Bringing in over 50,000 runners, the Chicago Marathon is a huge international race on a flat course that takes place on the second Sunday of October every year. Lisa Arsenault, one of Santa Fe’s counselors, was one of the thousands of runners.

Arsenault has been doing distance running for about 10 years and had a goal of running a marathon to celebrate turning 40. 

It’s challenging to get into the marathon, as it features a lottery system, which gives participants a one in three chance of being selected for the race. After Arsenault’s friend convinced her to join the drawing, she was shocked to find out later that she had been selected to run.

“I honestly did not think I stood a chance of getting in—Chicago is a world major, so people will enter the lotteries for years and not get selected,” Arsenault said.

Arsenault started training for the marathon in early June. She ran two half marathons, the Little Rock and OKC Memorial Half, to prepare for the race. Besides running, she lifted weights to keep her strength up. She also had a strategy to train smarter and conservatively to avoid any injuries, which included slowing her pace and staying consistent.

To stay motivated during training, Arsenault reminded herself that the race day would come whether she was prepared or not, and that this is a goal she really wants. She felt that once she put in the work, she would want to be able to do it. Her kids also kept her motivated as she wanted to teach them an important lesson: stay consistent, even when days are tough.

“I also wanted to show my children that you can still set goals and reach them, so I felt like if I didn’t give it my all, I wouldn’t be sending them the right message. I am a working mom, so there were definitely days that I was exhausted or wanted to skip.”

During the race, Arsenault’s first ten miles were amazing. With the excitement of the race and the crowd, the beginning miles flew past. Following her strategy, she decided to slow down to save her energy for the rest of the course. The crowd showed out for the runners and supported them until the very end. Arsenault had never experienced that kind of crowd support, despite her seven half-marathons.

“The different districts in Chicago also have various things going on for spectators and runners—Irish bagpipe players in a heavy Irish area, dragon dancers and drummers in Chinatown, dance performances or music was playing in several different areas of the city.”

Arsenault’s dad is from Chicago, so it was exciting for her to see a different perspective of the city. Her family and friends were her biggest supporters, and her husband was even a part of the crowd. 

When she hit mile 20, she experienced something called “hitting the wall”. Hitting the wall refers to a point in the race when you run out of all your energy. She texted Santa Fe’s nurse, Brooke Elliot, who has paced several marathons, for support. 

“She reminded me that hitting the wall is normal in a marathon, and that I already had over 20 miles behind me. All I had to do was focus on my training—hydrate, fuel, and take it one mile at a time,” Aresnault said.

Since this was a very emotional part of the race for Arsenault, seeing her husband throughout the race was very helpful. He took trains to take him to points across the course, so she was able to see him multiple times. 

“My favorite memory is when I stopped to hug my husband around mile 24. I told him it was getting painful, but that I knew I would finish. He told me that I was almost done, and that the next time he saw me, I would be a marathon runner.”

Crossing the finish line left Arsenault with a feeling of relief. She was in disbelief after the difficult, emotional, long and injured run that she got through it. She was more in shock that she had just run 26 miles and enjoyed it. She finished the race with a time of around 5:00:36 and is ready to beat it next time.

The support didn’t stop at the end of the race either. She came back to Oklahoma with cards made by her kids and a decorated office by other Santa Fe counselors.

“They have been the most wonderful support system and I am so grateful to work with these women.”

Arsenault also came back with knowledge about the aspects of running not just physically, but mentally. She found that staying consistent, believing in yourself, giving yourself time, not giving up and realizing that the race is your own will carry you to the end. She also associated the lessons she learned from running with students’ personal goals.

“Learning doesn’t come easy to everyone—but with time and effort, you really can learn anything. The same with any other goal—whether that is to learn a new skill or achieve something you used to believe is not possible for you.”

Having conquered the marathon’s excitement and relief, Arsenault offers our students a lesson in persistence and effort. This experience is a reminder that the best way to face any intimidating challenge in life or in the hallways is by focusing on the next step.