This weekend, I ran my first race in almost 8 years.

And honestly? Standing at the start line again felt surreal.

Running used to be a huge part of my life. Before kids, I had run 10 full marathons, multiple half marathons, and even qualified for and ran the Boston Marathon. At one point, my half marathon PR was 1:41 during a full marathon. Racing, training, long runs, and chasing goals used to be such a big part of who I was.

Then life changed.

I became a mom of three, a nurse, and somewhere in the middle of breastfeeding babies, night shifts, party planning, and everyday chaos, racing slowly moved to the back burner. The desire was always still there, but the time, consistency, and physical recovery looked very different than they once did.

So signing up for this half marathon felt exciting… and honestly a little terrifying 😂

I barely trained for this race. Most weeks I was running maybe 0–2 times while balancing motherhood, working nightshift, starting a business, and life. My only real goal was to break two hours.

Somehow, I ended up running a 1:54:21.

Not my fastest race ever. But maybe one of the most meaningful.

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Why My Training Was So Minimal

The biggest reason my training was so minimal? Life was FULL in the best (and busiest) way possible 😂

Over the last couple months, our family celebrated three huge milestone birthdays that I planned almost entirely during the middle of half marathon “training.”

First, my dad turned 70, and we threw him the most fun Oregon Ducks/Kelly’s tailgate-themed birthday party with family flying in from out of town. It was such a special weekend and one of those core memory family gatherings I’ll never forget.

Then my daughter turned five, and we transformed our house into the most magical Glinda-inspired birthday party complete with pink balloons, princess dresses, and over 50 people packed into our home celebrating her.

Right after that, my mother-in-law Dorothy turned 70, and we hosted the sweetest, elegant “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” Dorothy inspired birthday party for her that honestly felt magical from start to finish.

Somewhere in between all of that, I was also working 12 and 16-hour nursing shifts, raising three kids, breastfeeding, keeping up with everyday life, and cheering my daughter on through her first soccer season.

So when I say training was inconsistent… I really mean it 😂

Some weeks I didn’t run at all. On a good week, I managed maybe two runs — usually one shorter 4-mile run and then whatever I could fit in for a long run on the weekend.

This season of life looks nothing like my old marathon training days. But honestly? I think that’s part of what made this race feel so meaningful.

Standing at the Starting Line After Almost 8 Years

If I’m being honest, one of the biggest reasons I kept putting off returning to racing had nothing to do with time… and everything to do with ego.

After I had my first daughter, I was actually signed up for a race and ready to make my comeback. Then COVID happened, races shut down, life shifted, and before I knew it, we decided to have another baby. Then another. Life got busy in the most beautiful way, and running slowly became something I kept pushing further and further into the background.

But I think another part of me was scared to come back because I knew I wouldn’t be coming back as the same runner I used to be.

I wasn’t in PR shape anymore. I couldn’t train the way I used to. I wasn’t running high mileage weeks or chasing huge goals. And somewhere along the way, I realized I had started believing that if I couldn’t come back “fast,” maybe I shouldn’t come back at all.

But standing at the start line this weekend, something shifted for me.

I realized this race wasn’t really about proving anything to myself anymore.

It was about my kids.

It was about them seeing their mom do something she loves. Seeing me work hard. Seeing me show up even when things aren’t perfect. Seeing that you don’t have to wait for the “perfect time” or the “perfect version” of yourself to go after something meaningful.

Could I have deferred the race? Absolutely.

Could I have waited until I was in better shape or more “prepared?” Probably.

But my body has given me three beautiful children. It carried me through 10 marathons and all the way to the Boston Marathon start line. It has done so much for me over the years.

And I realized it was finally time to stop waiting, rip off the Band-Aid, let go of my ego, and simply start again.

The Race That Brought Me Back

Honestly, I surprised myself from the very beginning of the race.

As soon as I started running, it felt like so much of my old racing mindset came back to me naturally. Even though I’m not as fast as I used to be, the pacing strategy, race mentality, and experience all came flooding back almost immediately.

Going into the race, my goal was simply to break two hours. That was it.

But during the first few miles, I noticed I was naturally settling into about an 8:30 pace. At first I thought, “Okay… this might be a little ambitious” 😂 But honestly? It felt good. Comfortable, controlled, and strong.

So I decided to trust it.

I told myself I would just stay consistent around that pace and adjust later if I needed to. But mile after mile, I kept feeling solid.

One thing that always helped me back in my marathon days was focusing only on the mile I was currently in. Instead of thinking about the entire race, I’d create little goals in my head — picking runners ahead of me and telling myself, “Okay, catch them by the end of this mile.” It turns the race into a little mental game and helps break everything down into manageable pieces.

And somehow, all those little race strategies I used years ago came right back to me.

By halfway through the race, I honestly felt surprisingly good.

Around mile 4, I started fueling with my Clif Shot Bloks, which is what I’ve always preferred during races. I ended up taking one about every mile after that and grabbed a tiny water bottle at the first aid station.

Ironically, I barely drank any of it 😂 It mostly became my emotional support water bottle for the entire race. But honestly, just having it with me made me feel more comfortable, and it was small enough that carrying it wasn’t a big deal at all.

But the most emotional part of the race wasn’t the pace or the splits.

It was seeing my kids.

The first time I saw them was somewhere around mile 4, and I instantly got emotional. Seeing my husband and kids cheering for me after all these years honestly hit me harder than I expected.

Then around mile 5, one of my best friends from high school surprised me by showing up with her daughter holding signs they had made for me. It was the sweetest surprise, and seeing familiar faces throughout the race gave me such a huge emotional boost every single time.

Every few miles, right when things started feeling hard, I would spot my family or friends again. And every single time, it lifted me right back up and helped me hold pace, refocus, and keep going.

By the time I hit mile 13, I was definitely hurting 😂 But I was still holding pace and somehow managed to find one final kick at the end.

And honestly? Crossing that finish line felt emotional in a completely different way than it used to years ago.

What I Wore for My Half Marathon Comeback

I kept my race day outfit super simple and comfortable for this race.

One of my favorite parts was pulling out my Boston Marathon shirt from 2018 to wear again after almost 8 years away from racing 🥹 It felt very full circle.

I paired it with my favorite Amazon running shorts with side pockets, my Nike Alphaflys, my Garmin Fenix 7S watch for pacing, JBL headphones for music (which is VERY unlike old me 😂), and my trusty Washington State baseball cap.

I’ll link everything below because this setup ended up being perfect for race day.

Race day shirt: 2018 Adidas Boston Marathon shirt

• Running shorts with side pockets
• Nike Alphaflys
• Fenix 7S Running Watch
• JBL headphones
• Washington State Cougars ball cap (Go Cougs!)

I will say — my Nike Alphaflys are definitely the most expensive running shoes I own 😂 But honestly, they really are incredible for racing and helped me feel fast, efficient, and smooth throughout the run.

That being said, I know a nearly $400 race shoe is absolutely not realistic or necessary for everyone, so I’m also linking a more affordable running shoe option that I genuinely love too 💛

Cheaper Nike Alphaflys

Crossing the Finish Line

As hard as those final miles felt, I honestly didn’t want the race to end.

Somewhere along the course, I stopped thinking about whether I was “ready” to come back to racing and just started enjoying being out there again.

And then I crossed the finish line in 1:54:32.

Not a PR. Not my fastest race.

But honestly? One of the most meaningful races I’ve ever run.

Waiting for me at the finish line was my entire little village.

My husband was there wearing the funniest shirt I got him for Christmas with giant pictures of my face all over it 😂 My mother-in-law was there taking the sweetest videos and photos all morning. My dad was cheering me on and lifting me up the entire race. And then there were my kids.

Seeing their little faces completely lit up with excitement and pride for their mom was the most emotional part of the entire day for me. My daughters were absolute little rock stars cheering me on, and I honestly don’t think they realized just how

much their support meant to me.

And then in true one-year-old fashion, my son decided the finish line was his breaking point 😂 He had officially had enough of being in and out of the car seat all morning and wanted absolutely nothing to do with me at first. Honestly, it made the moment feel even more real and funny and perfectly chaotic in the best way.

Another person who made this race so special was my friend Kacie. She spent the morning following me along the course and met me at the finish line with her daughter, flowers, and a bottle of wine waiting for me 🥹 She’s incredibly busy, so the fact that she spent so much of her day supporting me honestly meant the world to me.

One of the sweetest surprises of the day was seeing my friend Sophie there with her daughters holding handmade signs for me. One said “Hot mamas run half marathons,” another said “Go follow Mom Life With Kelsey,” and another one simply said, “You still look really pretty” 😂

I wasn’t expecting to see them at all, and it meant so much to have friends show up to support me like that.

But honestly, the moment that stuck with me the most was when Sophie’s daughter came up to me afterward and told me she wants to run marathons when she grows up.

That one got me.

Because somewhere along the way, this race stopped being about pace or finish times and became about something so much bigger.

It became about showing my kids — and maybe even other little girls watching — what it looks like to pursue something you love, even when life changes, even when things aren’t perfect, and even when it feels scary to begin again.

And truly, I don’t think I’ll ever forget that finish line feeling or how loved and supported I felt standing there surrounded by my tribe 💛

As hard as those final miles felt, I honestly didn’t want the race to end.