The hardest part of chasing a dream isn’t the finish line. It’s becoming the person who can reach it.
The Thought I Wasn’t Supposed to Have
I actually don’t like running.
I ran in high school. I ran in the Army. Neither one means I actually liked it.
So why on earth did I voluntarily sign up to run 48.6 miles in one weekend at Walt Disney World?
I’m seriously questioning my life choices.
The truth is, I don’t want to train for Dopey.
I want to already be standing in front of Cinderella Castle on Medal Monday, wearing six medals around my neck while we’re all standing there together, smiling because we actually did it.
It’s not that I don’t want the dream. I just wish I could skip the months of becoming the person who can actually earn it.
The Fantasy
I want to be that woman who gets up before dawn.
She’s already dressed, reflective vest on, snacks tucked into her running belt, heading out the door before most people have had their first cup of coffee.
Six miles?
“No problem.”
Maybe she’ll even add another mile before heading home.
She knows she can finish a half marathon.
A full marathon still deserves respect, but it no longer feels impossible.
Wouldn’t that be nice?
That’s the fantasy.
I want the result.
The sweaty miles in between?
Yeah…I’d really like to skip to the good part.
The Uncomfortable Middle
The middle is where a lot of runners disappear.
Not just people training for Dopey.
People training for their first 5K.
Their first 10K.
Their first half marathon.
The middle isn’t exciting anymore. The race isn’t close enough to feel real, and the excitement of signing up has worn off.
That’s when life steps in.
Runs get missed.
Shin splints happen.
Texas decides to have the hottest summer on record, and your treadmill decides it’s the perfect time to quit.
The lawn doesn’t mow itself. Fire ants don’t care about your training plan. Family needs you. Work gets busy. Sometimes you’re just plain tired.
Nothing dramatic.
Just real life.
And that’s where a lot of dreams quietly end—not because people aren’t capable, but because the middle is messy.
Then It Hit Me
Somewhere between the missed runs, the Texas heat, and questioning every life decision that led me to sign up for Dopey, something finally clicked.
The training isn’t really about 48.6 miles.
It’s about me.
Every run I finish—even the ones I complain through—is teaching me something.
It’s teaching me to show up, even when I don’t feel like it.
It’s teaching me that one missed run doesn’t erase months of progress.
It’s teaching me that being “ready” isn’t something that magically happens one morning.
You become ready.
One run.
One walk break.
One long run.
One ordinary Tuesday at a time.
Maybe that’s what I’ve been missing all along.
I’m not training to run Dopey.
I’m training to become the woman who can run Dopey.
It’s Not Just Running
Do you know how many life lessons have come out of this running journey?
A lot.
During my last half marathon—the first one I ran completely on my own—I repeated the same phrase to myself over and over:
“I can do hard things.”
At first, I thought I was talking about the race.
Now I realize I wasn’t.
Running taught me I can do hard things, but it also reminded me that I can learn hard things.
I can write a blog and hit Publish instead of wondering if anyone will read it. (If you’re reading this…hi, friend! 👋)
I can turn on a camera and record a YouTube video, even though that used to terrify me.
Learning Pinterest, Etsy, SEO, and all the other skills that come with building a business is something I can do.
I can even change the way I eat. The Mediterranean Diet didn’t become easy overnight, but little by little, it became part of my life.
That’s the funny thing about training.
It starts by teaching you how to do one hard thing.
Then one day you realize you’ve become someone who’s no longer afraid to try the next hard thing.
Maybe This Is the Point
None of us are supposed to feel ready.
Maybe becoming ready is what the training is for.
Every run I finish, every run I miss, every walk break I take, every time I lace up my shoes when I’d rather stay on the couch…it’s all part of becoming.
Not just becoming someone who can finish Dopey.
Becoming someone who knows she can do hard things.
Tomorrow
Tomorrow morning, I’ll probably lace up my shoes again.
Not because I’ve suddenly decided I enjoy running.
Definitely not because I’m magically ready.
I’ll lace up my shoes because that’s how you become the woman who can run Dopey.
One ordinary run at a time.