Marathon women

Any way you slice it, a 26.2-mile run is no easy task.
For most of the population, running a marathon sounds more like torture than a reason for a weekend outing. But for one tenth of one percent of Americans (according to numbers from 2009), including Susie Meara, Sheila Prevou and Francy Mueller, running marathons has become a fun group activity.
The trio has stepped up their commitment to running even more than most, setting a goal to run a marathon in each of the 50 states.
While Meara admits that plenty of people have called her crazy because of her running habits, she sees it as nothing but beneficial to her life.
“My oldest son thinks I’m nuts,” Meara said. “I just tell them that it’s my therapy. When you’re a wife and a mom and you have a job, you have all these demands and running is my escape. It keeps me on an even keel, that’s what I like about it. It makes me happy. It’s good for the head and the body.”
Meara has run 10 marathons already, and recently qualified for the next Boston Marathon in April 2011. Her hobby started out innocently, when she set out to run a marathon before her 40th birthday.
“It was one of those ‘over 40’ goals, kind of a bucket list thing,” Meara said. “I wanted to do my first one by the time I was 40 because it seemed kind of like an unattainable goal or one that would be a challenge. I didn’t quite make it when I was 40, but by the time I was 41 I’d done one.”
For Prevou, who now has 20 marathons under her belt, people are finally starting to understand the passion.
“I don’t get a lot of ‘You’re crazy’ anymore because they see how happy it makes me,” Prevou said. “There’s something empowering about running for four hours, or more, on the legs that God gave you.”
She too happened into the hobby. Prevou signed up 12 weeks out and ran her first marathon, in Nashville, on her 40th birthday. Now that she’s hooked, the goal to run a marathon in each of the 50 states is something that keeps her going.
“The 50 states is definitely on my bucket list,” Prevou said.
The third member of the group, Mueller, credits Prevou with helping her get her start in distance running.
“I signed up at my gym to train for a half marathon with a group, ... but then I ended up being the only one who did it,” Mueller said. “Sheila went to that gym too, so I ran with her a few times. She kept wanting to run together, and I was really intimidated because she’d just done Boston, but there’s something about runners encouraging each other and wanting to help each other meet goals and succeed. Sheila really encouraged me and ran my first half marathon with me.”
Mueller has now run a dozen marathons after getting her start at the Nike Women’s Marathon in San Francisco.
For all three, running with friends is key. At Meara’s first race in Chicago, she ran with a group of experienced marathoners.
“All the girls I’d run with had done at least one before, so they were all really good resources to pick their brains,” Meara said. “I think because they were there to kind of envelope me and show me the ropes it made it a lot easier.”
Continuing to run with one another, Mueller added, has really strengthened their bond.
“We just kept running together and have become great friends,” Mueller said. “I’ve met all my best friends through running. When you’re socializing and talking when running, you get to know someone well, and quickly. I have a husband who’s been deployed two of the last three years, so running and setting the goal and meeting up with friends has really kept me going. It kept me sane and gave me something to look forward to.”
Although it hasn’t always been easier to stick together, Prevou said that’s a big motivating factor.
“We make a really conscious effort,” Prevou said. “We would always meet in Leavenworth when we started running, but people moved and we made a conscious effort to meet each other wherever we were for races. For instance we flew out to Seattle, we all met in St. Louis. We had to make an effort, and that entails babysitters, supportive husbands and working around different schedules.”
Although Mueller recently made the move back to Leavenworth, reuniting the group, she too said it was all about planning to stay together.
“I’ve been living in the state of Washington for two years, I just moved back last week, but even living in another state we kept doing the same races and following the same training schedule so we could meet up for the races and it’s just like old times.”
For the trio, races are like any other get-together.
“It’s kind of like going out for drinks, except without the drinks, just water,” Meara said.
“I figure women can talk for four hours anyway, so we might as well be moving forward and cross a finish line,” Prevou echoed. “For women, friendships go really deep. There’s a profound sense of being that comes from running, especially with your girl friends. You do what you can to maintain that, the whole point is being there together.”
While their goal seems lofty, they say they don’t take themselves too serious.
“Sometimes we wear silly get ups for attention, like we ran Lincoln (Neb.) in pink tutus,” Meara said. “It’s fun because them you get crowd participation. In a marathon, when people are cheering for you it really spurs you on.”
Since they have all broken into the double digits of marathons run, they all struggled to pinpoint a favorite race.
“It’s hard to say,” Meara said when asked which race was her favorite. “The Marine Corp was probably the most fun. It was in DC so you could see the monuments and it was really high energy. The bigger ones are fun because they’re high energy.”
“Portland was a lot of fun, that was a great race,” Mueller said. “There’s something special about each one. I did one when I didn’t know I was pregnant and ran one six months pregnant, that was interesting. I don’t know that I have a real favorite, but they’re all special in their own way and I have great memories from each one.”
“The most emotional one, probably, was the Oklahoma City Memorial,” Prevou said. “I could say the Marine Corp Marathon, but all together Chicago is probably my favorite. We were all together, it’s a great city and it was one of our first ones together. But every single one of them has their own charm.”
To keep going after so many races is an easy decision, the women say, since they all truly enjoy the benefits they reap from running.
“I think that’s what I like about running, anyone can do it, putting one foot in front of the other, anyone can do it,” Meara said.
“I want to keep up with my running friends,” Mueller said. “It’s just so much fun. I’m a social runner, so I’m accomplishing something, but having fun at the same time and getting to hang out with my friends.”
Obviously a lot of work goes into running these distances. Even still, the runners say it often begins with just a couple of miles.
“You can start with very little, just two or three miles every other day, and then build,” Meara said. “Probably the most I’ve run in a week is about 40 miles, but you’ve got to have the time. And it really helps to have someone to run with, especially on the long ones.”
“You kind have to start all over (each race),” Prevou said. “I don’t run more than three days a week anymore.”
Mueller too said she runs three days a week. For her, helping others train for races has become another hobby.
“We kind of started a running club, no official name or anything, but we trained about 40 or 50 women, some walking and some running, to do the St. Louis half marathon,” Mueller said. “That’s something I really like to do, train and teach adults for endurance races. I really enjoy that, there’s nothing better than helping someone meet the goal of crossing that finish line for the first time.”
Meara and Prevou also say they try to encourage others to pick up running.
“Anyone who ever mentions an inkling, I encourage them to do it,” Meara said. “I try to let everyone know, if they have an interest, that anyone can run. I just tell them to get good shoes and you’re golden. And train, you have to train. You can’t just say ‘I’m going to run 26.2 miles,’ and go do it. You have to build up.”
“Don’t let the distance scare you,” Prevou added. “A lot of people walk that far without even knowing it, so doing it in an organized race is really what it’s about. You have to have a goal, and it helps to have a friend.”
Prevou said a quote from John Bingham has always stuck with her as she’s trained:  "The miracle isn't that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start."
“I think that’s been a real thing for me, because it gets you out of your comfort zone to start, but you train to finish it. Marathons are a lot easier than giving birth, so as a woman it’s just another challenge.”
When they finish their goal, Mueller, Meara and Prevou will have run 1,310 race miles. Even still, Prevou says she’ll never forget the feeling after the first marathon that has kept her hungry for the next race.
“Your first marathon is life-changing and nothing is ever the same,” Prevou said. “It’s life changing because you feel really empowered. If you can run 26.2 miles, you feel like you can do anything, but I was also humbled at the same time. ... It’s a lot of different experiences, but most of it was elation. It was a big runner’s high, like having your first baby or your first kiss.”