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This blog is for anybody who has ever struggled meeting their goals.

Hi. I'm Nicole. 38 years old. Married. New Jersey native, Florida transplant. Productive member of society. Pleasant to be around, or so I like to think.

Add to that list one more thing: breast cancer patient and hopeful survivor.

This blog started up because I became fed up with trying... and failing miserably... to run a sub 2:00:00 half marathon.

My second half marathon ever. I might be smiling on the outside but on the inside I was really disappointed with my time.

Back on September 22nd, 2015, I registered for the Dark Side Challenge, a 10k followed by a half marathon at Walt Disney World in April, 2016. I started this blog right after registering because, in my own words, I needed something keeping me accountable to thinking, training, eating, and sleeping like an athlete so that I could finally achieve that sub 2 half. (Feel free to check out my first post here).

Why is this sub 2:00:00 goal so important to me?

Simple... I WANT TO STOP RUNNING. I'm burnt out on it. Running went from being something fun to being something I was compelled to do.

Why?

It became my chosen purge for an out of control eating disorder. The "Run, Eat, Repeat" cycle did a lot of damage.

But I don't want to stop running without getting that personal record. It would just leave me feeling unfulfilled.

And even though I was so sure the Dark Side Half Marathon was going to be my race, it just didn't happen.

Things continued to get darker for me after the Dark Side Half. Hurricanes. Unemployment. And a cancer diagnosis.

I'm still not giving up on the hope that one day, I'll be cured and on my way to a sub-2 half. But you'll see it's been - and continues to be - a long, uphill battle.