Hayden Lightfoot
Hayden’s Transformational Story
After beginning my health journey in April 2021 to drop a little weight, I decided to give running a try. Completely out of shape and very discouraged, I had no idea where to even begin, but I knew something had to change. I started by running just 0.25 miles at a time and couldn’t do anything but sleep afterward. It completely took me out!
When I first started, I thought the point of running was to run as fast as you can until you couldn’t possibly go any further. This turned out to be about 0.25 miles for me. Once I finally learned this is not the way it should be done and slowed down, I began to really enjoy it. Pushing myself a little further each day started to become second nature. It was such an awesome feeling the first time I realized I could run 1 mile without stopping. I continued to push a little bit further and finally decided to run a 5K in the summer of 2021. This was so much fun! Seeing everyone support one another was simply amazing!
I know staying motivated can be fairly difficult at times, but the results are always worth the work put in! I absolutely love running—it’s who I am—but when burnout comes, my biggest source of motivation is the community! The running community is by far the best community in the world and will give you a shoulder to lean on when needed!
As a fairly new runner myself, my biggest piece of advice for others just starting is: slow down, trust the process, and enjoy the journey. You only get to live the journey once, so don’t rush it! If you would’ve told me 3.5 years ago that I’d have lost 75 lbs and would be running marathons, I definitely would’ve told you, “You’re crazy.” Here we are, 3.5 years later; I just completed my 9th marathon (Chicago ‘24) after having lost almost 80 lbs!
This is a little bit of my story. It doesn’t have to be yours, so live your own journey and enjoy it along the way! You can do anything you set your mind to!
If you want to know more about me, feel free to reach out. My favorite thing in this world is to help others, so if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask! You can find me on:
