Nicole Adams - "Don't compare yourself. Just let it be."

Allison interviews Nicole about her book, "Running With God: A Devotional Journey Through the Race of Faith," praising its reflective questions and themes of running and scripture.

Nicole shares how she began running in middle school, later experienced God speaking to her during runs, started the book 15 years ago, and, after a dark season and stepping away from faith, found healing from depression as running drew her back to God and led her to finish the book as an act of obedience despite fear.

They discuss avoiding comparison, remembering that not everyone starts from the same line, and pressing on after falling.

Nicole’s lessons include giving herself grace, running without performance pressure after losing her Apple Watch, and focusing on Jesus.

She describes favorite races (Tough Mudder), music as a must-have, shoe support needs, fasting and hydration habits, recovery routines, basic strength training, advice for beginners and injury return, and the book’s availability on Amazon.

Nicole Adams - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100087568543580


Races Mentioned
Tough Mudder

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:15

Hi Runner Story family, this is Allison Gilliard with Runner Story, where every story needs to be heard. And making sure that your story gets heard this month are our friends from Kindergritty. Kind of Gritty is all about curating one-of-a-kind running events. And up next for Kindor Gritty is round two of Salute Red, White, and Blue at Camp Shelby. Run where heroes are made. Tackle our 11 miler, 11K, or 5K on base at Camp Shelby November 7th. That's right, go ahead and mark that calendar November 7th. Registration will open July 7th with a 24-hour introductory price. So show your support for the military. Go ahead and mark that calendar again July 7th. Put an alarm, you're gonna want to register for this race. This is a race where every step, a salute, every mile, a tribute. Salute red, white, and blue November 7th at Camp Chelby. You can find out more information at kindagritty.com slash events. You can also find out on our page at learnerstory.com. I am gonna try to get through this without crying because Camp Shelby is very special to me. And if you listened to last week in the intro, you've heard that I shared that that's where my dad retired and never got to know him. So I run this race for him. And so I highly encourage you to come out. It's very patriotic, it's for such a great cause. It's for the youth challenge program there at Camp Shelby, and they just do such phenomenal work there. And uh if you need a good challenge, uh it's a challenging hill, but that's a challenging court. So I cannot say enough great things about Salute Red, White, and Blue. It's a great race. We'll be there. We do a lot of things for that race, and we're very, very excited to be a part of it. So kind of gritty. Salute red, white, and blue, alarm July 7th to sign up for the introductory price, and then come run with us on November 7th. Super, super excited. I'm also excited about Nicole Adams. Nicole Adams wrote a book called Running with God: A Devotional Journey Through the Race of Faith. And I learned so many things from this book, and she reminds us all to give yourselves some grace. And at this moment in time it's special. And just be present in the mind. Be present in the moment. And running does not have to be pretty. Come on, girl. That was so much truth right there. I'm really excited about this, and the cold heart is just absolutely beautiful. So just a reminder to all of you out there, especially as we're going into the hot humid months, give yourself some grace. Do not be worrying about your pace. Do not be worrying about getting through the next run. Just get through this run and take it day by day. Get the electrolytes in and don't compare yourself. Amazing. Absolutely amazing. So that being said, lace up those running shoes. Get ready, get set, and go run with my friend Nicole and her run story. Well, thanks, Nicole, for being on the podcast. I am so excited to have you. I've finished your book. It is a very good quick read for anybody that's like, oh no, it's an author. It's a but it really it literally was like two days, but it's really good in the sense of it's a very challenging book. Um I wish I had it maybe something that we do eventually is have a group of friends because at the end of each chapter, you ask some really good reflective questions. And I really appreciate that. And the name of the book is Running with God: A Devotional Journey Through the Race of Faith. And I appreciate you writing this book because so much of running is so intertwined with faith. And you pulled out the very scriptures that I talk a lot about with people in the running community because there is so much of scripture that does talk about running and running your own race. And I mean, and we're gonna dive into all the things that spoke to me as I was reading your book. So, Nicole, thank you for being here. And you know, I want to start off by saying, like, how did we get here? How does your run story begin? And how does running with God, how does the book begin?

SPEAKER_01 4:21

Hmm. Well, my running journey started back when I was an early teen, actually. I started running in middle school because I was a field hockey failure, despite my mom's best wishes. She played field hockey and she wanted me to do the same, and I just really was not any good at it. And so, you know, I guess she continued to encourage me to be at least involved in some kind of sport. And so I ran both in middle school and high school, and never really was all that fast. So I did long distance running. Then I just continued as I got older, I would go through spurts where I wouldn't run, and then I would run. My husband and I, when we met and were married, we would run together, which is interesting because he's six too, but that's a whole nother story.

SPEAKER_00 5:14

Uh a different pace altogether.

SPEAKER_01 5:16

Um anyway, so I and I and honestly, even early on in our marriage, I wouldn't say that I had any thoughts of equating it to faith or anything like that. It just was purely physical thing for me to do, of where I just, you know, it was one of those things I needed to get out there. It was always something of where I could clear my head, just, you know, release the stresses of life, just have some time to myself. And it wasn't until about 15 years ago and that I really started with this running with God. And it wasn't even an idea of a book at that point in time, but I just I started running with him. And he started teaching me these lessons of faith. And he just would pour into me and speak to me during those times and things that I just wouldn't even think about. You know, you just sometimes you just run and you don't pay attention. But he just really started to teach me lessons. And I actually started writing the book back then. So this book was 15 years or so in the making, as much as I hate and cringe to say that. But there was a time in my life more recently where we stepped away from our faith. And I s had been, I started running again. I was in a very dark place in my life. And I had started running again, and God just started speaking to me again. And over the process of the last two years, he's just drawn me back to him. And that time of running just really became a place of healing for me. And again, he would speak to me, speak lessons to me, he'd he'd teach me things, he'd he'd love on me during that time. I would experience just these incredible moments with him. And it's really honestly what brought me out of the depression that I was in. And through that reconnection, we started going back to church and becoming involved again and just really relying on him, putting our faith in him. And he said to me last year, I want you to finish this book. And I was like, Oh, really, God? I thought this was just for me. I thought this was just between you and I, like you're giving me encouragement. I, you know, I don't feel comfortable putting myself out there and sharing this with other people. And it was really just fear, uh fear, you know, being rejected. Oh, you're not a good writer, you're not this, you're not that. And he just kept laying on my heart, you need to do this. This is an act of obedience, and I'm asking you to just put it out there. Let me be responsible for who it touches, what it does, whether it's successful or not. Just take that step and act of obedience. So I did, and here we are.

SPEAKER_02 8:16

Here we are. Uh well, let me just say I am so thankful you wrote the book because thank you. So much of your book is if you could sum up the Runner Story podcast into a book, I think this would be one of those books because that's awesome. It's so you brought out so many things. Um one of the things that that really struck me, and it's one of the reasons why we say you run your story, and that is you say in the book, when we compare our race to someone else's, we risk missing the purpose God designed specifically for us. We must focus on the specific call he has for our lives, not what we see others doing. And I mean, I hear it over and over again. There's so much comparison is the thief of joy. And you see somebody, whether they're killing it out on the pavement or they're killing it professionally, or you meet these people and you're like, Wow, spiritually, you've got it all together. And honestly, that's not even the truth, you know, because none of us have it together. But I love that you've brought in that aspect of when you talk about in the book. And again, in the book, you also are very open about that dark season of your life. And one of the visuals that you give, which I absolutely love, is like I visualize Jesus being right there running with me. I just love that.

SPEAKER_01 9:30

Yeah, yeah. I'm a very visual person. I'm yeah, I'm a an artist, uh, um, graphic designer by trade, and I'm so very just naturally always been a very visual person. So I get these images in my head. I sometimes say to people, be careful about how you describe something because I'm being seen in my head. But that was one of those things of just such a comfort, honestly, to me in some of those times of just really needing to know he was there for me. Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 10:02

One of the other things you talk about, and it's kind of become like my little ritual that I do at the starting line. And you say, not everyone is running from the same starting line. And oh man, and it took me a moment. Like I had to stop and had to be like, well, it's one of the things that I do at the starting line because we say in Render's story, you never know what someone's story is. You don't know if the hardest part of them getting there was putting on their shoes. You know, which is one of those days where they were just like, I don't want to do this, you know?

SPEAKER_00 10:30

Right.

SPEAKER_02 10:31

Or if they got the best news of their life or the worst news, or you also don't know what's gonna happen after they leave that race. And so I always take a moment and always look around. And one of the reasons why I do that is because again, your story resonated with me so much because there was a time when running was my idol. It was where I got my identity from. And so when I was released to go back to run again, I made sure that I was running for a purpose greater than myself and I have it tattooed on my arm, and that is a sparrow because that is something that represents freedom. And you talk about running in freedom in the book. And so I run, I it's it's always in the back of my head, and I always take a moment and I look at the starting line, I look around me because I always wonder if there's somebody there that's running from that has part of their story is human trafficking or overcoming something like that, because that's where I felt like, hey, this is who you're gonna run for, you know. And obviously the things have changed over time, the missions and the goals, but I always take that moment because that was always the moment of God saying, This is not about you, and don't take running for granted because not everybody has that opportunity. Um and so I love how you you said that that we all have a different starting line. Like that again, absolutely beautiful.

SPEAKER_01 11:51

And that's interesting how that particular chapter played out because it didn't I addressed that a little, but I had a friend who was helping me read through it. And in that particular section, I talk about my mom and my stepdad and then being on the mission field and how you know they poured into my my life and how they really set an example. And, you know, she had read that and she came back and she said, that's not what I had. And I realized in hindsight that, first of all, I didn't tell the story completely because I didn't grow up in church. And so I revised that to let people know that that's not how I was raised. That came later in life for me. But also just wanting to be sensitive to her and anybody else who struggles with having people, particularly family, because I think it's important to have family that can pour into you in that way, but but that don't have that in their life to look to as an example. In fact, maybe even have just the opposite, where they've got parents or other family members that are frankly doing just the opposite thing. They're running from God, they're all kinds of things. And so I just really wanted to be sensitive about that. And initially, like I said, had that in my mind, but not to the extent that she made me aware of once we had that conversation. And so that actually got revised because I don't want anybody to feel like they're not worthy or they're less because maybe they didn't have that upbringing or that support in their lives, either growing up or in the present.

SPEAKER_02 13:35

Yeah, absolutely. And again, I appreciate you doing that. It was absolutely amazing. So, what are some lessons that you've learned from writing this book? And you're very open in this book about your story and the things that your family has gone through and how running has always been your time to just reflect and spend time with God and God alone. So, what are some lessons that you've learned from this?

SPEAKER_01 13:59

There's so many, but if I had to pick one and it's really the season that I'm in right now, it's back to what you were talking about earlier, is that don't compare yourself, just let it be one of the things that I've done so much in the past, and a lot of it's just my personality of being goal-driven and things like that. I would always time myself or I'd have one of the apps on to track my race. And oh, did I beat my time? Did I run further than I have before? And I recently lost my Apple Watch. I realized that there's apps that you can do it on your phone. It's not quite the same, obviously. It doesn't track your heart rate. But it's actually been very freeing to me. And so give yourself grace and just let the day be what the day is. Not to the point where you say, you know what, I'm gonna be lazy and I'm gonna sit on the couch. Sometimes we really do have to motivate ourselves to get out there. Prayer isn't always easy, praise isn't always easy. And sometimes we just have to take that first step. But once we take that step in the direction, just let it be what it is. Let your body tell you what it's gonna be. Let the time with God flow freely through you. When I'm focusing on Jesus, I'm not worried about the next step or where I'm gonna stop. I'm just really taking that time with Him. And it doesn't have to be a certain amount of time or certain pace or a certain length. Just let it be and have grace on yourself. And I think a lot of people, especially I think people that run, can tend to get caught up in, I've got to do this better, right? I I gotta improve my time, I gotta run a longer race. And when we can just be in the moment and enjoy what's happening in that moment, what's happening around us, what we're experiencing. It's been so preying for me to just experience it. And it's a great lesson for life, too. And I think sometimes that just comes with age. I'm, you know, getting to the point my kids are older, I've got grandkids, and you realize how fleeting time can be. But the fact of the matter is this none of us are promised tomorrow. That's right. And so no matter what age you are, living and understanding that this moment right now is special. It may not seem it, it's not maybe not a spectacular event like a wedding, but just being in the moment, experiencing the day is a blessing. So that's probably been the biggest thing for me. And like I said, I'm really in the midst of it with having lost my watch. I've just said, you know what? I'm just gonna let it be. Yeah. And I just I just go.

SPEAKER_02 16:41

Yeah. Oh, that's amazing. Oh, I want to bring up one of the things that I learned from your book. And it really struck a chord with me because some people close in my inner circle know this, so not a lot of people, but I I'm transparent about it, is that I have a fear of failure. I don't like letting people down. I don't like failing. But one of the in the story that you share is when you were out running and you you fell, like and it was it was bad, like you were bleeding and all this. And you said, you know, there was a decision to make. Either you could turn around and go home or you could get up and press forward. And what I took from that was pressing on even when we fall. And I even took it like, I was like, wow, like even pressing on, even if I do fail. And so, and that's a season that our family's kind of in, different situations where we're like, we're having to preach that to one another, is like it's okay to fail because there's a lesson learned there, and that is okay. And you get up and you do it again. And if you fail again, you get up and you do it again.

SPEAKER_00 17:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 17:44

And so it's kind of taken like this. It I'm still working on it, but it's kind of taking a little bit of pressure. It's what you talked about earlier, taking like the pressure off of me and saying it's okay. There's no bar here, there's no standard. And I love how you said keep your eyes on Jesus and you're not afraid of what the day brings, you're not afraid of the step. And that's what I thought about when you said that. Like, even if I take a misstep, it's okay.

SPEAKER_01 18:08

Yeah. Well, sometimes it's like you said, it I always said to my kids, and I remind my husband and myself constantly, I feel like we learn more from our failures than we do from our successes. I mean, I hope. I hope that's always the case, honestly. So is it really a failure? I mean, if we're learning and growing, is it a failure? I don't I'm not the best biblical scholar, but I just don't feel like the Bible talks about failure. You know, I mean it is in fact he says in our struggles, that's when he can be more powerful. In our weakness, he can be more powerful. If we don't have that, do we learn? Do we grow? Do we learn to rely on him in those difficult times? And I get you in that, you know, I was in that recently, physically in that fall, but in our lives as well. We've been in a challenging period, and I have to remind myself every day. And it's it's not about honestly, it's not about failure. It's about just learning and growing and stretching because I rely on him more when I let it go and stop striving. I can't do it. Yeah, I can't do it on my own. And that's where I had to come to when I was at the end of that dark period. I literally said, God, I can't do this on my own anymore. I had to come back to him. I don't have the energy, I don't have the power, I don't have the resources. I have nothing to solve this problem on my own. I have to come to you and give it to you and rely on you. And it was like a weight was lifted off my shoulders. Nothing had changed about my circumstances. They were still there. But I didn't have to do it on my own. And I got to that point where I said, okay, I'm done trying. So I totally get I totally get your I call myself, I've called myself a perfectionist, uh, you know, striving to please people and don't want to let anybody down. And as long as we're loving and doing our best, love God, love people, we're not letting them down. Um, yeah, and honestly, if we're doing a disservice if we try and take it on ourselves because when we try and do it in our own power, it's not really power at all. God has so much more understanding of the situation and power to do things that we can't. We almost do somebody a disservice if we don't turn it over to him. Yeah. You know, yeah, that's really good. I'm a failure as a mother if I try and do it in my own strength. As much as I desire to be a wonderful mother, doing it in my own strength, I'm going to fail.

SPEAKER_03 21:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 21:03

It's hard, I understand. But yeah, and that's something that I constantly need to be reminded of.

SPEAKER_02 21:09

Yeah, it really struck a chord with reading your book. And like I said, when that visual and you you talk about it, and I just was like, wow, like that was just such a good, a good freeing moment. And then you later on go on to talk about how there is freedom and running, and running doesn't have to look pretty, but you just go out there and you run. I love that. That running does not have to look pretty.

SPEAKER_01 21:31

Yeah, it doesn't.

SPEAKER_00 21:33

It's great. You know, you just do it, it's just moving in the direction, and even if we're limping, you know, and not charging people to run while they're injured. Sure, sure. But let's just be moving, moving in the right direction.

SPEAKER_01 21:48

If we can't, you know, if we sit still, then we're we're losing momentum.

SPEAKER_02 21:54

So I want to shift a little bit back into running. And so because you do have. All these years and these stories of running. So, do you have a favorite race that you like to run? I have a favorite race that I've done.

SPEAKER_01 22:09

I've only done it once. That's fair. Yeah. So if I had to say my favorite race, it was definitely tough mutter. My husband and I did it. Gosh, it's gonna be at least probably 10 years ago. He had done it one year prior to me with a couple guys. And then the next year he said, like, come on, do it with me. And I was like, I don't know about this. I don't like cold water. You want me to get in an ice bath? They electrocute you. So the thing about it was is it was a challenge for me. It was a challenge. And in hindsight, I can see so many reasons that it just makes so much sense of why it sticks out in my mind that maybe I didn't even realize back then. But a challenge over fear, you know, just conquering fear. There were certain of those things. Like I don't like hikers.

SPEAKER_00 23:07

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 23:08

But they had one of the stations that you were up, I don't know, 40 feet in the air. At least it felt like 40 feet in my door. It might have only been 10, but it felt very high. And you jumped off it into water. And you know, it wasn't the water part that scared me, it's just my fear of heights. And so just being able to overcome those things in the moment and realize I can do this. And then just the accomplishment of having completed it. I didn't this is one of those things, so it was not pretty.

SPEAKER_00 23:44

It was not pretty at all.

SPEAKER_01 23:46

So if you're familiar with tough matter, it's it's actually based on special forces type training, I guess. And you have all these stations. So the one second to the last one was the it's like a monkey bar type thing, but it goes, it's not straight across, it's like a triangle. You go up and then you go back down. Well, I have no upper arm strength, never had. And so I jump on it, you know. My husband goes before me, all these other guys that go before me, and they're look, you know, oh macho going across. And so I'm like, okay, I'm gonna give this a try, right?

SPEAKER_00 24:21

And I've conquered a good portion of these obstacles at this point, and like, okay, I'm gonna do this, right?

SPEAKER_01 24:28

And I'm like, I'm not gonna let go. I'm I'm gonna do this, I'm gonna get across this thing, and I just don't have the arm strength. And I grabbed the first rung, I swung into the other and just went right down, and of course, it's in water, and it was ugly.

SPEAKER_00 24:41

So I had to swim across, and then then the last one, the last station.

SPEAKER_01 24:48

So I'm wet, I'm wet, and now I come to the last station, was is which is the second electrical shock. And so water and electricity. Sure, sure. And I am just getting, it's like hitting me every step going through this thing. We had a guy who fell, he couldn't get up, his legs eathed up, they had to go pick him back up and drag him back out. I mean, it was not pretty, but when you finish that and you you say, Oh, I did it, I faced my fears, I did some things that were hard and challenging because we're gonna do that in life, we're gonna have those things that come up in our lives, and you can do more than you think you can do.

SPEAKER_02 25:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 25:35

And if you just set your mind and push through it. And now, as the parent of adults, I have a son that's in the service, active duty in the service, and two son-in-laws that both have done active duty and to think about the sacrifice that people have made so that we can have their freedoms and and having gone through some of the testing that they go through. I'm so glad for that experience, as hard as it was.

SPEAKER_03 26:01

Sure.

SPEAKER_01 26:01

You know, I don't not sure I'd look forward to getting electrocuted again or jumping at a face back.

SPEAKER_00 26:09

You know, like, would I do it again? Well, maybe nothing.

SPEAKER_01 26:14

But I'm so thankful and grateful for that experience and the perspective that it gave me, not just for myself, but for others. I love that. That put themselves on the line for others. So oh, that's good.

SPEAKER_02 26:29

Oh, that's really good.

SPEAKER_01 26:30

Powerful.

SPEAKER_02 26:30

Yeah. Yeah. Do you have a favorite running item? Like you you cannot go run without this. Obviously, we know it's not your watch because you've like, we're done, we're moving on. But do you have something that you're like, I just have to have this with me?

SPEAKER_01 26:45

It's gotta be music. I've always been very in tune to music, although God's got a sense of humor, and sometimes he just wants me to be silent. And so there have been times where my AirPods have died.

SPEAKER_00 26:58

I think I might even talk about that in the book.

SPEAKER_01 27:01

You do. Yeah, yeah, you do. Yeah, yeah. But music really has always motivated me. I I'm very in tune to the emotions that it can trigger, both positive and negative. Okay, you know, healing any healing way, just it's music can motivate me. So most times I want to have that with me, and I want to have something going in my ear.

unknown 27:25

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 27:26

Some very loud.

SPEAKER_02 27:28

Well, and you you mentioned that um, you know, one of the songs that came on in your book is Hard, Far, Hallelujah by Brandon Lake by Brandon Lake. I love him. Like, absolutely. That's one of my it's on my playlist too. So, what does your playlist sound like? Who is on there?

SPEAKER_01 27:44

Well, it depends on the day, honestly. A lot of times I start out with just worship music, just to kind of bring myself into the frame of mind of, you know, I'm out in nature, and yeah, I'm I'm gonna be running, and this is kind of a physical thing, but I really do want to set my focus on God. And I really love being outside. I love just seeing his creation, and so that kind of helps me get into that frame of mind to appreciate the beauty that he's created around us. Yeah. So I'll usually start with that, but then once I start running, it's a little bit harder, not your mainstream type music. Writers is one that I'll listen to a lot. I do like Brandon. Like I'll listen to Hard Fought Hallelujah when I'm in that kind of struggling time, but I also like his song seven. Yes, yeah, that gets me going. My pace will pick up, and I'm just it just, you know, I'm like, yeah, I'm gonna take the enemy on today.

SPEAKER_00 28:47

I'm taking him down, you know? I can do this, he doesn't have any hold over me. That's right. You know, so yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 28:56

So just kind of like like I said, it depends on where I'm at spiritually, where my mind is at, what I need to feel that day. If I need to feel like hey, I can overcome this, then it's typically something that's gonna just put me in the mindset of, yeah, you are victorious in this because of my savior, not because of anything that I do. But you know, you you have the victory. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 29:20

Running shoes. What do you like to run in? Anything that's got a lot of cushion.

SPEAKER_01 29:29

I'm amazed at how quickly I go through sneakers. Amen. Preach on. Oh my gosh. I just and so I've tried them all. I liked uh a pair of brooks that I had here recently. I have a pair of on clouds. I think I'd like to try the running ones. These are simply like walking ones. I think I'd like to try, but I definitely need a lot of air cushion for me. I've dealt with plantar fasciitis in the past. Oh, it's so bad. Yeah. So I'm very cautious about making sure that I have really good support. In fact, I put even with the cushion, I'll put the gel supports in just because it really does help.

SPEAKER_02 30:11

So one of the things that you talk about in your book is, and I love this perspective because we're going to talk about fuel here. And that is that you say food, impact, a run, good or bad. And but also you equate that spiritually that we need to feed ourselves with scripture, with prayer, community, that sort of thing. So taking that mindset of fueling important, how do you like to fuel for your runs?

SPEAKER_01 30:38

Well, it's kind of changed over the years. It used to be that I would start off with a certain type of a breakfast. So when I was younger, when I had kids, I typically needed to have some form of nourishment. So I'd have a piece of bread or a banana or something like that. And then I moved into a little while of doing some supplements that would help kind of give me that little bit of a pump. I actually gotten away from that. And I and I know people don't recommend it, so you've got to do what's good for you. But I don't eat before I run. And I don't find it to be an issue. And honestly, I don't necessarily eat right away when I get back. Water? I'm definitely hydrating myself in the morning. So I have the first thing I do when I get up is have a big glass of water. And then I will move to having some tea, kind of to have something with some flavor. But I typically will not have any kind of food. And then when I return back to the house, I'll have another big glass of water. Actually, I it's amazing the amount of water I can drink. I s I sweat. I sweat a lot. I sweat heavily, so I'm pouring water into me. I've just kind of gotten to the point as part of my mental actually recovery as well as just physical recovery of I want to take in fluids, but I'm not necessarily eating. I've moved to like a 16-8 fast. So I typically will not eat anything until about lunchtime.

SPEAKER_03 32:18

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 32:19

And yeah, it's interesting. It's just again, just kind of of where I am as far as my life is concerned. But I am when I do eat, I'm I'm focusing on protein. Because again, part of my age and having to be conscious about those things as we get older.

SPEAKER_02 32:38

And you're like, I'm tired of eating protein. Like, how much more do we have to go? I'm tired of drinking.

SPEAKER_00 32:42

How am I gonna get?

SPEAKER_02 32:43

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 32:44

How am I gonna get this much protein in during the day? Especially if I'm only eating eight hours for the day, you know, it's hard, but well, and it's it's interesting because you talked about all of the the sweating.

SPEAKER_02 32:55

For people that don't know, you live in Florida, so it's hot and humid.

SPEAKER_00 33:01

Yes. Most of the year.

SPEAKER_02 33:04

That's the lesson. The Alabama heat has approached quickly. So we enjoyed our little pool snaps, and now I'm just like, oh, I hate summertime here in the south. Like, it's just you walk outside and you already sweat, and you're like, okay, it's getting real.

SPEAKER_00 33:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 33:21

Well, you want to know what's funny about that is though. I grew up outside of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania. And so when I was in track, we, you know, in the spring, you could be running. And I vividly remember running track races in the snow. And I really did not like that. I I hate, I'll be honest, I hate running in the cold. I would rather be running in the heat when it gets cold here, which this winter we had quite a long cold season. Season comparatively to most people. I apologize. Um, because I know it was a hard winter elsewhere. But we had a couple long streaks of cold weather, and I really don't like to get out. I don't like that my nose runs and my ears are cold, and I can't get my hands warm. And so I would rather run in the heat than I would in the cold. Believe it or not. Kudos to you.

SPEAKER_02 34:18

I listen, I'm so excited. There's a marathon I'm doing in December, and it's in Huntsville, Alabama, and I am pumped because I'm like, oh, it's gonna be cold. I'll get to wear a beanie, I'll get to wear a long sleeve. Like, I am thrilled. I know this past like last year, this past December up there, it was like, I mean, it was it was super, super cold. And so there are people that were like, yeah, I had to wear gloves the entire time. And I was like, Yes. I'm like, I hope that's what I get to run in because I just breathe better. I'm like, it's like refreshing. It's like, yes, yeah. The heat and humidity, not at all for me. Yeah, you know, but here we are.

SPEAKER_01 34:57

Now, don't get me wrong, if it's a little cooler, I'm okay with it. I just don't want it cold. I just, you know. But I do, I'll start wearing stuff around my head, you know, to keep my ears warm. But then I just get all sweaty underneath and it just, I don't know. Got it. Okay. I know strange.

SPEAKER_02 35:16

That is fine. Everyone has their their thing. Yeah. There's things. That's right. So do you have a fate? Because you you do talk about running with your husband, you talk about watching your daughter run, you know, and and all the things. But do you have a favorite running memory or a funny running memory that you want to share?

SPEAKER_01 35:34

I would say other than again, tough mudder, just enjoyable race that I had was one in preparation for tough mutter. It was probably 5k type of a thing. And it was a mud run, literally, it was you know, mud run, and you're running through mud. Sure, it just was enjoyable. I think it was probably because I didn't feel a lot of pressure on me to do a certain thing. I did it with my husband. It was just the two of us, and it was a fun time. And then I guess the other favorite memory, which I wouldn't necessarily call fun, but probably one of the times that I've been motivated the most is when my son was in boot camp. And it's eight weeks. And I would, when I would run, I would just think about what he was going through. And it motivated me. Like, I can do this, I'm doing this for my son. You know, he's toughen it out, he's doing the hard things right now. And if he can do that, I can do this.

SPEAKER_03 36:41

I love it. And it just motivated me. Sure.

SPEAKER_01 36:43

Yeah. I know he's running a lot.

SPEAKER_02 36:49

Get your butt out there, Nicole, and just do it. Nicole. And not because he wants to either.

SPEAKER_00 36:55

Exactly. Running was never his thing. In fact, I talked to him.

SPEAKER_01 37:01

They still have to do every year, they still have to do a PT test. And he comes home one time on leave and he's like, I'm gonna go out for a run. And I was like, Oh, good for you. I go, that's great. You're still running because no mom. I hate running.

SPEAKER_00 37:16

And I go, Oh, really? Well, why are you going? I got my PT test coming up, and you know, I have to get my time in, or and I'm like, okay. Well, you go, you go, boy. Can you go enjoy that run here? Oh, yeah, he hates it. He hates running.

SPEAKER_02 37:33

And then it's part of his job, you know, one time out of the year. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Let's shift a little bit to recovery because you do talk a bit in the book about listening to your body. And again, you when you took that fall, you also were like, listen, like if you're injured, then you know, obviously stop what you're doing. So, do you have a favorite recovery tool that you like to use?

SPEAKER_01 37:58

So I don't know if it's a tool so much as just kind of a routine that I do. But when I come back from my run, I'm starting to slow myself down, which I typically have a hard time doing. So it's usually trying to be conscious about when I get to a certain point. I'm like, okay, this is my cool down time. Like we're we're not running anymore. We're starting to cool down. And I'm not very good about that most of the time. And so it's not till I get back to the house that I'm like, oh, it's time to cool down. You can't just, you know, just go sit on the couch and let the air hit you. So a lot of times what I'll do is wander around my yard taking care of my gardening, just taking care of my flowers and things like that. As sometimes here in the Florida heat, I'm not cooling down all that much, but just letting my body kind of settle back into its normal rhythm and breathing and heart rate and things like that. And it really helps to ground me too. And I think most people do when you've run. You know, you get up and you run and you're like, this is hard. I don't necessarily want to do it. But once you're done, you feel so much better. Like, I'm so glad I did this. It just prepares me for the day. And so I just kind of enjoy that time of recuperation and knowing that even though you think because you've exerted this much energy, it should make you more tired for the day. It actually energizes you and prepares you, especially the mental aspect of it for me, of clearing my mind and releasing some of the things that I might be worried about in preparing for my day. Like I'm maybe I'm not looking forward to this particular thing, but I've said in my mind that I can do this, I can do the hard things. And so we just take the day and we do it. I feel energized rather than depleted. It's really cool how that happens. And I think that's the thing that I when I would encourage people if they wanted to get started running, like you might feel like you don't want to do it, but when you're done, I just can't explain to you the feeling of energy that you will have for that.

SPEAKER_02 40:09

Absolutely. Uh, that's good. Yeah. Do you do any cross-training? Do you have a favorite cross-training activity?

SPEAKER_01 40:16

I don't have a favorite one because honestly, I don't like to do much other than run. But I do. I know that it's important to do strength training. And so I will do that. I try and alternate strength training in my run and running days just because I just enjoy being out in nature and and that time for clearing my mind. Going to the gym is not the same. I don't get the same clarity, I don't get the same energy from it. But I know that it's important to take care of myself in that respect. So every once in a while I'll swim. Okay. But yeah, probably strength training would be the other, the other thing that I do. Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 41:00

I'll try it, try and do. So you just kind of hit on it earlier about somebody that wants to get started running. What is some advice you'd give them? Or if they're coming back from an injury, or let's say that they did fall and you're they're getting back up. What is a piece of advice you'd give them to start running?

SPEAKER_01 41:16

So if they're gonna start running just in general, they haven't run before, uh, go back to that grace. You know, just have grace. I think we're so hard on ourselves just in general. I I think women tend to be, but men can be as well. We have these expectations, whether it's because we see other people or just like, I should be good at this, I should be able to run. But you don't start out running a marathon. You start out by just going a little ways. And so push yourself, yes. But then also don't beat yourself up if you don't get as far as you hope to get and just be present in it and start. Starting is the hardest part, and so just do it, you know. If it means you walk for a little bit and then you run for a little bit and start building your endurance, and then coming back from an injury again, the grace. I think, particularly when we've had previous experience from something, and then we go, oh well, it should be, I should be just as good as I was before. I've honestly done that. My husband and I have done that in our own professional lives. Oh, well, this should be the same. And it's interesting because you read in the Bible in the Old Testament, it talks about them building the temple when they go to build it again. And God says it's this is not the same temple, and it doesn't look the same because they were getting all upset about it. And your race doesn't have to be the same either. That doesn't necessarily mean it's bad if it doesn't look the same. Just means it's different. And change is hard, but different's okay. That's really different. It can be good.

SPEAKER_02 42:58

That that's really good advice. It's a great perspective. Nicole, when things get hard, whether spiritually, physically, out on the run, whatever the day is looking like, is there something that you tell yourself, do you have a mantra?

SPEAKER_01 43:09

Just keep going. And I think that it's important when you look at your motivation, which I think ultimately leads to your mantra, right? When you look at your motivation, you have to know what it is. When you have to do something hard, you have to know the reason that you are gonna do it, regardless. And when I look back to that really dark time in my life, and I go, there were times that I was like, God, I'm done. Like I give up. Like if you took me now, I'm okay. And that it's a hard place to be. But I think people are there more often than they'd like to admit. And what it boils down to is you have to know your why. And my why was my family. And I understand that there are a lot of people out there that have tension. I've had tension. I've had tension with my kids. I've had tension with my husband. There have been times where and at that point in time in my life, I felt like there was tension in all of those areas. But I also understood, particularly as a mom to daughters, I wasn't gonna give up. I was going to show them that I could do the hard things, I can get past the hard times. Because I want them to do the same. And they need to see it from me.

SPEAKER_02 44:29

That is so good. Oh Nicole, do you have a favorite length to run? Whether it's race day or it's uh a mileage for training, do you have uh just a secret sauce mileage that you just love to get out and run?

SPEAKER_01 44:42

It's typically a couple miles. You know, honestly, I can't even get my head in the right. I you know, sometimes think, especially as I get older, that I get ADHD. But I can't even get my mind in the right mindset sometimes. So typically I'll start before I go running. I take my dog around the loop here. And she kind of reminds me of myself sometimes. She's a mutt mix, but she's got some terriers and other things, Jack Russell and her. She just sniffs, she sniffs everything. And walking her around a circle, it takes an eternity because she just sniffs. And I'm sometimes the same way, like, oh, you know, bird, oh, squirrel, oh, rabbit. And just kind of getting myself in the right head space takes me probably a good mile before I even get to the point where I'm like, okay, I'm gonna stop focusing on this and get moving. So usually longer runs for me. And it doesn't necessarily have to be fast. Again, I'll listen to my body, and sometimes I'm like, okay, you need to slow down. Okay, you're really trying to push this too much. Because I find myself doing that a lot where I'm just like my pace just gets faster and faster. I'm like, no, relax. Like, we're not trying to finish this in a certain amount of time, we're just here, and but it takes me some time to get to the point where I'm just like in a pace, I'm just enjoying where I'm at. So I don't do short runs. Typically, three to four miles is what I'll do most days.

SPEAKER_02 46:15

Nicole, when you're not running, what are you passionate about? What fuels your soul?

SPEAKER_01 46:19

Besides my grandchildren, I enjoy being in the garden, like I mentioned earlier. I like to read a lot. Fiction is one of the things I go to when I kind of need to just kind of get outside my world and let go of the things that I'm struggling with. So I I do read fiction, I do read a lot of nonfiction as well. And then I am, as I mentioned earlier too, I'm a creative person. So I don't do it professionally anymore, but really that's part of my time as well to be who I am. I've had to I lost that a little as a mother of young children. So it wasn't until my kids were older that I started to really embrace my creativity again as part of who I am and understand how important that was for my well-being. As much as running is it's part of what I need for my my own well-being, my own mental health. So I'll do a lot of that stuff as well. Being in my room doing pretty much anything creative. I love that.

SPEAKER_02 47:22

Very cool. Yeah, Nicole, this has been amazing. If anybody wants to purchase your book, Running with God, a devotional journey through a race of faith, where can they purchase it?

SPEAKER_01 47:31

Right now, it is only available on Amazon in a paperback or Kindle. So kind of where I've started, and maybe part of that was the fear of not putting it out there too much. But I'm working through that. God's working on me through that. But right now, just Amazon.

SPEAKER_02 47:47

So any final words of wisdom, my friend?

SPEAKER_01 47:50

Yeah, just get out there and do it. Whatever your run looks like. In the book, I started off as maybe your running, right? My running is my communion with God. Maybe your communion with God is being in the garden. Maybe if you're a creative person, maybe it's drawing or painting. But find that thing that, whether you're a Christian or not, engages your soul and your mind.

SPEAKER_02 48:15

Nicole, this has been absolutely amazing. I am so thankful for you and thankful for your book. Thank you for taking the time to be on the podcast and share your story. Yeah, I appreciate you having me. I've enjoyed it. Conquer fear, challenge over fear. There is freedom and running.

unknown 48:40

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 48:40

Nicole, thank you so much for the book, Running. We've got a devotional journey through the race of faith. And whether or not you are a person of faith. That's something that Nicole talks about in this book is that anybody can read this. And it does correlate so much of life and running, so much of faith and running go hand in hand. So highly encourage you to go out and read the book. It's a quick read. And again, running doesn't have to be pretty. And I love how she just kept saying, just be present in the run. Be present in the moment. What a beautiful reminder. And that we get to do this. It's so important. So thank you, Nicole, for writing this book. Thank you for your heart. Thank you for what you're doing in the running community. And we can't wait to see what else you get to do, my friend. And I'm just so thankful that I got to know you more and your story. And thank you for what your family does in the service. Really, really appreciate you guys. And again, thank you to Kyna Gritty for creating such special events like Salute Red, White, and Blue. That race will always be a pretty special race for me and my family. And that's all made possible because of Kind of Gritty. Rhonda's heart is just absolutely amazing and incredible. And I'm just very, very honored to know her and to call her my friend. And I can't wait to see what else we come up with. I'm so excited about the future of Kind of Gritty and the partnership that we have with Rhonda and Kindergritty. It's just absolutely amazing. So, guys, set your alarm July 7th to get that introductory price. You are not gonna wanna miss Salute Red, White, and Blue on November 7th. So just go ahead and mark it calendar. It's gonna be amazing. If you need some hill run training, it's gonna be there. You'll get it plenty that day. I'm so excited. It's gonna be amazing. So come run with us, Kinder Gritty. We're at every step of salute, every mile of tribute at salute, red, white, and blue, November 7th. Very, very excited. And thank you so much, Greg Gilliard from Gillar Tech Services. Thank you for what you do in the training community. Thank you for what you do with Runner Story. Guys, if you need a website designer, definitely check him out. You can find out more information at Runner Story. You can also find out more information at Gail Your Tech Services. Love him, appreciate him. He can help you figure out what it is to tell your story online. So you need a website, he's your guy. Go to him. And thank you to our Patreon family members. Guys, if you're not a Patreon family member, we'd love to have you join us. I hope that our Patreon family members feel loved and feel spoiled. And please know that you matter, you matter to us, and we're incredibly thankful for each and every one of you. So thank you so much for believing in this podcast. You can join us. You can find more information at RenderStory.com as well. Make sure if you're not following and reading the blog that you do, Dave does such an outstanding job. We're so grateful for him and all that he does with his writing on Render Story does a phenomenal job. So make sure you go check it out. Really proud of him. As always, to the Dynamic Duo, Scott, and Stefan, thank you for all the hard work that you pour into Render Story. Very, very grateful for you guys. To everyone who likes, listens, comments, shares, we're incredibly thankful for you. Thank you for your heart. Thank you for believing in this podcast the way that you do and sharing these stories because they matter and we're so honored to be able to share them. Alright, guys, until next time, go to run your story because every story needs to be heard.