Meet Linda, April's #MOTRstrong Most Inspiring Member

As we kick off the 2017 season, we are inspired by the way Linda overcame her nerves and learned to love fitness. Linda was nominated by her St. Cloud/Sartell Moms on the Run coach because of her “amazingly wonderful” ‘Let’s do this!’ attitude.

Like so many busy women, Linda found herself stressed, out of shape and exhausted.  She was looking for a group, and MOTR fit the bill. Having recently gotten her RN and begun a new job, she was particularly drawn to the idea of working out outside, and with a group of other women.
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Linda experienced the self-doubt and anxiety familiar to so many as she began this new adventure in 2015: “I remember the first summer, I could hardly walk to the bridge and felt like I should stop coming because I would hold up the group. I remember sitting on my mat thinking, ‘What am I doing here? I can hardly walk!’ But it felt good to be outside and enjoy the birds sing, and to look at the clouds, something I had not done in a while.” She knew we all have to start somewhere, and it felt good to see she wasn’t alone as a beginner in the walking group, so she kept coming.

“Believe in yourself, invest the time and find a great MOTR group to help achieve your goals. Thank you MOTR and my coaches, Tammy and Terry for believing in me.”

One of Linda’s favorite things about Moms on the Run is the way friendships form across age, stage and fitness levels.  We meet people we wouldn’t have met otherwise: “We do social times, share recipes, work out together and support each other through email and phone calls. We share runner’s tips and have formed a close bond with each other, along with getting the exercise and strength needed to improve our running.”

This summer, Linda is participating in Grandma’s Marathon, something she technically didn’t plan to do, but the story of how it happened is just one more way she is such an inspiration.

Thinking she was signing up for the half, Linda explains she registered in a hurry while entertaining a full house of guests.  “Later after everyone had gone, I looked at my phone only to realize I’d registered for the full marathon!” She contacted coach Tami in a bit of a panic.  Tami planted the idea that if she wanted to do it, she could.  ‘I believe in you!’ she told her.

“The next morning I was going to my son’s house and just thought, how far is a full marathon? I set my odometer and from my house to the bakery it was 13.1 miles. I went into the bakery, and some large, white cookies with beautiful brushed water and ships on them caught my eye. They were pictures of Duluth. Right then, I knew I was ready. My ship had sailed!” 

Linda, our April Most Inspiring Member, on a recent vacation run in the Dominican