Victoria

I have been running in some form or another since I was 10. I participated in school teams, trained for community soccer programs and worked to get in shape through my university years. As I approached my twenties I became so curious about people who ran and had fun - those people who enjoyed the effort, the sweat, the wind in their faces - but I couldn't make it stick. I just wasn't getting it. My efforts were complicated further by how I was managing my Type 1 diabetes, a condition I have lived with for over 20 years. Low blood sugars, high blood sugars, and extreme fatigue crept in beyond distances of 6 or 7 km. My desire to become a runner forced me to examine how I treated my body while exercising. I started to consider how I fuelled myself not just on run days, but throughout the week and I feel that I have finally found my running joy. Ottawa 2019 will be my third half marathon and my diabetes control has never been better. Running gives me a new control over my disease, and allows me to move freely throughout my life - even after hill days :) I understand my own body so much better and am so grateful for what running brings me, across all aspects of my health. I feel the wind, I love the effort, and I can't wait to run this race in our country's capital!