The First Half of the Year in Review

 

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One of my Facebook friends suggested that instead of New Year's Resolutions, we write out Guidelines to Live by for the New Year. As this half of the new year comes to a close, it's a fitting time to take a look back at my intentions and see how the year is progressing.

Guidelines to Live By for 2023:
Open my heart to infinite possibilities.  By doing so, I somehow managed to manifest a return trip to Bermuda in January of 2024 and I registered and am training for the Bermuda 10K after a long hiatus from running events.

Gratitude for all my blessings. We have a gratitude jar overflowing with post its on which we have written what we are grateful for

Choose faith over fear.   During my meditations, when I notice fear and a clutch in my gut, I move my attention from the clutch to my heart. I've been using mantras such as all is well and in Divine Order or look to the skies or nature to feel the powerful connection to Source.

Expand and create - I am working on my next book and I have completely redesigned/reworked my website

Feel joy. Remembering that my natural state is joy, I allow joy to permeate my expressions of gratitude

Harness the power of mood shifters.  Music, reading, movement, enjoying nature help me to shift out of a low vibration and being conscious that I always have a choice to choose my thoughts wisely

Connect with like hearted souls. WOW - This one manifested and is manifesting BIG TIME with the On the Runs podcast squad and guests and with Mike Reilly's Stories From the Finish Line and podcast. Ruth Anne and I were featured in a Boston College news piece about our running and fundraising journeys. She is going back to finish her Masters Certificate and I've connected with many wonderful Boston College Eagles. We cherish our friendships through the years while building an ever expanding network of wonderful people to share this journey we call life! We have also met amazing people through Ruth Anne's fundraiser, A Trilogy of Half Marathons for Victory Programs.

Go on a trip. On January 1, I set the intention to go on a trip with absolutely no inkling of the how, where, why or when. One day in April, Ruth Anne decided to see if there were direct flights to Bermuda for race weekend.

Celebrate life’s moments big and small. Every day in every way! We will be celebrating the twins 36th birthday in person. Tom and I celebrated our 45th wedding anniversary with a decadent cake and Skype-ing with our son and daughter in law since there was a winter storm. My 70th birthday celebration will be Bermuda Race Weekend.

Carpe diem. When you find out there are direct flights available to Bermuda for race weekend and if you stay longer, the air fares are much lower, you just seize the day and book the flights then reach out to the Race weekend host hotel to find out that the rates are incredibly low! Deposit given! We've also done spontaneous day trips to Cape Cod.

Be grateful. For everything big and small. I've made a conscious effort to focus on being grateful for the challenges and difficult days knowing there is always a treasure to be found.

Make time for meditation and self care. Every.single.day!

Break the sound barrier of once perceived limitations - Yup - all registered for and training for the Bermuda 10K with sights on another half that doesn't have a time limit!

Let go of control and lean into whatever may be happening. Every day in every way I am working on this and being compassionate to myself while I work on this which brings me to my last guideline...

Replace judging thoughts with thoughts of tenderness and kindness--for myself and others while Tom, Ruth Anne and I remind each other of replacing judgment with compassion.

I am thrilled to look back at these intentions and see what has manifested in my life during the first half of the year. My heart overflows with gratitude for all that has come to pass and all that is yet to come. 

From my heart to yours
In health and wellness,
Mary

Visit my ***NEW*** website to be inspired by my journey. May it ignite a spark within you to go farther than you ever believed you could. Be sure to visit the News and Events Page which has links to the latest articles and interviews.

My books that pack powerful messages of healing, hope and possibilities are available on Amazon 

Thank you to Mike Reilly for featuring my story on Stories From the Finish Line Sponsored by CURAD Performance Series to inspire others.

Be sure to subscribe to the On the Runs podcast for stories of individuals who are fierce and determined to overcome challenges, set goals and crush them. Here is the link to my Episode 56. Be sure to subscribe to their Youtube Channel.

Connecting the Dots - Run Bermuda!

Steve Jobs said, “You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something—your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.”

 

Herb Simmons, my volunteer veteran at the VA, once asked me if I'd ever been to Bermuda for a vacation. I smiled and said that I hadn't been on a vacation since my twins were born ten years ago. He told me that I HAD to take a vacation and go to Bermuda! He was a member of the Sea and Surf Anglers Club of Boston. Because Black men were not allowed to compete in international fishing tournaments, they established goodwill tournaments with the Blue Waters Anglers Club of Bermuda.

 

On our first trip to Bermuda, Vince Cann who was one of many of Herb's close friends from Blue Waters, picked us up at the airport. He took us on a tour of the Island, treated us to lunch and showed us the unparalleled Bermudian hospitality we have come to know through the years.

 

Here are photos from the fishing tournaments and Front Street many years ago. They made history with their Goodwill Tournaments and were honored by the Governors of Massachusetts and the Bermuda Premier. 

We'd walk to the docks at the end of the day to watch the boats come in. There would always be a lot of trash talk about who was going to win. The members of the Blue Waters Anglers Club had an advantage since they could fish year round while the Sea and Surf anglers could only fish in summer. The Clubs alternated years between Bermuda and Cape Cod.

 

 

 

 

 

 

To kick off the tournament, the Blue Waters Angler Club hosted a fish fry at their Club located at the very end of Front Street. This is a photo of Herb and me at the fish fry where Dark 'n Stormies and Ginger Beer flowed as easily as the conversations and laughter.

 

 

In January of 2024, we return to our happy place after a 4 year Pandemic hiatus to run the Bermuda 10K and celebrate my healing 16 years after the diagnosis of Post-Polio Syndrome when I was told to prepare to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair.

 

It's so much fun to connect the dots as we prepare for Bermuda Triangle Challenge weekend 25 years after our first trip to the Island. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Front Street has undergone a dramatic transformation through the years. The Blue Waters Anglers Club was sold. We saw a sign on the building the last time we were there that said they host fish frys every Friday and Saturday night. Sadly, many members of both Clubs have passed on but the memories we made are forever imprinted in our hearts. When once we met up with fishing friends, now we meet up with running friends. 

 

 

Instead of watching the boats come in at the docks, we run around the Island during Bermuda Triangle Challenge Weekend. The Bermudian hospitality and instant friendships forged is a constant along with incredible dinners at the Pickled Onion Restaurant. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I continue to be in awe of how meeting one individual led me to amazing adventures as runnergirl 1953. I could never have connected the dots going forward to one day know that by helping a legally blind veteran with his story about his fishing club, that one day I would be running on the very Island that held treasured memories for him, his family, members of the Blue Waters Angler Club and my family.

I am thrilled and filled with eager anticipation as we get ready for our 2024 Bermuda adventure!

From my heart to yours
In health and wellness,
Mary

Visit my ***NEW*** website to be inspired by my journey. May it ignite a spark within you to go farther than you ever believed you could. Be sure to visit the News and Events Page.

My books that pack powerful messages of healing, hope and possibilities are available on Amazon 

Thank you to Mike Reilly for featuring my story on Stories From the Finish Line Sponsored by CURAD Performance Series https://tinyurl.com/bdzhtebj to inspire others.

Be sure to subscribe to the On the Runs podcast for stories of individuals who are fierce and determined to overcome challenges, set goals and crush them. Here is the link to my Episode 56

 

Reflections on My Half Birthday

 

In six months, I will be celebrating my 70th birthday on Christmas Day. For the 2nd week in a row,  it rained for Saturday's training run on the road to the Bermuda Triangle Challenge 10k. Unlike two weeks ago, yesterday's rain was warm and the summer humidity was high. Halfway through our run, Ruth Anne and I had to peel off our jackets. What sweet sensations to experience the gentle summer rain bathe our arms, face and legs. 

Because I contracted paralytic polio at the age of 5, wore an ankle to hip leg brace and was limited in being able to feel the joy of splashing in puddles and running free when it rained, I feel a deep sense of gratitude and exhilaration when I can run in the rain. The miles are made even sweeter because I am training for the Bermuda 10K in January.

The Nike+ app on my phone crashed during the last several runs. Ruth Anne said that since I'm training for another event, I need to get a Garmin. She bought it for me as a half birthday gift.

We had a spectacular time on our run around the Reservoir. Despite the steady rain, there weren't a lot of puddles but the back of my legs were covered with gravel and mud.

Despite the grey skies, the leaves and grass were a vibrant green. The fragrant summer flowers filled the air. As I meditated after our run, my heart overflowed with gratitude. I had a deep sense of accomplishment that I have made a commitment to training for the Bermuda 10K and that I know with all my heart that I will navigate the soreness and new sensations that come with training for more miles. My body is adapting to this new training regimen but more important, I am once again harnessing the power of my mind to go the distance. Re-reading Deena Kastor's book, "Let Your Mind Run" and taking copious notes fuels my journey.

I received an email from Magic 106.7:

I've listened to Magic for decades becoming friends with on air personalities and winning many contests. I loved the synchronicity that I started this blog yesterday and received the email this morning about celebrating my half birthday!

Saturday's run is my last 3.5 mile run until taper time. I increase the mileage by .5 miles each month. I have hill repeats, fartleks, and tempo runs integrated into my training plan. I look at photos from when Tom and Ruth Anne ran the Bermuda 10K in 2020 to visualize myself out on the course with them. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I look at the map and smile at the elevation knowing I am going to be well trained mind, body and soul to take on the Bermuda Hills in January.

I read a wonderful book, 'Counter Clockwise' by Ellen Langer in which she offers scientific evidence about how our attitudes affect how our bodies age. I could have easily stayed with the 3 mile or 5K distance. I could have picked up an event or two that accommodated back of the pack runners/walkers and not experienced the discomfort that goes along with taking on a greater challenge-especially as I prepare to turn 70 in December.  If I would have stayed in my comfort zone, I wouldn't experience the satisfaction and sense of accomplishment with every mile that moves me closer to the starting line of a new age group, a new decade and a new race feeling youthful, vibrant and athletic.

From my heart to yours
In health and wellness,
Mary

Visit my ***NEW*** website to be inspired by my journey. May it ignite a spark within you to go farther than you ever believed you could. Be sure to visit the News and Events Page.

My books that pack powerful messages of healing, hope and possibilities are available on Amazon 

Thank you to Mike Reilly for featuring my story on Stories From the Finish Line Sponsored by CURAD Performance Series  to inspire others.

Be sure to subscribe to the On the Runs podcast for stories of individuals who are fierce and determined to overcome challenges, set goals and crush them. Here is the link to my Episode 56

Going the Distance - Again!

 

Before the diagnosis of Post-Polio Syndrome in December of 2006, I am not someone you would think of as being a risk taker. Growing up in a household rife with substance abuse and violence, I needed to experience a sense of safety and security in my life. As Helen Keller said, "Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing."

After the diagnosis of a progressive neuromuscular disease and having been told to prepare to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair, I realized that life is a daring adventure or nothing at all. I took a leap of faith leaving behind my award winning social work career. It was exhilarating and scary all at once. In February of 2008, I declared to my personal trainer that my fitness goal was to run the 2009 Boston Marathon despite never having run a day in my life. I love how Michelle Obama uses the word "despite" in her latest book, "The Light We Carry."

Despite a serious knee injury in 2014 that I was told would sideline me from running and to prepare for a total knee replacement in a few years, I went on to run three Bermuda Half Marathons in 2016, 2017 and 2018. My body was feeling very beat up after those three consecutive half marathons. I believed that the days of being a part of an event farther than a 5K were behind me. 

Being a part of any event was out of reach for everybody with the pandemic. I did virtual 5K's. I had a lot of time to reflect on whether or not I wanted to continue being a part of in person events and decided that I was content with being on the sidelines. Ruth Anne kept prodding me to consider doing another in person race as we emerged from the pandemic. I was experiencing a major setback in my running journey due to symptoms that I attributed to a reaction to the 2nd vaccine. 

I decided that I had not come this far to only go that far. On January 1st, I experienced the thrill of racing against myself in the First Run Virtual 5K. I was mentally and physically preparing myself to find a back of the packer friendly 5K race. Despite continuing to experience symptoms of nerve pain and joint pain, I knew I needed to have a goal to motivate me.

Before I knew what happened, Ruth Anne found direct flights to Bermuda from Boston for January Race Weekend, I was sending Facebook messages to our friends in Bermuda and was communicating via email with the Race Director to see if it would be safe and fun for this back of the pack runner to do the Bermuda 10K walk.

My training plan calls for a once a month run on Heartbreak Hill. Saturday's 3.5 miler was the longest distance I'd done on Heartbreak Hill since we trained for the 2018 Bermuda Half Marathon. It was rainy and warm. We were fortunate that the downpours held off until later in the day. We chose to do the part of Heartbreak Hill that was the most challenging, starting at Boston College and going out Comm. Ave. Because Tom and Ruth Anne have been training for Half Marathons for Ruth Anne's fundraiser for Victory Programs, I had been left to do solo miles on Heartbreak Hill. What a joy to share the miles with Tom and Ruth Anne again.

The rain and wind could not dampen the joy we feel at training together again AND the joy that I am choosing to go the distance again! We captured the beauty of a late Spring day. I always say that if I am going to hurt, I want to hurt on the side of healing, getting stronger, defying the odds of having been told that I should prepare to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair and returning to Bermuda, our happy place surrounded by friends we have made through the years but haven't seen in four years.

I took a hot shower and stretched after the 3.5 miles on Heartbreak Hill feeling a wondrous sense of accomplishment, visualizing how it is going to feel when I cross that finish line while enjoying every step and every mile on this glorious journey. I am firing up my courage and  the power of endurance to go the distance.

From my heart to yours
In health and wellness,
Mary

Visit my website to be inspired by my journey. May it ignite a spark within you to go farther than you ever believed you could. Be sure to visit the News and Events Page.

My books that pack powerful messages of healing, hope and possibilities are available on Amazon 

Thank you to Mike Reilly for featuring my story on Stories From the Finish Line Sponsored by CURAD Performance Series  to inspire others.

Be sure to subscribe to the On the Runs podcast for stories of individuals who are fierce and determined to overcome challenges, set goals and crush them. Here is the link to my Episode 56

Embracing Hills

 

The first time I did a hill training on 4/20th during this training cycle on the road to the 2024 Bermuda 10K, I stopped about half way up the hill. On the final hill repeat, I struggled to the top of the hill.  I celebrated what I was able to do trusting in my body's tremendous capacity to continue healing and to go the distance again.

This morning, Ruth Anne and I returned to the same hill on Cleveland Road for hill repeats. It's the hill where we trained for the 2009 Boston Marathon. I imagined our personal trainer Janine at the top of the hill with her stop watch telling us to push, push, push. I remembered how Deena Kastor described reeling in her opponent in her memoir, "Let Your Mind Run." I reeled in the Stop sign at the top of the hill as I was able to run the entire distance of the hill! There is a steeper hill opposite the hill on Cleveland Road. Since I know that Bermuda is known for its steep hills on the 10K route, we decided to incorporate the second hill in the hill repeats.

 

When we got to the final hill repeat, I felt the burn in my lungs and nausea. I wanted to stop before we got to the top but I knew this is where the mental AND physical training come together. Ruth Anne was my cheerleader and said, "Reel in that Stop sign. Reel in that Stop sign." I did it! I pushed myself farther and faster during today's hill repeats.

 I am giving myself plenty of time to train for the hilly Bermuda 10K mind and body in January. It's been several years since I trained for an in person road race and it's been years since I trained for anything longer than a 5K. The setback in '21/'22 was physically and mentally painful. While I never gave up on  my health and wellness journey, I had given up on training for any more events. There's a quote in Deena Kastor's book that says, "There's one thing about the mind. It forgets."

 

 

 

 

 

My mind sure did forget. I forgot how much I had done to heal my life and how much I accomplished by running 3 Bermuda Half Marathons after a serious knee injury. The doctor and PT's said it was an injury that would sideline me. They said I should stop running or cap my distance at a 5K and prepare for a total knee in a few years. Coincidentally, a Facebook memory popped up about my reunion with Dr. Ryan Means, the chiropractor who partnered with me after the knee injury. Follow this link to the blog post.

Embracing hills on the roads and in life remind us of our strength and resilience. We can always go a little farther than we think we can. After my hill training I was reminded that the setback is not the final destination. Every training run and strength training workout, especially on the hills, brings me one step closer to destination Bermuda 10K!

From my heart to yours
In health and wellness,
Mary

Visit my website to be inspired by my journey. May it ignite a spark within you to go farther than you ever believed you could. Be sure to visit the News and Events Page.

My books that pack powerful messages of healing, hope and possibilities are available on Amazon 

Thank you to Mike Reilly for featuring my story on Stories From the Finish Line Sponsored by CURAD Performance Series to inspire others.

Be sure to subscribe to the On the Runs podcast for stories of individuals who are fierce and determined to overcome challenges, set goals and crush them. Here is the link to my Episode 56

Happy Global Running Day! Running is My Therapy!

 

"It's counterintuitive to the law of physics," Eddie the roofer told us while helping to stop the flooding in our home from ice dams several years ago. I don't remember the specific law of physics he was telling us about but I do remember the phrase.

In May of 2021, after the 2nd COVID vaccine, I experienced symptoms that stopped me cold in my workout and running routines. I had done everything I knew to do to avoid any adverse reaction to the vaccine. I harnessed the power of the mind/body connection to manage the symptoms and continue as best I could to strength train and get in miles. My intuition told me to cut back in what I was doing yet the symptoms persisted. I realized that what I needed to do was counterintuitive to what one wants to do when one is experiencing pain. Throughout my healing journey after the diagnosis of Post-Polio Syndrome, I have held fast to the belief that if I am going to hurt, I may as well hurt on the side of healing!

As I wrote about in "I'm Now Off the Sidelines .. or .." I decided that enough was enough and kicked off this year with the Virtual First Run 5K. Doing that race set into motion a renewed confidence in my body's tremendous capacity to heal.

I experienced a new sense of joy and freedom in my workouts and training runs.

Last Saturday I ran 3.5 miles which was the longest distance for me in almost two years! Despite the rain and wind, I was thrilled and delighted to be going the distance greater than a 5K since when I ran the 2018 Bermuda Half Marathon.

I stretch a lot, meditate using the mantra "The power that made the body heals the body."

I listen to the On the Runs and Find Your Finish Line podcasts with inspiring stories and a community that fuels my body and soul. I'm visualizing our return to Bermuda, our happy place; a place we haven't been to in four years, and visualize being out on an in-person race course again!

I'm re-reading Deena Kastor's book, 'Let Your Mind Run' and taking notes while I read. 

She recommends creating and using as many tools that can be used at different times in different circumstances to maintain positivity and help in achieving goals. One of the tools, visualization, is one that I embraced after the diagnosis of Post-Polio Syndrome training for the Boston Marathon. In addition to using the course map, I found the photos from when Tom and Ruth Anne ran the Bermuda 10K in 2020. Ruth Anne guides me through the different parts of the course that has breathtaking views similar to when we ran the Bermuda Half Marathons in 2016, 2017 and 2018.

The symptoms that seemed to be unrelenting are relenting! Just as I found myself being 'all in' feeling that being a part of road racing again was behind me, I am now ALL IN knowing that I can and will go the distance again, and do it again in Bermuda in celebration of my 70th birthday on Christmas Day! 

My first goal was to finish before the finish line closes in 2:30 based on the course being hilly. There was a lot of old thinking that went into that goal from 'polio days', thinking based on how I was feeling after the 2nd vax and shifting gears from having believed that my being a part of road races is over. My new goal is to finish in 2:00! I am working on speed with fartleks and tempo runs and doing hill training during the week. Once a month we go to Heartbreak Hill for our long runs.

 

I've been in awe of how my body has been responding to my training. I feel more energized. There is the expected soreness that I am getting accustomed to again instead of the muscle spasms, nerve pain and joint pain. I love how Deena Kastor writes in her book, "When my mind talked, my body listened."

They say that the comeback is greater than the setback. It's the truth! I'm rediscovering how running is my therapy feeling my heart overflow with gratitude with each training run and strength training workout.

Happy Global Running Day!

From my heart to yours
In health and wellness,
Mary

Visit my website to be inspired by my journey. May it ignite a spark within you to go farther than you ever believed you could. Be sure to visit the News and Events Page.

My books that pack powerful messages of healing, hope and possibilities are available on Amazon 

Thank you to Mike Reilly for featuring my story on Stories From the Finish Line Sponsored by CURAD Performance Series to inspire others. Be sure to subscribe to his podcast Find Your Finish Line.

Be sure to subscribe to the On the Runs podcast for stories of individuals who are fierce and determined to overcome challenges, set goals and crush them. Here is the link to my Episode 56

 

I'm Really Off the Sidelines Now!

 

In February of 2007, after the diagnosis of Post-Polio Syndrome, a progressive neuromuscular disease, I got still and asked for Divine Guidance. The answer came in the form of a poem. The first poem I wrote was called "Running the Race" and it foreshadowed my 2009 Boston Marathon run. Here is an excerpt:

 

Using wheelchair to travel, set limits on what I could do

resulted in joy to realize I could live life anew.

Celebrated my body-creaks, groans and need for a brace

while in my mind I focused on winning a 10K race.

 

I'm now off the sidelines, no need to sit and whine

so much gratitude fills my heart and love and beauty shine.

After all these years I can join the loving human race

I exceed all expectations and now I set the pace.                                                                                             

At the beginning of this year, I wrote a blog after running the First Run of 2023, "I'm Now Off the Sidelines...or..." It was a glorious start to the new year and the year I turn 70.

Yesterday I ran 3.5 miles, the farthest I had run since late 2021. I have been using the mantra, "The power that made the body, heals the body," to remind myself of my body's tremendous capacity to heal. I knew I needed to get back on my healing path after my body had experienced an adverse reaction to the 2nd COVID vaccine. It took a little while for me to shake off what I'd been originally told about Post-Polio Syndrome and to shift from focusing on symptoms to healing but here I am! 

 It was cold and rainy yesterday, quite a contrast to the heat we experienced during Thursday's run. I know the weather during January in Bermuda can be anywhere from rainy and cool to sunny and warm. I expressed gratitude for the gift of running, being able to feel the joy in the challenge and savored every foot strike with a heart overflowing that once again I am training to go the distance. {I even have my sights set for another half marathon where there is no time limit.}

On Friday, the Bermuda Triangle Challenge posted on social media that the guest speaker and ambassador for race weekend is Deena Kastor.

"Did you hear the exciting news? 

Olympic medalist Deena Kastor will be the guest speaker for the 2024 Chubb Bermuda Triangle Challenge."

I responded to the post, "I did and am over the moon excited! We are all booked with flights and hotel and registered for the 10k. We are celebrating my 70th birthday on the Island and a comeback race."

 

To which Bermuda Triangle Challenge responded, "Mary McManus oh my gosh!!! You’re coming back!!! That’s so exciting! Please let us know where you will be staying! And we should get you in touch with The Royal Gazette and maybe they can do a feature article on you closer to race weekend!"

 

Wow!  

  

Deena Kastor is a hero of mine. In 2019, I wrote a blog post review of her book, "Let Your Mind Run." I dusted off my copy, un-dogeared the pages and am devouring all the wisdom that Deena shares as I get ready to go the distance again!  

 

To avoid the midday high heat and humidity last Thursday, we got up early and got in our miles. What a great way to start the day and despite the heat, which was once my nemesis, I felt great.

 

I feel wonderful after yesterday's training run on rolling hills in and out and back route on Beacon Street. Hills are my friends and I will become intimately reacquainted with them as I train for Bermuda. As we peeled off the layers of wet clothing, shoes and socks, and as I remembered how amazing it felt to do an early morning run again,  I thought to myself, "Yup I'm really off the sidelines now!"

 

From my heart to yours
In health and wellness,
Mary

Visit my website to be inspired by my journey. May it ignite a spark within you to go farther than you ever believed you could. Be sure to visit the News and Events Page.

My books that pack powerful messages of healing, hope and possibilities are available on Amazon 

Thank you to Mike Reilly for featuring my story on Stories From the Finish Line Sponsored by CURAD Performance Series to inspire others.

Be sure to subscribe to the On the Runs podcast for stories of individuals who are fierce and determined to overcome challenges, set goals and crush them. Here is the link to my Episode 56:

Join us on episode 56 for lovely Mary McManus as she shares her remarkable and inspiring story of hope and unimaginable possibilities that she made happen after being diagnosed with Post Polio Syndrome and being told she would live the rest of her life in a wheelchair. But at the age of 53, Mary wasn't going to let that happen and she started doing something for the very first time in her life, Run. However before she could start that journey, she needed to get a pair of running shoes first.