Last November, I did something I first set out to do 2 years ago...

matchasaralatte
Jan 1
3 min read

I have not always been a runner; I didn’t start running until my late 20s. Growing up, I couldn’t play sports in school due to a heart condition, so when I actually made the decision to start running, it was something I wasn’t even sure I could do.

In fact, I only started running because I got a job at my local running store. I knew nothing about running—only that I needed a second job and that I’d learn anything and everything required to get it. I had the interview one day and got a call a few hours later saying I was hired.

The manager at the time was an ultra runner - a multi-day runner. I’d never even heard of such a thing: people paying to run crazy distances like 100 milers, 200 milers, and more. But… it intrigued me. You always see stories of people getting into endurance sports after something traumatic or life-changing, and, well - that was me. I had gone through some big life changes and didn’t know how to cope. I didn’t have an escape.

Getting this job - my second job - changed my life in ways I never expected.

My manager was also a coach, and eventually I asked if she would help me train for a 50K. I had started running, doing 5Ks here and there, but I wanted something big. Something new. Something completely out of my comfort zone.

In 2023, I signed up for two ultramarathons: a 6-hour race in north Georgia and a 50K in my city. They were back-to-back, but I figured the first would be a trial-and-error run - a chance to see how far I could actually go and prepare for the second.

And so I trained. I trained and trained, and ran more than I ever had in my life. And in the end, I didn’t do either race.

Although I was running a lot, I didn’t feel ready. I didn’t think my training was consistent enough. I did a relay across the state of Georgia in May - which was incredibly fun - and planned to use that as part of my ultra training. But afterward, I took a break… and then I went on a solo road trip out west for a month. Needless to say, after being on the road that long, I hadn’t been running. I hadn’t put in the time or effort I felt those races deserved, and I didn’t feel ready.

And so, I didn’t run them.

My goal of completing a 50K didn’t happen - and you know what? I was okay with that. I was disappointed in myself, yes, but I also learned so much about myself during that solo road trip, that I still would have traded those races for that solo trip if I could rewind the clock. That trip brought me back to life. Running became something to sustain me as I move through life.

I’m sharing all of this because life doesn’t always go according to plan. And as we step into 2026, many of us are probably sitting down with ourselves - reflecting on the goals we set, the ones we reached, and the ones we didn’t.

We’re taught to “go big or go home,” and while big goals matter, smaller ones do too.

Those smaller goals - the ones that might feel insignificant - can be the very things that propel us toward the bigger dreams we’re chasing.

So before the year really gets going, clear some space at your desk or table. Make a cup of coffee or tea. Write down what you want your 2026 to look like. You can write in the future tense (“In 2026, I will…”) or as if it’s already happened (“I’m running my first 100-miler” or “I graduated and got into my dream graduate program”).

Whatever your goals are, make them yours. Write them knowing that effort will be required, that some will take longer than expected, and that not everything will go according to plan. Try not to frame them as “I must do this or I’ve failed”, because that mindset rarely helps us grow. Be gentle with yourself, be loving to yourself, and give yourself some grace.

Write down your goals, turn them into a vision board (that’s what I did for 2025 and will do again for 2026); set the stage however you’d like. But most importantly, have fun with it. I’ve been turning my goals into “mini adventures,” and with each one I complete, I find myself even more excited for the next.

Happy New Year, friends. I can’t wait to see what you do.

Cheers.