (27:29):
person.
What does she do with Emily?
Speaker 2 (27:32):
Exactly, I usually don't leave my house in the snow
, so that was.
Speaker 1 (27:37):
I got you, I do it's.
It's different.
I will say that heat andhumidity is no joke to deal with
.
Okay, so it sounds like we'regoing to be cheering you on
through quite a few epic finishlines this particular year, but
I want to reiterate again thatyou're fundraising for an
incredible, incredible mission.
So, friends, we do want tofollow Emily and her journey.
(27:59):
If you want to follow her onsocials, I'm including those in
episode link, but I'm going toencourage you all to definitely
help give back to all of theincredible things that she's
doing.
Before we end this, I want toask if you could go back to when
you first started running, whatadvice would you give to
yourself?
Speaker 2 (28:18):
I would say not to be so hard on myself.
And you know, like I said, myfirst run I was out of breath.
I could barely make it aroundthe block.
So that obviously came withnegative self-talk, like you're
never going to be able to runlike a mile without stopping.
You're never going to be ableto run like a mile without
stopping, you're never going tobe able to do a 5k.
Um.
So just more like positivity inthe way that I talk to myself.
Speaker 1 (28:42):
Do you feel like that's something you see?
This is why I can never finisha podcast on time.
Do you think that this issomething that running has
helped you to have more positiveself-talk?
Speaker 2 (28:54):
Yeah, I mean, I definitely still have my days um
more, especially if you know,I'm trying to PR at a race and
some of my training runs are alittle bit sluggish.
Um, but overall definitely hashelped.
Speaker 1 (29:10):
I'm hearing are you considering trying to PR at
Boston?
Or reserving that for Chicago.
Speaker 2 (29:17):
Yeah, I think, I think what I?
I don't think.
So I think I'm going to enjoythe moment, soak in the race,
soak in the crowd, and not putthat pressure on myself.
I mean, I'll train for one, butI'm not going to be like upset
if it doesn't happen because, Ijust want to experience it and
(29:40):
live in the moment and not beglued to my watch the whole time
.
Speaker 1 (29:43):
Yeah, you want to take all the incredible selfies
and really not go so fast thatyou don't get to sink in all
this incredible experience.
Well, that's awesome, Emily.
I can't wait to continuefollowing you on this and I
appreciate you coming on andsharing your journey.
Speaker 2 (30:00):
Of course.
Thank you so much for having me.
Welcome back to Extraordinary Strides, the
podcast where we celebrateordinary people achieving
extraordinary feats throughrunning and movement.
I'm your host, coach Christine,or your fairy run mother.
I'm here to sprinkle a littleinspiration into your day, and
on the podcast we've beenexploring running the majors.
It's our new series and we areloving the opportunity to take
(00:21):
you on a global adventure.
We're covering the incredibleexperiences tied to the world's
most prestigious marathons, buttoday we're adding a special
bonus to the mix, as wehighlight Emily Brennan's
inspiring journey to BostonMarathon.
For years, emily has watchedthe Boston Marathon and
whispered to herself one dayI'll be there, and this year,
(00:43):
her one day has finally arrived.
As a charity runner for DanaFarber Cancer Institute, emily's
story is one of resilience,passion and purpose, and she's
running not just for herself butin honor of a loved one
affected by cancer, payingtribute to her best friend's
father and celebrating hercousin's recovery.
In this bonus episode, we'lldive into Emily's preparation
(01:04):
for Boston, the emotional fueldriving her and what it means to
be part of something so muchbigger than the race itself.
Let's welcome Emily Brennan tothe show.
Welcome, emily.
Hi, thank you for having me.
I'm so excited to meet you.
For the record, sue FabulousFreitas, who is one of our most
(01:24):
beloved members, is just.
She spoke so highly of you thatwe're like we have to.
We have to talk to Emily, sothank you for taking time and
chatting with us out of yourvery busy day.
Emily, I want to ask you if wecould start at the beginning,
because Boston is so iconic.
What got you into running towhere we are here now talking
about Boston?
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Sure.
So I never was a runner like inhigh school, college, never ran
, nothing like that.
So after I graduated college Ikind of wanted to adult and get
a little bit healthier.
So I was like maybe I'll tryrunning.
And my first run was awful.
I tried to run around my blockand I was like absolutely out of
(02:08):
breath.
I was like I can't do this.
That was awful.
How do people do this and makeit look so fun?
But since that run was so awful, it kind of gave me like
motivation and determination tobe like okay, I know people do
this, I can do this.
And ever since then I just kindof kept working at it and
working at it, and now it's morethan exercise for me.
(02:30):
Now I kind of do it to likeclear my head.
Speaker 1 (02:33):
So you, when you say you got into kind of a little
bit later on in life as a partof adulting, did you have a
background in athletics orsports at all?
Speaker 2 (02:42):
No, I mean, I played lacrosse in high school but when
we had to run we used to haveto run like around a few blocks
around the high school and wewould actually cut myself and a
couple of my friends would cutthrough the track and field to
skip out on some miles.
So I was definitely never intoit.
I didn't run in college, so itjust kind of happened post grad.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
What do you think kind of clicked for you where it
started to feel like more thanjust exercise and more a part of
who you are and a bigger partof your life.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
Yeah.
So I mean, like I said once, Ikind of was determined to go
around the block or go a milewithout stopping, was determined
to go around the block or go amile without stopping.
It kind of gave me a sense of,you know, like all day I'm at
work and the weekends I have myother life.
It gave me something more tomotivate myself to do.
And now you know, obviously ifI'm training for a race, I'm
(03:39):
kind of pushing for PRs, butoutside of training, whenever I
have a stressful day or like abad day, I'm like, okay, I just
need to go for a run and clearmy head.
It kind of gives me like theonly part of my day that I
really have to myself to reflector get any anger or stress out.
Speaker 1 (03:58):
Do I love that so much?
Because I do think that's whatrunning is for a lot of us.
It's like it allows us to bewho we are, where we don't have
to worry about being judged orhaving any kind of pretense.
So you've touched on the factthat, of course, you're training
for Boston, but you've trainedfor other races.
Can you tell us what was yourforay into?
Where it went from runningmaybe even for joy into I'm
(04:20):
going to try to sign up for thisrace, and what was the distance
?
Speaker 2 (04:24):
Sure.
So my first official race wasin 2018.
It was the Found With Road race.
I worked at a nursing home backthen and I worked in the memory
care unit and I remember one ofmy co-workers saying she was
going to run for TeamAlzheimer's and I was like, oh,
maybe I should do that, maybeI'll train and you train and see
(04:46):
if I can go.
I think that was the first timeI ever did more than 5K, so it
was a very big deal.
So I don't think I really eventrained for that.
I kind of just went for it andit was the races in August, so
it was so hot out.
I think I like there's a bighill at the end that I
definitely walked, but I was sonervous at the start.
(05:08):
But then you know, once youstart running and there's so
many people around you differentages, different abilities and
you know the crowd is amazing.
My family was there cheering meon and it just kind of the
nerves kind of changed into likeexcitement and I was just happy
to be there and it was.
(05:28):
I remember being so tired onceI finished because it was so hot
out and I did not train.
I probably didn't have anyfluids or fuel.
But ever since that feeling ofrunning through the crowds with
all those other runners, I waskind of hooked on the racing
aspect.
It's an iconic race, that I meanfor your first one out like so
(05:48):
much fun, you went big, myfriend.
Speaker 1 (05:54):
That's pretty incredible.
Like I thought you were goingto say a typical, like I signed
up for my local 5k.
No, you went for like one ofthe truly iconic races of the
whole racing world.
So, for friends that aren'tfamiliar, falmouth Road race is
actually attended, really highlyattended, by a huge field of
Olympians and elites.
Um, of course, there's also theextraordinary runners out there
that are more of therecreational runners, but it's a
(06:15):
beautiful, not typical, usualcourse.
But I think it's only sevenmiles, right, yes, yeah.
Speaker 2 (06:20):
Right.
Speaker 1 (06:21):
It's just I know I shouldn't even say that, but
it's usually we think of likehalves or foals or anything of
that sort.
But it's a seven mile race,it's just.
It's a different distance thatwe're usually used to hearing.
But I absolutely love that.
It was your first foray intothat world and I think we all
can identify with signing up fora race and not necessarily
knowing what we got ourselvesinto.
(06:45):
So what came next after that?
What made you decide?
Okay, I really did enjoy this.
I love the crowds, I love theenergy.
Where did you go after that?
Speaker 2 (06:55):
Um.
So after that I did I thinkthere I've always done like the
BAA 5k and 10k Um, so I did acouple of those and that's when
I kind of started to get on moreof like a training schedule,
probably not really for the 5Ksbut the 10Ks.
I would kind of, you know, setup my weekly workouts like how
(07:17):
many miles I should run.
I focused more on likestretching and I kind of started
to focus more on like timegoals and PRs, not like super,
super, like strict with it, butjust, you know, focusing a
little bit more on like thetraining and hitting PRs.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
Okay, well, that's amazing.
I'm curious how did you evolvefrom the 5k, 10k, seven mile
range into where you are nowtraining for Boston?
Speaker 2 (07:49):
So I always went to Boston to watch the marathon.
Obviously it's such a fun dayfor spectators, the energy is
amazing and I remember I thinkI've gone every year besides the
year that it was supermonsooning and rain.
And now, looking back, I'm like, oh, I feel bad.
I wish I went because they wereprobably in desperate need of
(08:11):
supporters.
Speaker 1 (08:12):
Was that the year that Des Linden took home the
win?
Speaker 2 (08:16):
Yes, I believe so so.
Speaker 1 (08:17):
I missed that too, okay.
Speaker 2 (08:20):
But you know, I always just kind of went and it
was always super fun and youknow, I remember seeing, like,
watching all the runners crossthe finish line and I'm like, oh
, that I wish, I wish I had itin me to, you know, motivate
myself to run that much andtrain that much, and etc.
(08:40):
But I was kind of like I don'treally, I don't really feel the
need, like it's a, it's a bucketlist, but not for me.
Um, and then my uh, best friendfrom college, her father
unfortunately lost his battlewith pancreatic cancer almost a
year no, it was last February.
So, being in that position, Ijust felt so helpless because
(09:02):
there was literally nothing thatI could possibly do to, you
know, take away her and herfamily's pain.
And so I just was thinking ofanything I could do to you know,
support her or be there for her.
So I started looking up youknow charities for cancer and
stuff like that, and she, Ifound um a charity and they were
(09:23):
um, you could apply for a bidfor them to the New York city
marathon with them, and myfriend lives in New York.
So I was like, okay, like maybeyou know, this is it, this is
something I can do like for herand her family and you know in
memory of her father.
So that was a great experience.
It was really rewarding.
It was very challenging.
(09:43):
Obviously my first marathonkind of didn't really know what
I was doing, but it was.
It was really rewarding and itwas really challenging and it
was one of the best days of mylife just crossing that finish
line and going through the wholetraining program.
It was mentally exhausting butalso rewarding.
Speaker 1 (10:05):
I feel like there's a theme to you, emily.
I feel like you are a littlelike Emily.
Go big Brennan, like that'slike we're going to give you a
new nickname because, like whogoes into New York City as their
first marathon, or who does?
the Thelma Road Race as theirvery first race ever.
You really do choose the mosticonic races, and New York City
is a tough course.
It's actually.
It has more elevation changesand more elevation than Boston
(10:28):
does, so it's a tough one.
Congratulations on finishingthat up, and I love that you
dedicated the training and sucha beautiful memory to honor a
loved one, like with yourfriends, and honor their, their
pain and their loss.
So that's, it sounds like whatalso propelled you to move from
New York city here to Boston.
So did you cross the finishline and you're like you know
what this move from New YorkCity here to Boston.
(10:49):
So did you cross the finishline and you're like you know
what this is.
This is just my jam.
Now I, I'm gonna, I'm gonnamake this happen again.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Pretty much, yeah, um , I remember, after I crossed
the finish line, I was obviouslyI was so like high off
adrenaline.
I was like just so happy andexcited and all my friends and
family were there.
Um, and then the next day, likemarathon photo released all
their photos.
Obviously I bought them.
It was like a hundred dollarsfor maybe five good photos where
(11:19):
I didn't look like I was dying,um, but in every single photo I
was smiling and I was showingthem to my parents and they're
like did you just smile thewhole entire race.
And I was like, yeah, Iactually did.
I was like I need to do thisagain.
Like this was like, like I said, it was one of the best days of
my life, so like I'm doing itagain.
So I was like, well, might aswell bring it back home to
(11:42):
Boston.
So, um, I oh sorry.
Speaker 1 (11:47):
So no, no, no, I'm just, I'm just amazed.
Like you're going from New YorkCity, like there's not even,
you go straight into anothertraining cycle.
Speaker 2 (11:54):
Essentially, yep, my um friends and family were like
you're crazy.
You, your body's gonna like,your knee is gonna like break,
you're never gonna raise themoney like you're a psycho.
And I was like, well, thatmakes me want to do it even more
.
So, thank you.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
So you applied to the charity because you had already
worked with this organization,this nonprofit, you knew that
you could get a spot.
I mean, tell us, walk usthrough this.
Speaker 2 (12:26):
Like, how does this happen?
So yeah, so for the charity Iran for New York, they actually
only had five bibs for Bostonand those bibs were already
filled by the time New York wasover.
So I was kind of late to theball with applying to charities
and I know I know people who runBoston.
They apply to multiplecharities like far in advance.
But I knew I only wanted to runwith one.
(12:46):
So that was Dana Farber andthat's the only one I applied to
and I just kind of you knowagain, I was late to the game.
I don't think I applied untilright before thanksgiving, just
because after the race, tryingto get you know everything
together.
So I had applied with them,kind of explained my story um,
(13:07):
you know, my cousin was treatedthere, um, I had just run New
York and raised all this money.
So you know, I'm confident Ican meet my fundraising goal
again, etc.
Etc.
So they actually came back aweek later saying I was on the
wait list.
So that was actually superupsetting.
I was totally crushed.
But I was like you know what itokay, like I can wait till next
(13:31):
year, like it just wasn't meantto be.
And then another week later ormaybe two weeks later, right
before Christmas, they hademailed me again saying that I
was awkward spot.
So it was like an earlyChristmas present.
It was like just such a greatfeeling.
Speaker 1 (13:48):
I'd love to hear that .
Well, congratulations.
I want to just kind ofreiterate to folks because as we
continue to get into the WorldMarathon, majors becoming more
and more and more popular spotsare so much harder to get in
every capacity, and I really ama big believer if there's a will
, there's a way.
So, being patient, going afterexactly who you wanted to work
with, that you're passionateabout, because that makes such a
(14:09):
huge difference, and I'm surethat they could tell when you
were speaking to them that youwere passionate about it.
So here we are in Christmas andnow we are ready to kick off
training again.
Or did you already kind ofstart your training at that time
, knowing that you were going tomake Boston happen?
Or what are you thinking here?
Cause you're like, now I havefundraising, which, for Boston,
(14:29):
is no joke.
Speaker 2 (14:38):
Yes, so I didn't.
I'm on week three of mytraining for marathon and I'm
also on week three offundraising, so I'm a little
behind but I'm confident I canmake it happen.
Um, it is.
It's a little overwhelmingbecause, like every time I see
someone post like, oh, 100 daysleft to the marathon, or like
I'm like, oh my gosh, that likeI still have 100 days to raise,
(14:59):
like this money and like thatpart is more, I think,
overwhelming than the training.
Um, the training gets tough andit requires a lot of dedication
and I mean I really have tolike remember why I signed up to
do this.
But then you know, once I getout there and I start running,
it's fine, but it's definitelyit's kind of like like it's like
(15:25):
having two other part time jobson top of your full time job.
Speaker 1 (15:28):
Yeah, yeah, for sure.
Ok, so tell us more about whywas this charity the one that
called you?
Why are you so passionate forfundraising for them?
Speaker 2 (15:37):
Yeah, so, um, like I said, my um best friend's father
passed last February.
Um, he lives in New York, soobviously he wasn't treated at
Dana-Farber, but you know theyactually used to work at
Dana-Farber too.
So I kind of saw the amount ofmoney required to fund just one
(15:57):
research project.
And you know it's hundreds ofthousands of dollars to fund one
research project and you don'tknow if it'll flop or it'll turn
into something.
So I'm always, you know, anavid supporter of cancer
research in any capacity.
I mean looking even just, forexample, at breast cancer, like
many, many years ago.
It was just completelydifferent outlook of how it is
(16:20):
now.
And also my little cousin he is11 now, but when he was seven,
he six and seven.
So at age six he was diagnosedwith lymphoma.
And then he, when he was seven,actually on his seventh
birthday or the day before hisbirthday, he returned home from
(16:40):
Dana-Farber and he has been inremission ever since.
So obviously, even though itwas, you know, a few years years
ago, watching him go throughthat, especially at such a young
age, and just knowing like hedid it, he made it through and
he, you know, he conquered it,that was also motivating because
(17:03):
I'm like he can do this, like Ican show him that I could do
this, like I'm doing this forhim, like he, you know, he did
something much more difficultthan I will ever deal with.
You know, I can run 26 milesfor you know, in honor of the
care he received and in honor of, you know, the research they
fund.
Speaker 1 (17:23):
I think you touched on exactly what is so special
about specifically the work thatthey're doing is the fact that
they're it's funding research,and I know a lot of times we, uh
, we hear that and we think, oh,but it's research, it's not
going directly to the patient,but it's actually so much bigger
because it's going topotentially changing the lives
of hundreds of thousands ofindividuals with really cutting
(17:46):
edge technology and findings,and you know, money does not
grow on trees for them to beable to do this, but yet we are
able to really save the lives ofso many individuals.
So I am so grateful that you'redoing this and can't wait for
folks to check out yourfundraising link in episode
notes.
So, friends, definitely checkout episode notes while you are
(18:08):
either out for a run or a walkor just like go ahead and pause
it, even screenshot it.
You could come back to it at alater time, but we definitely
want you to make some incredibledonations here for Emily, okay,
but we definitely want you tomake some incredible donations
here for Emily, okay.
So we know that you are gettingready.
I don't want to do the countdownbecause I know that it's a
little panicking as we thinkabout it.
(18:28):
But I'd love to know, like,where do you feel that you want
to do things differently forthis marathon?
That maybe you learned fromyour experience at New York City
?
Speaker 2 (18:45):
I'm definitely incorporating more strength
training and more stretching.
I actually had a little IT bandinjury going into New York so
that was not fun, but so Ididn't strength train at all, I
barely stretched.
So definitely prioritizing bothof those things, especially for
, you know, Heartbreak Hill andthe Wellesley Hills those are,
you know, just a different beast.
(19:06):
So definitely more strengthtraining and stretching and
focusing more on my nutrition aswell, Just making sure I'm
eating enough carbs, eatingenough protein.
Just you know what I need to behealthy for race day.
Speaker 1 (19:22):
Okay, so you've made some tweaks so that you could
definitely show up and feel yourstrongest.
I am curious what are you mostexcited about, Since this is
your iconic hometown race?
You grew up watching it,spectating it.
What are you most excited aboutfor this course?
Speaker 2 (19:46):
I, weirdly enough, am very excited for Heartbreak
Hill because everyone alwaystalks about it and I just want
to be able to say that Iconquered it.
I want to be able to see whatit is and just run up it and
just you know, like this is whatI've been waiting for my whole
life to conquer Heartbreak Hill.
I'm so excited to do it.
Speaker 1 (20:03):
I loved Heartbreak Hill.
I have to say I have a lovehate for the Sitco sign.
That Sitco sign was like thebiggest tease I'm like.
It felt like it was like I'malmost there, but it's also
going on for 400 miles.
So, yeah, the Heartbreak Hill Ido think is exciting to conquer
because it is we've heard aboutit Even if you haven't run a
(20:26):
marathon before, even if youjust are kind of learning about
marathons.
We've all heard of Boston.
We've all heard of heartbreakhill.
What are you looking forward toin terms of celebrating
afterwards?
Speaker 2 (20:35):
Well, obviously all my friends and family are going
to be there For New York.
I had a handful of friends thatcame, but obviously not all of
them can make it just with thetravel and everything I got.
Just my parents and one of mybrothers went.
So it'll be nice to have all myfamily be able to come and
cheer me on, all my family beable to come and cheer me on,
(20:57):
and it'll just be, you know,exciting to frolic around the
city with my medal on the citythat I've, you know, lived in
and known my whole life.
It's just, it'll feel differentbecause, you know, like I said,
I watched it every year.
Now I get to experience andshow off my medal and all the
local bars that I go to.
Speaker 1 (21:15):
So you want to soak it all in, essentially from
start to finish, Okay, and withthe power of the community that
you have?
It sounds like you have a greatfamily network and a friend
network.
Tell us more about how you'reconnecting your passion for
running fundraising in thecommunity.
Speaker 2 (21:32):
Sure.
So obviously, my friends andfamily are very supportive, even
though they think I'm crazy.
Uh, they've always been, youknow, supportive.
Um, my boyfriend actually wentduring New York.
He would roller blade on mylong runs with me, um, which was
nice.
But, um, going off of that, Inow have um, dana Farber
(21:55):
marathon challenge has a teamand they do weekly team long
runs every Saturday and that hasjust been so incredible.
No offense to my boyfriend, butit's just been amazing to you
know, run with people that are,you know, running for the same
reason, and I've I've met somany people through that.
And that's like another supportsystem, I can add, because,
(22:18):
like my friends and family,they're always going to be
supportive of everything I do.
They're obviously supportive ofthe work that Dana Farber is
doing, you know so, to save mycousin's life, but none of my
friends and family run, so theydon't really understand that
whole side of it.
So the Dana-Farber team hasjust been such a great support
system to lean on and just hangout with every Saturday.
(22:38):
And you know, I'm running withpeople who are running for the
same reason, like we all want toend cancer.
So, and everyone has their ownunique story of why they're
running, who they're running for.
Some of them have been runningfor the team for over 20 years.
Some of them it's their 10thmarathon, so it's just it's
really inspiring and it's it'sit's a great addition to my
(23:01):
support system.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
I was going to ask what made this training cycle
different than New York City,but I think I just got it right
out of the gate.
Like this is it really has been.
You've been able to leancompletely into this community
that's also as passionate aboutthe cause that you guys are
fundraising for.
Are you able to do some of thelong runs on the course or
sections of the course?
Speaker 2 (23:23):
Yes, we have been doing them on the course.
We haven't done Heartbreak Hillyet, but we've been doing them
on the course and some of thehills in Wellesley are very
difficult and some of the hillsin Wellesley are very difficult,
okay, okay.
Speaker 1 (23:38):
So you've been challenging yourself a little
bit in multiple different ways.
There's a lot of growth goingon.
It feels like in 2025, as youmake your way to Boston,
definitely.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
Do you?
Speaker 1 (23:47):
feel like as you lead into Boston.
Are you thinking that this maychange your perspective on
running, racing or marathons?
Speaker 2 (23:58):
I'm hoping that I have a good experience, like I
did in New York, and that I'minspired to run more.
But I guess it kind of justdepends on my race day
experience.
But I'm hoping it all goes welland I feel as good as I did
after New York.
Then I'm sure I'll be signingup for another one.
Speaker 1 (24:22):
The next day again Are we thinking do you have any
insight that you're consideringWell?
Speaker 2 (24:29):
I am already registered to run Chicago Funny
story.
So when I the week after I hadapplied to Dana-Farber and they
put me on the wait list, I waslike okay, next year, thinking
there's no way I'm going to getoff the wait list I'm sure they
have.
Like you said, boston's sodifficult to get into I was like
(24:50):
you know what?
I'm probably one of like 700others on the wait list.
So I applied and got a charitybid for Chicago and then a week
later I was in Boston.
So now I'm just running allyear, which I'm very excited
about.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
Oh, my goodness.
Okay, so it sounds like you'rechasing some stars.
Here is what I'm hearing.
Okay, I'm curious.
When you are done with thisjourney, I definitely want you
to come on back and let me knowwhat your favorites were from
the star journey, cause they allare so incredibly unique.
Um, would you be willing tostick around a little bit longer
and play a bit of maybe Bostonmarathon or Boston this or that
(25:27):
with me, cause I'm kind ofcurious.
Now I was getting if you weremore excited about heartbreak
Hill or Boylston, but I alreadyhear that you're definitely
excited.
You're going to be excitedabout Boylston once you're done
with Heartbreak Hill, though, Iwill tell you.
Speaker 2 (25:39):
That's true, I'm sure I will.
I'll probably be done to getover with.
Speaker 1 (25:45):
So I am curious what are you more excited about, Like
the spectator crowds at Bostonor the scream tunnel at
Wellesley?
Speaker 2 (25:51):
Oh, that's tough.
I think the scream tunnel.
I think I like I need the crowd, I want the crowd to be
screaming at me, that I likedon't even need my headphones
because I can't hear the musicanyways.
Speaker 1 (26:06):
That's the kind of vibe I need.
I'm totally with you.
Now, do you feel like you wouldprefer more of like?
Do you gravitate more towardslike, a morning shakeout run or
a post-race beer Like?
What are you more excited about?
Speaker 2 (26:19):
Definitely post-race beer or five.
Speaker 1 (26:23):
Okay, are you thinking you're going to have
the metal or your finisher'sjacket as your most prized
possession?
Speaker 2 (26:31):
Jacket?
For sure, I already have it.
It's hanging up in my closet,but I will not touch it.
Speaker 1 (26:36):
I love that.
You just kind of like in themorning when you don't
necessarily want to get yourtraining, like you're running
shoes on and you look at yourjacket.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
You are a smart smart woman, my friend.
Speaker 1 (26:45):
Okay, so what have you found is more difficult to
train in?
And maybe some of your newEngland winters or the heat of
the summers with those hills,you know?
Speaker 2 (26:57):
originally I was going to say the summer, because
I hate the winter.
I hate everything about winter.
I hate being cold.
I don't ski anything like that.
I love the summer, but now thatI've been training in the
winter it is so much like morecomfortable than the blazing hot
sun it's.
I've actually I ran in the snowon Saturday and I actually
(27:18):
loved it.
So, shockingly, I'm going tosay the winter.
Speaker 1 (27:22):
What I love is hearing you kind of have a
hesitation.
You're like I ran in snow and Iloved it.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
You're like who is this?
Speaker 1 (27:29):
person.
What does she do with Emily?
Speaker 2 (27:32):
Exactly, I usually don't leave my house in the snow
, so that was.
Speaker 1 (27:37):
I got you, I do it's.
It's different.
I will say that heat andhumidity is no joke to deal with
.
Okay, so it sounds like we'regoing to be cheering you on
through quite a few epic finishlines this particular year, but
I want to reiterate again thatyou're fundraising for an
incredible, incredible mission.
So, friends, we do want tofollow Emily and her journey.
(27:59):
If you want to follow her onsocials, I'm including those in
episode link, but I'm going toencourage you all to definitely
help give back to all of theincredible things that she's
doing.
Before we end this, I want toask if you could go back to when
you first started running, whatadvice would you give to
yourself?
Speaker 2 (28:18):
I would say not to be so hard on myself.
And you know, like I said, myfirst run I was out of breath.
I could barely make it aroundthe block.
So that obviously came withnegative self-talk, like you're
never going to be able to runlike a mile without stopping.
You're never going to be ableto run like a mile without
stopping, you're never going tobe able to do a 5k.
Um.
So just more like positivity inthe way that I talk to myself.
Speaker 1 (28:42):
Do you feel like that's something you see?
This is why I can never finisha podcast on time.
Do you think that this issomething that running has
helped you to have more positiveself-talk?
Speaker 2 (28:54):
Yeah, I mean, I definitely still have my days um
more, especially if you know,I'm trying to PR at a race and
some of my training runs are alittle bit sluggish.
Um, but overall definitely hashelped.
Speaker 1 (29:10):
I'm hearing are you considering trying to PR at
Boston?
Or reserving that for Chicago.
Speaker 2 (29:17):
Yeah, I think, I think what I?
I don't think.
So I think I'm going to enjoythe moment, soak in the race,
soak in the crowd, and not putthat pressure on myself.
I mean, I'll train for one, butI'm not going to be like upset
if it doesn't happen because, Ijust want to experience it and
(29:40):
live in the moment and not beglued to my watch the whole time
.
Speaker 1 (29:43):
Yeah, you want to take all the incredible selfies
and really not go so fast thatyou don't get to sink in all
this incredible experience.
Well, that's awesome, Emily.
I can't wait to continuefollowing you on this and I
appreciate you coming on andsharing your journey.
Speaker 2 (30:00):
Of course.
Thank you so much for having me.
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