Monday Motivation

Keeping it short and simple today folks. 

T-Minus 25 weeks -Happy Monday! 

Click HERE to make a gift in support of Erin

DFMC Mugs

What's round, capable of holding tasty warm beverages, and helps fund vital cancer research?

My official DFMC mug!

Mugs are $15 each or 4 for $55, with all proceeds going towards my goal of raising $13,100 for the 2016 DFMC season (with 100% of all funds raised directlly funding innovative cancer research). Shipping can be arranged for an additional fee or, for those living in the greater Boston area, local pick-up can also be arranged.

Click HERE to fill out a short form and I will email you asap to finalize your order. 

Each mug features the DFMC logo, my season mantra "Stronger Every Run," and the eight towns which compose the 26.2 mile Boston Marathon course. These mugs are the perfect way to show your support for DFMC all season long (particularly while you enjoy some hot cocoa in your pajamas and read all about our winter marathon traing adventures)!

Thanks for your support and happy sipping!

Monday Motivation - 26 Weeks Until 26.2!

26 weeks from today I will join hundreds of Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge runners and 29,999 of our newest friends as we run the 120th Boston Marathon. Yes my friends, the countdown has begun and I am back in pre-training mode prior to our official training starting in early December.

This past weekend I had the chance to run with my teammate Christian who lives nearby and is a DFMC newbie. As we made our way through a chilly seven miler we chatted about our motivations for joining and running with this team, and it was a reminder of just how vital our mission is.

Our run also reminded me of the sheer power of mind over matter. Had I gone out for a solo seven miler it is likely I would have spent part of it arguing with that voice saying I didn't really need to run the full seven. Five would be okay for today. Or four...and so on. Instead, I had the chance to get to know a new and energetic teammate as well as trade stories about (insert all the random things you wind up discussing on a long run). Before I knew it, we were coming up on the last big hill and in the home stretch - plus I had recommendations for a local roofer, childcare options (for the future, everyone calm down), and potential MBA programs. That is the definition of becoming #StrongerEveryRun. Knowing that each time you push yourself to get out there you will expand your horizons and grow stronger, both physically and mentally.

So let's get this party started shall we? Boston 2016, I am coming for you (and my running gloves because this was what greeted me bright and early this morning). T-Minus 182 days.

Click HERE to make a gift in support of Erin

The Hay Has Been Planted - 2016 Season Preview

Our DFMC team is beyond blessed to have 1976 Boston Marathon champ Jack Fultz as our training coach. Jack's contagious enthusiasm, whether in advising a qualifying (aka super fast) runner or a new/developing runner such as myself, makes you feel as if you too could win the marathon (if you spend enough time on the arc trainer that is). Okay, maybe winning the marathon is a bit of a stretch. But Jack is one of those people who reminds you that no goal is unattainable if you plan ahead and put in the hard work required to reach it.

When the marathon draws near, Jack is well known for proclaiming that "the hay is in the barn." It is time to trust in the months of hard work, training, and fundraising you have done to reach your goals.

Last season I was pretty proud of the hay I put in the barn. Having set an initial goal of simply finishing the marathon and hoping to do so in less than 6 hours, my official time was 4:55:12 which was 1 hour, 4 minutes, and 48 seconds faster than I had initially anticipated! And together you helped me raise $6,600 more than my initial goal of $10,000 to fund vital cancer research. Incredible! 

Yet as wonderful as that first hay harvest was, I know I can do even better the second time around. Because last season I never fully let myself trust that there was hay. Or a barn. Or enough metaphors that could make me believe I would really truly cross that finish line or reach my fundraising goals. So this season I am looking forward to more fully trusting in the entire process and scope of this challenge. The seeds have been planted and are ready to be nurtured through the months to come,and I know they will yield the best hay yet. There is no need to worry, to doubt, or to obsess. Well, we are still training for a marathon so obsessing is sort of inevitable, but I will do my best to find more balance this season as I strive towards a 4:30 finish and my $13,100 fundraising goal (in honor of the half marathon distance). 

Part of that balance is making sure I am taking care of  and showing my gratitude to YOU - my amazing, rockstar supporters. Because honestly folks, without your love and support I certainly would have never crossed that finish line the first time let alone dreamed of going for it again!

This season will bring back crowd favorites such as my "Sponsor a Mile" campaign while also giving you some opportunities to score DFMC swag. Keep checking back here for more specific updates but this is just a snapshot of some things in the work for this coming season: 

• 2016 Kick Off Drawing Ending Tonight! In honor of completing the BAA distance medley this past weekend thereby having ran all of the 2015 B.A.A. races (5K, 10K, Half, and Full Marathons), I am giving anyone who makes a kick-off gift through midnight tonight the chance to win this limited edition Dana-Farber Boston Red Sox hat. 
• $5 (5K) = 5 entries
• $10 (10K) = 10 entries
• $13.10 (Half) = 14 entries
• $26.20 (Full) = 27 entries 


   

• Sponsor A Mile: All season long you have the chance to "Sponsor a Mile" along the course with a gift of $126.20 or more in honor of the marathon distance. NEW for this year, all mile sponsors will receive a special thank you gift and will also be entered to win a grand prize (to be announced soon!). Miles are already filling up so click HERE for more info! 

• DFMC and Stronger Every Run Swag: Thanks to everyone who completed my survey about DFMC swag for the coming season.Your feedback has been very helpful! I am working through internal approval and vendor quotes but hope to have more info in the very near future on this. In the meantime, it's not too late to share your thoughts HERE. Are you a vendor or someone who works in promo products? Send me a note and let's chat!

• Give to DFMC, Get a Song from Me: As a special way to thank my donors, I will be incorporating some very special musical opportunities for various gift levels this season -this one is still in the works so check back for more details in the weeks to come!

• Superbowl Squares for Cancer: This was one of my most successful campaigns last year raising $2500 for DFMC (after a partial corporate match) and paying out $1500 in prizes! No deflation here, the same great prizes are once again up for grabs again this year and I will be posting details as my Pats get closer to defending their title - I mean, as we draw closer to the Super Bowl! ; )

• March Madness: Oh it's coming back. And it's going to be good. 4 weeks or prizes with prizes growing in size/value each week. Every $10 donation during each prize period gets you one entry for that week's prize(s). NEW for this year, multiple prizes/winners each week! Stay tuned for more details in early Spring. Are you a vendor or business owner who wants to contribute a prize? Send me a note and let's chat!

As I have often said, it takes more than financial gifts to get us closer to the ultimate finish line and a world without cancer. Your generosity last season went far beyond those gifts to encompass notes of support, prayers, posters, surprise visits, phone calls, and so much more. Tight on funds but have an idea for a great fundraiser? Send it my way. Maxed out on your 2015 gifting but willing to make or donate a prize to use in 2016? Let's chat about that too. Local to the Boston area or willing to travel in for marathon weekend? Sign up to be a DFMC volunteer. Even the simple act of sharing my posts with family and friends helps to generate interest and support, so I cannot thank you enough for sharing whenever possible. And it goes without saying that if anyone can control the snow this winter, we would greatly appreciate it!

Also in the works? A revamped training log so I can more easily share my weekly totals with you (last season a technical glitch required extraneous editing), guest posts from some of the people who inspire me most, teammate spotlights, and more! 

Who knew growing hay could be so exciting?  

Click HERE to make a gift in support of Erin and the 2016 DFMC Season 

Monday Motivation: Stronger Every Run and Square Two

Yesterday I ran the B.A.A. Half Marathon. Without having trained for it. And I expected to hate every second.

Yet, for some reason, as I hobble around the house today, I am smiling and more encouraged than I have been in months. Why? Because heading into yesterday's race, all I could do was focus on how far I had drifted from my previously disciplined running routine. For weeks I had been berating myself for needing to "start all over." But races have an uncanny way of bringing you right back to where you need to be while pushing you towards the path to where you need to go next.

Heading to the start line yesterday I took a deep breath and said a prayer of thanks. For my health, my limbs, my family, friends, teammates, and an absolutely beautiful day to be alive and outdoors breathing in the fresh crisp fall air. As my group slowly surged closer to the start I felt a sense of calm wash over me. Looking around at runners of all ages, shapes, and ability while fans cheered endlessly on either side of the roadway, I stopped worrying about the should haves, could haves, and would haves and I made a choice to embrace whatever awaited me on the course. What followed was two hours and thirty-ish minutes of much needed perspective and reflection (apparently my bib did not register with the checkpoints so my official time is still TBD). 

Last year's B.A.A. half had been my first ever half marathon. And I spent most of that race questioning how on earth I would complete double that distance, as at that time I had just learned I was on the DFMC team. It too had been a beautiful October day, but I spent most of that race letting negativity wreak havoc on my psyche. I told myself I was a fool. That there was no way I could ever do it. That I wasn't a real runner and should stop pretending to be. After the race (and a good old fashioned cry), I contemplated giving up my spot to someone who I thought might deserve it more than I did. And then I told those voices to shut up and I got to work.  

As this year's race got underway and we weaved through Franklin Park, I inevitably found myself reflecting on last year's run. "Thank goodness I didn't give up," I thought to myself as we made our way through the first part of the course. And little by little as the miles clicked by, I thought through everything I had accomplished since the year before and how much I had grown as both a person and a runner. Where the year prior I had arrived to the race by myself and unsure, this year I walked confidently in the direction of teammates now friends to await the start. Where the year prior I shivered through the morning and cursed myself for not having enough layers only to have to unpin/repin my bib at mile 1 because I had too many layers once things warmed up, this year I benefitted from a wealth of layering knowledge fine tuned through this past winter. Where last year I had leg cramps and thoughts of quitting by 6.5 miles in, this year I hydrated properly before/during and suddenly found myself at mile 10 with only 3.1 to go (and yes, those were the 3.1 miles that got me, but feeling relatively strong for the first 10 was unexpected!). Yesterday's run reminded me that it wasn't about what I had lost in terms of speed or training since the summer, but rather how much I have gained through this journey thus far and all the wonderful things which still lay ahead. 

That is the essence of becoming "Stronger Every Run."

"Stronger Every Run" was my mantra last season. For whatever reason that little phrase is the one that gets me back on track every time. It isn't about finish times or pace - though it can certainly encompass those things. It means that even after your toughest run or a run where you aren't happy with your performance, training  etc., you can still come out of it stronger. Stronger from what you have learned. Stronger from what you have been inspired to work towards. And stronger from your decision to move forwards not backwards through every experience. And that is the goal

So yesterday's half certainly wasn't my best run in terms of time - nor did I train for or expect it to be - but I came out of it stronger, refocused, and ready to rock this year's marathon training and my goals for DFMC. I have not fallen back to square one but instead am reaching upwards towards the summit of square two, and I hope you will continue to support and encourage me along the way.  

Click HERE to make a gift in support of Erin as she completes the 2016 Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge

DFMC Survey

Good morning! No long run today as 13.1 awaits me in tomorrow's B.A.A. Half. Instead, taking the morning to focus on the most important part of the upcoming 2016 season - meeting my goal to fund innovative basic cancer research!

I have some exciting things in store for this season and my chief goal is to make it just as fun and rewarding for all of YOU! With that in mind, kindly take five seconds to take this super quick survey and help me narrow down some potential projects for this season:

Click HERE To Take the DFMC Supporter Survey

Recaps and exciting announcements to come so be sure to stay tuned. You can also follow me on Twitter and follow this blog via email (see the right side of my blog). Your support and encouragement never fails to amaze or inspire me - I can't thank you all enough for helping us to imagine a world without cancer! xo

Drum Roll Please....

Last evening I had the great honor of attending our DFMC Check Presentation ceremony at Dana-Farber's Yawkey Center for Cancer Care in Boston. As you know, 100% of the funds raised through the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge (DFMC) goes directly to the Claudia Adams Barr Program in support of their innovative (and life changing, extending, and saving) basic cancer research.

Mingling with teammates - some of whom I had not seen since we crossed the finish line on Boylston Street this past April - we eyed the outline of the giant cardboard check cleverly concealed under a Boston Marathon heatsheet (the seemingly flimsy yet amazingly effective capes we receive after crossing the finish line to protect against the rapid temperature drop) as we eagerly awaited the grand total for the 2015 season. After some opening remarks including a lovely and heartfelt thank you from the B.A.A. for everything our team brings to the marathon experience (thank you B.A.A., the feeling is mutual!), it was time to set the stage for the reveal with a few fun facts.

In 2015 our team had:

• 576 Runners from over 33 states and 5 countries (wow!!!)
• 41,604 donors from dozens of countries and 6 of the 7 continents (Antarctica was the only continent not represented...more on that later!)
• Gifts ranging from $5.00 to $25,000 (because every gift truly adds up!)
• A team goal of raising $5.2 million dollars through the 2015 DFMC Season

This past summer we learned that our team had met our goal of $5.2 million, which is an incredible feat in and of itself. But if you haven't learned by now, our team has a habit of not only setting goals but surpassing them in a big way (it's kinda our thing).  And so, without further ado...

That's right friends, after raising $16,600 dollars for vital cancer research, training through one of the worst winters on record, running countless miles, and capping it all off with a 26.2 mile jaunt through freezing rain - I finally got to hold one of those large cardboard checks. Cross that one off the bucket list! 

Oh and we surpassed our team goal by just a few dollars...$204,653.73 to be exact, for a grand total of $5,404,653.73!!!

Here is what I think you should do. You should print out this picture, cut around the outline of the check and hold it up for yourself (happy little dance optional but encouraged). Because I could not have done this without all of YOU. 

"Thank you" does not come close to expressing the depths of my gratitude to each and every person who has supported this team in our journey. Each generous gift, prayer, note of support, congratulatory comment, and good vibe sent our way were appreciated more than you can ever know. The proof of which was not only in the tremendous grand total announced last evening, but also in the poignant and moving words shared by my intrepid and inspirational teammates who have been personally touched by the research funded through this challenge.

So...who is ready to do it again???  The 2015 experience was so incredibly powerful that I still haven't been able to put it all into perspective or words to share here (I am working on it!), but suffice it to say I have never been more proud of anything than being a part of this team and our mission.  

T-Minus 199 days. Now who knows someone in Antarctica that wants to make a gift of $26.20 to start me off???