Tara Rinke

60K for Heart & Stroke : My Honest Update

At the end of April, I signed up to run 60km in the month of May for the Heart & Stroke Foundation. Run. 60 kilometres. In a month.

Looking back, OMG - what was I thinking!!  That was a lofty goal.

May had other plans for me. It started with my annual girls' weekend over the long weekend which meant I didn't even lace up until the 8th. And honestly? That was the least of it.

This month has been an intensely emotional one. I'm in the middle of a big life transition, and some days the weight of that has been… a lot. Running was never really my thing to begin with, it doesn't come naturally to me, and I've never pretended otherwise. So to take on a running challenge while navigating some heavy emotional terrain? That turned out to be another deep lesson in knowing myself.

What I learned - and I'm still learning - is this: don't add to your plate when you're already carrying a lot. A challenge like 60K for me would be hard on a good month, when I'm rested and resourced and ready to stretch my fitness goals. Doing it while navigating the emotional work I've been doing? That has called for some next level grace.

So I walked. A lot. And on the heaviest days, just getting outside was the win. Some days that was enough,  more than enough, actually. There is something so magical about letting go of perfection and the push to challenge myself and just meeting myself in whatever way I could manage. The fresh air helped. The movement helped. And slowly, the kilometres added up.

I haven't run this the way I imagined I would. But I've shown up as best as I could, honestly, emotionally and truthfully with a lot more self-compassion.

And here's the thing: I'm pretty close, sitting just under 50km with 4 days left. 

I'm going to finish this. Not the way I hoped, but I'm going to finish it.

To everyone who has donated and cheered me on, thank you. You've been part of what got me out the door on the days I really didn't want to go. This cause matters, and so does this community.

Here's to the last 10km. 🧡