Quotes from Gina Greenlee

If running a marathon excites you, create space in your life for it. Adding a new commitment means recalibrating different areas of your world. Logging more miles as your race date approaches means less time invested in other pursuits. Not forever, just during the months you train. Too, you will find how training fits into your world serves not only crossing the finish but other areas of life.

Experiment with grounding yourself with who you are, not what you do.

Those who walk the talk get the work.

As long as you're breathing, it's never too late to reconnect with a long-held love.

Opportunity to suspend disbelief is often why we watch movies. The stories and images touch us and shift perspectives in ways we may not allow in our daily lives. As readily as you check your "this isn't real" attitude at the ticket counter – when transformers are defending earth against aliens and 21st century vampires frolic by daylight – on the big screen of your heart and mind train for, run and celebrate finishing your first marathon.

Large bodies of goal achievement research encourage written goals for good reason. When we write down our goals, we transform what we imagine into reality.

If you've broken any promises you've made to yourself, now is the time to make up for it.

Distinguish between getting lost and losing your way. The first is a shift in direction. The second is the absence of perspective. Cultivate perspective and you will be able to steer home.

What's at the core of your desire to run a marathon? Couple this journey with value beyond miles. The meaning you ascribe to your effort crystalizes your motivation and fuels your commitment to stay the course and go the distance.

Be courageous: be still.

This is your first marathon. Possibly, you'll want it to be your last. Focus on future races draws energy from the one in front of you. Like the mileage that comprises them, train for marathons one at a time.

Like flowers blooming through cement, we, too, can grow beyond our cracks.

Advice of all kinds from experienced marathoners can sweep you away. Your training, reading and racing will expand your network and everyone has a story – the best shoes, clothes, energy foods. Don't second-guess yourself or your process. Be friendly, act on advice that feels right for you and leave the rest.

Body follows mind. If the mind compares itself to others this could lead to overtraining. Tune out what other runners do and how fast they run. Tune in, instead, to how your body wants to increase speed and distance.

The goal of your first marathon is to finish. You have no time goal. You're not endeavoring to win or place in your age category. Being a speed demon serves no purpose other than to court injury. Your only competition is you.

Go for it. It will make a great story.

Allow seven months to responsibly train for your first marathon. This will minimize stress to your mind and body and give your existential nature time to incorporate a new way of being.

Diving in IS testing the water.

No need to queue up; step forward and count yourself in.

One of the most important ways for you to train, stay healthy and injury free is to listen closely to what your body tells you.

Life only plants the seeds. It's up to us to help them grow.

All discomfort is not equal. Learning to listen will help you distinguish among effort, fatigue and pain. To what degree, under what conditions and over what period of time your body experiences these sensations will determine how you respond.

The habit of listening and responding to what your body needs – how much, when and for how long whether food, water, rest, sleep or mileage – involves more than anything, willingness. If you are willing to practice – pay attention to signals, honor the signals you receive and train with mindfulness over distraction – then you are well on your way to listening becoming habit.

An unlimited supply of wonder and trust, bolsters life lived as a process of discovery.