Binge Eating Breakthrough
The Binge Eating Breakthrough Podcast is for anyone looking to break through the cycle of binge eating, compulsive overeating, emotional eating and food addiction. No matter how long you’ve struggled or how many things you’ve tried, you will learn the strategies, tools and mindset you need to find peace with food.
Whether you're struggling with binge eating yourself or seeking to support a loved one on their journey to recovery, the Binge Eating Breakthrough podcast offers valuable insights, and expert advice to guide you toward freedom from disordered eating habits. Discover the tools, resources, and encouragement you need to break free from the cycle of binge eating and embrace a way of eating that is nourishing, supportive, and sustainable.
Master Certified Coach Jane Pilger's approach is rooted in the science of the brain and body, trauma-informed, and filled with compassion. Tune in every Wednesday for a new perspective you may have never heard of before.
Binge Eating Breakthrough
What Running the Boston Marathon Taught Me About Chasing Any Goal
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
This week's episode is a little different. I recently crossed the finish line at the 130th Boston Marathon, and I invited my friend and fellow coach Shelby Tutty to sit down with me for a conversation about the race, the journey, and what it actually feels like to reach a goal you've been chasing for years.
But this isn't just a race recap. If you have a dream you've been putting off, a goal that feels just out of reach, or something you've tried before and haven't quite gotten to yet, there's something in this conversation for you.
What You'll Discover:
- What makes the Boston Marathon unlike any other race and why qualifying is only half the battle
- How your brain can quietly shift the goalposts the moment you get close to something you've worked hard for
- A simple framework for taking the first step toward any goal, even one that feels impossible right now
- Why support matters more than willpower when you're going after something big
If you've ever had a dream sitting quietly in the back of your mind that you haven't let yourself fully go after yet, this episode is for you.
Shelby Tutty is a perimenopause educator and coach. Find previous episodes with Shelby here:
If you'd like to read more about the journey to Boston and see photos from the weekend, check out my Substack posts here:
The Road to Qualifying for the Boston Marathon
Race Weekend in Boston
The Boston Marathon Dream Fulfilled
Define Your Food Freedom Workshop
Have you ever defined what food freedom actually means for YOU? Knowing what you don't want isn't enough. It's important to know what you are working towards and to make sure that your definition is supporting you, not sabotaging you.
Join me live October 5th - Save your spot.
Want to know why you struggle with food and what to do next? Start watching The Food Freedom Mini Series today.
Hello, everyone, and welcome to this week's episode of Binge Eating Breakthrough. This week is going to be a little bit of a different episode than usual because as we stand here today, I just got back from running the Boston Marathon. Uh, today is Thursday, April 23rd, 2026. And I just ran the marathon on Monday. Now, instead of me just talking to you for a while about the marathon, I thought it would be fun to invite somebody who knows a little something about the marathon to come and ask some questions and kind of interview style to make this a little more interesting for those of you who are listening. So Shelby Teddy is here with us today. Shelby is a perimenopause educator and coach, and she actually has been on this podcast several times. I will put a link into the show notes. We did a couple of podcast episodes all around perimenopause and peaceful eating, kind of how perimenopause impacts eating. They're great episodes. I will make sure to put a link in those. And Shelby did a similar episode like this when I went to New Zealand last year. So I thought it would be fun to bring her back so we could have this conversation about the Boston Marathon. Welcome to Binge Eating Breakthrough, the podcast to help you stop feeling out of control around food and build trust with your body. If you've tried everything but still feel stuck, you're not alone. I've been there too. I'm Jane Pilger, and I'm here to help you see binge eating in a new way so you can finally break free. Each week you'll get the tools and insights to create peace with food and your body. Your breakthrough starts now. Without further ado, Shelby, welcome back to the podcast.
SPEAKER_00Thank you, Jane, and thank you to everybody who's listening today. I'm really excited about our conversation.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, me too. So uh I'm just gonna turn it over to you. Whatever you tell you.
SPEAKER_00Yes. So for those who don't know me, I grew up in Massachusetts. I spent uh 36 years living in Massachusetts, and the town that I grew up in was very close to the start of the Boston Marathon, which is in Hopkinton, Massachusetts. So the interesting thing about the Boston Marathon is that these runners are not running all through Boston. They're actually running through eight different towns, starting in the town of Hopkinton, which is about 26.2 miles away from Boston. And I grew up in the town next door. So every year come um Patriots Day, which is the day that the runners run the Boston Marathon, which is a very symbolic day in Massachusetts because it was the start of the American Revolution. Um, when that would happen growing up, there were crowds, big, big, big crowds. And if you are familiar with Massachusetts roads, you know that they are narrow. They uh are called paved cow paths because they are so narrow, they're windy, they're twisty, and there's always just one way into a town and one way out. It's a very uh tight structure for the navigation in Massachusetts. So I spent uh every Patriots day at home because my mother did not want to drive and deal with crowds and road closures. Um, so we would clean out our closets. So I always associate Pasta Marathon with cleaning out the closets. So that kind of sets it up a little bit for you. Uh, it it runs through multiple towns of Hopkinton and Ashland, Framingham, Natick, Wellesley, Newton with the infamous Heartbreak Hills, which we'll talk about, Brookline, and then finally Boston. So let me ask you, Jane, when you were running through the area, were you were you aware that you were running through different towns? Could you tell going from one town to the next that it was changing?
SPEAKER_01Well, uh yes, because I actually did a course tour. So I traveled to the Boston Marathon with some friends, Derek and Carissa, who really were integral in me getting to the race in the first place. Uh Caris, this was Carissa's 10th Boston Marathon and Derek's eighth. It was also her 30th marathon overall. And she really, I had a dream to uh to qualify for the to run in the Boston Marathon a long, long time ago, but I really thought that it wouldn't be possible for me. And then I remember talking to Chris about it. She was talking about going back and how much she loved it and how it was so incredible. And I got to thinking, like, maybe, maybe this could be possible. And that really kind of started my journey. Well, it was so amazing having them there because they had done it so many times. And one of the things that they suggested was that we do a course tour. So they have uh both on Saturday and Sunday before the race, you can go out on a bus. They take you on a bus just on the freeway, straight, straight shot to Hopkinton. Then you get out, you can walk around. You got to see the start line, the start area, the the infamous sign that says it all starts here. And then you got back in the bus. This is, you know, a matte picture, just a huge tour bus. Got back in the bus and we drove. We literally drove the the 26.2 miles back to Boston. And the thing that was so amazing about it was that we had the best seats in the house. The picture, the two seats behind the driver of the bus. So literally, I could see pretty much what the driver could see. I mean, full view straight ahead of the course. And what's really neat about it is that on the road, now I didn't see this when I was running, but I could see it very clearly while we were driving on the bus tour. On the road, all along the road, at every kilometer and every mile, is there is painted on the road, there's a unicorn, which is kind of the mascot for the race. And then the number of kilometers or miles that you are on on the course. So that was great as we're driving along. It's like, okay, here's one mile, here's you know, the 5k mark, here's the 10k mark, here's the halfway mark. So we got to see that. The other thing that we got to see so clearly on the bus tour were the signs. So at each town, there is a sign over to the left that that says entering whatever town, Ashland, Framingham, Natick. And and I did not see any of those signs while I was running the race, but I saw them while we were driving doing the bus tour. And Derek and Chris were sitting behind us and they were like, There's see the sign, here we are, now we're entering this town. Um, but what they do at the the other thing they do at the marathon is when you enter the town, they had um, they had big uh like big flags essentially, like very tall that would show the name of the town. So I didn't see the the the sign on the side of the road, but I did see the the big flag. And you could, after having driven and really seeing it, you could see the difference between the towns, but I don't know that I would have really been able to see, notice, or appreciate that without the bus tour and really being told these things and being able to see them ahead of time without just the the crowds of people, whether spectators or runners.
SPEAKER_00Yep. Yeah, and the signs that Jane is talking about, they're actually iconic signs to indicate when you've crossed over into another town in Massachusetts. Those were not erected just for the bus and marathon, yes, but they are very iconic in the way that they look and the information that's on the sign. And when you cross into that town, it becomes really clear like, okay, you're leaving one town and you're moving on to the next. But I can understand how when you're running, you're not going to be seeing those unless it's like this big giant flag that you're like, okay, I'm running into and the next town because there is a wall of spectators that come to watch, and there's no distinction between towns when you cross over. Oh, the spectators, they all look the same with this big wall that's that's uh that's been created from them. Yeah, so um you got to Boston, you stayed in Boston, is that correct?
SPEAKER_01Yes, stayed pretty much in in downtown Boston, pretty close, maybe half a mile away from the from the finish line. So we were just within walking distance of of everything.
SPEAKER_00And had you been to Boston before as a tourist?
SPEAKER_01Well, yes, although I don't really remember it. So I had attended uh a wedding in New York 20, probably 25 years, 20, 25 years ago. And after the wedding, we came to Boston and we spent maybe one night in Boston. I remembered we went to Faniu Hall and I literally remembered nothing else. So I might as well not have been to Boston because I didn't I didn't remember anything.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. So let's talk about um why the Boston Marathon is so spectacular. So as long as I've known you, which is almost two years now, you have had a dream of running the Boston Marathon. And I know it goes beyond how long I've known you. But what makes the Boston Marathon so spectacular and so difficult to achieve?
SPEAKER_01Well, you know, I think I've been thinking about this a lot, and um I I wrote a Substack post about kind of why it's so why it's so amazing and kind of my journey to it. So I'll be sure to link that in the show notes as well for anybody who wants to read that and see some, see some pictures of uh kind of the journey. But there's several reasons. So number one is it's really it's historic. So it is the longest consecutive running marathon in the world. This year was uh very historic in that it was the 130th running of the Boston Marathon, which also coincided with the 250th anniversary of American independence. And so it was really cool to have both of those, um, both of those things happening at the in the in the same year. So you have the history of the Boston Marathon. But the other thing that's really unique about the Boston Marathon is 90% of the runners in the Boston Marathon get there by qualifying. And by qualifying, you have to run a specific time, which is very challenging because uh a lot more runners try to get in than are even able to get into the race. And so because of that, it is um it's it's very difficult. It is very challenging. There are some people who would never be able to run the Boston Marathon based on the qualifying standards in terms of the times. Um, for me, it kind of went from a like, I could never do that to maybe I could do that, but that would take a lot of work. And it and it did. It took a lot of work, it took a lot of other people helping me along the way. Um, the couple I was talking about, Derek and Carissa, Derek actually paced me through two of my four attempts to try to try to get there. And so everybody who is there has, I mean, at any marathon, everybody who is there has their own journey to get there to run 26.2 miles, because no matter what, that is no easy feat. But it's like Boston is kind of like next level between the challenge of the qualifying standards and and running a time that is fast enough, and also then just the historic nature of it with the 130th running this year. And then, I mean, just the way that the people get behind and support this race and the crowds and the spectators. I I mean, it is just unlike anything I've ever experienced before.
SPEAKER_00Mm-hmm. Do they still use a lottery system? So once you qualify, then it goes to a lottery.
SPEAKER_01So the way that they do it for the for the marathon is you have to run a qualifying time, a qualifying time. And a qualifying time is going to be based on your gender and your age on the year in the year that you would be running the Boston Marathon. So you can go online and you can see what those times are. If you happen to be listening to this and you're like, huh, I wonder what I would have to run in order to qualify for the Boston Marathon. You can go look it up. Well, here's the thing though: not there are more people that run qualifying times than there are spots. So this year there were 32,000 runners. It's generally around 30 to 32, 33,000 runners that there's a capacity just because of these small narrow roads that you were talking about. So they're essentially what they do is if you have run a qualifying time within a year, they you basically then are eligible to register for the race. So you register for the race, and then what they do is they go through and they do a whole slew of calculations to say, okay, uh, we have 32,000 slots. Let's say 38,000 applied. This means 6,000 aren't going to get in. And what they do is they they do the math and they figure out a what they call a cutoff time. And so, for example, this year the cutoff time was four minutes and 33 seconds, which means you actually had to run not only your qualifying time, but you had to run four minutes and 34 seconds faster than your qualifying time in order to actually be able to run this year's Austin Marathon.
SPEAKER_00Wow. So, yeah, that I mean, puts it into perspective that this is not a one and done. I'm gonna apply and get in and I'm gonna run. They're very selective about the criteria of the runners. And just because, you know, you've done really well on other marathons and triathlons doesn't necessarily mean that you'll be accepted into the Boston marathon. It is really uh elite as far as the runners that it attracts and the expectations that's set from it.
SPEAKER_01The other thing that's really cool is that speaking of elite, so you also have a huge elite field. I mean, this is one of the major marathons. This is a marathon that really any runner, any of the elite runners have this in their sights of wanting to do well at Boston, whether it is top American or whatever it is. I mean, it it is uh such an iconic race. So, what happens then is that the elite field, both in men's, women's, the um, the para athlete division, just brings the just the cream of the crop of of runners from all over the world, which is also really cool.
SPEAKER_00And I I also saw a diagram which was really interesting about okay, here's the Boston Marathon as far as elevation changes, and here are other marathons, the London Marathon, the Chicago marathon, where I live now. I mean, Chicago is flat, and what they call hills here, I laugh because they are not hills. Growing up in Massachusetts, I know what a hill is, I know what a mountain is, and the elevation changes within the Boston marathon. You've got ups and downs, and then right around the 20-mile mark when you're really pooping out, that's when you get hit with Heartbreak Hill. So tell me about your experience with Heartbreak Hill, which is actually a series of three uh four hills that progressively get harder and harder in the Newton area, which again is about 20 miles in tier race. What was that like for you?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so what's really interesting and unique about the Boston Marathon and the course is it's actually a net downhill. So overall, you run more downhill than uphill or flat, but it's the it's the location of the hills that make it so hard. So, as you were describing, the the main hills in the race are between like 17 and 21 that the heartbreak hill ends right around kind of 20, 21-ish. And but before that, the first three to five miles are literally downhill. I mean, you start with the first, like the first mile is pretty steep downhill, and there are a couple of other pretty significant downhills before you even start running the hills in Newton. And so this makes it really challenging because uh a lot of times when you run downhill, it can be really hard on your quads. And so, what happens for a lot of people is if they let's say they haven't been able, let's say they live in Chicago and they haven't been able to train hills and haven't been able to kind of train their body to run downhill and then be able to go run uphill after that. Um, it can be really challenging. And so um I did a lot of preparing ahead of time. I listened to a lot of podcasts, I talked to a lot of people who had done the race and kind of really thinking through strategy uh because what I really wanted to do was enjoy this entire race. I wanted to enjoy the whole thing, really didn't want to get to a place and just feel like couldn't go or my legs were dead, or I really wanted to just take it all in. And so, because of that, I um I took it pretty easy early on with a downhill. I definitely did some great training runs where I would run downhill, then go run some more hills. So I felt really prepared for it. Um, and so the hills in Newton, I mean, they were challenging, but having seen them on that bus tour was hugely helpful. So at least it's like, okay, I know where they are, I can see it, I can imagine. And then my husband, he took um the train out to near, he basically was close to the top of the first hill and was right around mile 17. And so I knew he was coming. And so I kept thinking, like, okay, four more miles until I see Todd. And I really wanted to be feeling good when I saw him. And so it was so great that he was at the top of the first hill because then I was kind of looking for him. And so the hill itself was was really not that bad. And because I was looking for him and he ended up being further up than I thought he was gonna be, um, I really was almost done with that hill by the time I saw him. And then I was, you know, that was great. Uh, and then the next two hills weren't too bad. And then Heartbreak is definitely it is the it is the steepest hill. I think it's the longest. It's maybe a right around a mile, something like that. But what's so incredible about it is the crowds. I mean, there are so many crowds. They have like uh, I mean, practically a DJ there with the speaker, there's a huge sign, you know, when you get to the top of it, they actually uh the the app where you can track runners and they will send splits. The the app actually tracks your mile up Heartbreak Hill from the bottom to the the top of of Heartbreak Hill. And so because there's so much going on and so many people, and I had really um, you know, kind of conserved myself, I I really enjoyed it. It was great, but I will tell you, not everybody around me was was enjoying Heartbreak Hill as uh as as much as I was, but that all I think the experience of it for me really came from kind of the preparation and the talking to other people and kind of the the strategizing. Because if I had gone in like a typical marathon or hadn't done some of that training, I think, or even driven it to even be able to visualize and see what it looked like. I think it would have been much, much harder.
SPEAKER_00I could see you getting to the bottom of Heartbreak Hill and just breaking out in the biggest smile. I guess I did it. Yes, absolutely. And then you know, like the finish line is coming and you just have to push a little bit further to get to the end, and there it all is. It's all behind you now.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. So the last bit is a little, it's pretty much net downhill. And so a lot of people say if you can get to the top of Heartbreak Hill and still feel pretty good, or even get to the bottom of Heartbreak Hill and still feel feel pretty good. Once you get to that top, it's like then you can you re if you have anything left in your legs, you can really go for it and um pick up pace. So a perfectly executed Boston race would have you get through the hills, get to the top, and then actually pick up your your pace and your speed to the to the to the finish line. And what's cool about the end too is there's the the infamous sit go sign. So there's a huge, yeah, huge sit-go sign that is one mile. It's very close to Fenway Park, and it is one mile from the from the finish line. And so you can see in the distance, you can start to see it about maybe one and three quarters miles, something like that. You know, oh there it is. There's that sit go sign. And then you get closer and it's it's a it's a huge sign. And then you know once you get there, you only have one more mile to go.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_00It's lighted so you can see that baby from miles away.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Um, I'm so proud of you that you did this. I mean, like, it's just it blows my mind what the human body can do and how long you're running and what you're you're challenging yourself. It's just amazing. So I'm I'm gonna switch over in a minute about more of the less technical things and more about how you felt about things and and what you experienced yourself. But I do want to talk a little bit about what it's like to be a spectator. Um, I lived for a while in Natick right along Route 135, which uh all the runners go right in front of the apartment that I was living in at the time. And um, Patriots Day is a working holiday for most people. The schools are closed because it's school vacation week for the kids. But uh I took the day off from work and I was very lucky because all I had to do was uh walk out of my apartment and uh walk up to the main street and stood with a whole bunch of people, and you're just waiting with this anticipation. And uh, where I was, there was a hill first and then a decline. So we're just waiting and watching the top of the hill. And you know, initially you see the first runner and you just get the chills, and it's just like one person with a maybe a few people behind them, and they start to come. And those are usually the elite runners from Kenya and Ethiopia, and they come through, and then it's quiet again, and then all of a sudden, it's like you hear rumbling in the distance, and you see the first crest of all of the runners come and they're in a pack, they're pretty close together because again, this is 30,000 people and uh in a very narrow, narrow road, and they come over and it's just non-stop. And there are people that are dressed in costume, there are people pushing wheelchairs through the rates, like on teary up, just like talking about it. It's so emotional and awe-inspiring, and you're just watching forever as these people are going, and you're feeling that impact of what it took for them to get there and what it takes to get through this very difficult, challenging race. The day that that I saw it on that particular race was the weather was beautiful. What was the weather like for your race?
SPEAKER_01So uh depends on who you ask. If you ask the spectators, they would say it was cold. So it was when we went to get on the buses, it was high 30s, it was maybe 37 degrees, something like that when we got on the buses. Uh, it was probably when we started. So we the other thing that's kind of unique about the Boston Marathon is it starts later in the day. Um, the uh the age groupers start at 10 a.m. We started, I started around 11. And it was probably low 40s, low, yeah, it was probably low 40s, um, which is pretty chilly. And even if I were to go out for a run normally in the low 40s, I would wear tights, I would wear, I might wear a vest, I would wear a long sleeve, I would probably wear gloves. But when you're racing and running pretty hard, that's actually lovely running weather because you're not gonna overheat. So um, people were wearing all kinds of different things. I I wore shorts and a t-shirt. Um, we actually also had a this year we had a tailwind, which is very unusual. And because this is a point-to-point race, I mean, the if if there is wind, which there usually is, it is going to be in one direction for you the entire time. And we actually had a tailwind this year, which um is pretty unusual from from what I understand. So uh so ideal running weather, but quite chilly for the crowds and the spectators. And it was definitely cold when we were before we started.
SPEAKER_00So, as somebody who's tracked the Boston Marathon races over the years, I've seen everything from pouring rain to I think, I mean, I don't know what the highest was, but you know, 60, 70 degrees on some days for these runners. I mean, this this adds another level to the challenge of the race already. So when I checked the weather for the Boston Marathon, I was like, oh good, this is gonna be a good day for people.
SPEAKER_01It really was perfect running weather. And interestingly, it it was pretty cold. I mean, it was cold the whole time we were there, but the day before it rained almost all day. Uh, the one thing I was really bummed about with the trip is we were gonna go to see the Red Sox on Sunday. And the game ended up getting they delayed it because of the rain. They delayed it to like 4:30 p.m. We were gonna go at 1:30, they delayed it to 4.30. And um then it didn't work in terms of timing for dinner and getting ready for the race, and it ended up it raining that night anyway. So we did not get to go to Fenway Park and see the Red Sox, but we were saying when we were standing around waiting for the bus on Monday morning that we were so glad that the sun was shining and it wasn't windy, it wasn't raining, and so that was very, very fortunate.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and in Massachusetts, I mean it could have snowed too. I'm sure there could race days where it has snowed. Yes. Uh, Massachusetts is known for all of their big snowstorms. Yeah, yeah. So um, let's switch gears and I just, you know, want to talk to you a little about a little bit about meeting goals and what that feels like to have met this huge goal that you have had for such a long time.
SPEAKER_01You know, it's so fascinating because this is where I think we have to be so aware of our brains because I've watched my brain, right? It's like my goal was to qualify for the Boston Marathon, to qualify and run, not just run a qualifying time, but actually run in the Boston Marathon. So this was my goal for years and years and years. Four attempts, I finally get there. And what I noticed was leading up to the race, um, I've I've been dealing with an injury for several months now. And I knew I was gonna be able to run the race. I didn't know how I was gonna feel. I didn't know if my injury would, you know, impact me. I didn't know if I was gonna have to walk. My training was was impacted. It wasn't the ideal uh training leading up to it, but but I knew I could cover the 26 miles. Um, but I watched my brain kind of almost like change goals on me, you know. It's like it went from, well, I I like to call this like yeah, but it's like, well, yeah, okay, I'm running, but I don't know, I'm not gonna be able to run as fast. What about my leg? It might hurt, it's not what I want it to be. So it was really interesting to I I had to, I didn't have to, but I watched. I'm I'm so used to uh watching what I'm thinking and how it's creating my experience. And I was so aware go leading into the race of the where I was kind of focusing on what I didn't want, what I uh, you know, what I was worried about, kind of changing this goal, where before it was, I just want to run, I just want to go, I just want to experience it to like, well, I actually want it to be this, or I want to run this time, or I want to just be able to run. Um, so it was really interesting to watch that. And I had to just remind myself that just being there, just going literally was the accomplishment, you know, like, and it I think it's just so common for all of us to want to change our goals. You know, it's like once we reach a goal, we just silently go to the next, we we just kind of push it up to the next one. And it there's kind of like that never, never satisfied, like, okay, I'm just gonna keep going for something else and then keep keep pushing, pushing, pushing. And I really had to remind myself, like, oh, this is it. Like, this is the goal. You are, you are living it right now. And I was watching myself beforehand, some of the things in the places where my brain was wanting to go. I'm like, this is not gonna create the experience that I want in Boston. So I really had to um just remind myself of why I was going, what I had accomplished, how proud I was, and then really decide this is what I want to experience while I'm there. I just want to, I just want to be grateful. I want to have so much fun, I want to soak it all up. I just, you know, really want to be in the moment and not focusing on what is my pace, what is my time, what is my whatever, which my brain can tend to want to focus on is more of kind of like the numbers than the actual experience or the feeling. So that was really interesting to watch going in. But I'm so glad that I had that experience because it made me very intentional about here's what I want, here's what I want to create while I'm there, here's how I want to think about things, here's how I want to show up, how I want to to to run this race and to experience it all. And I feel like that setting that intention really did allow me to completely create that, which was incredible.
SPEAKER_00I love that you went through a very human thought process and were aware enough to recognize that that was not going to be helpful to you and reframed it back to your original purpose, which was to be there, to experience it, to have fun. Because we can get pulled into those. It happened to me today, actually, where I got pulled into other goals uh because I felt pressure. And I'm like, wait a second, that's not what I set out to do. Don't get caught up into the success of it, redefining the success of it because of pressure. And um, you know, that just brings up, you know, your skills as a coach and your skills as a friend and mentor, and how those thoughts are gonna happen. Yes, but it's what you do with them that really make a difference. And, you know, as somebody that I say, you know, you walk the talk, you do what you teach. And that is a beautiful example of that as you've gone through this experience. Yeah, yeah. And I mean, it's just it's just so incredible to be able to fulfill your dream and stick to the goal that you had in mind. And you know, this is it's not easy. I mean, this is just a one example of how you do that in your life.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_01And I do think, I mean, it literally is it's the practice, it's the awareness, it's the awareness of when the thoughts that are running through your head are helping you and are getting you towards where you want to go. And when they're like, oh, if I if we keep riding this train, this may not exactly take me to the destination that uh that I'm looking for. But then when you can see, oh, here's the the train of thoughts that I'm writing, when you can see it and not make yourself wrong, because as you said, we're human. We are all gonna have all of the thoughts all of the time. And so it's not the existence of them that's the problem. It's just what what do you do when you notice that they're there? Do you, you know, so many of us either don't even notice and we're just on the train and we don't even realize until we get off and all of a sudden we're like, well, how did I get here? Um, but the other thing that sometimes we do is we we are on that train of thoughts that are going to take us the wrong direction. And then we make ourselves wrong for being on the train. Uh, here I go again. I can't believe I did that. I know better. I should, you know, I shouldn't be doing this. And then that just comes with its old other, it's like a whole little sidecar train um that takes us down the road too. So I think when we can be aware, see where it's happening, and make that pivot, make that adjustment, that reframe to then just like, okay, well, now we're gonna just get off that train and get on this one, and this one will take me towards where I want to go. I mean, it can be it can be that simple. But we have to be just aware and willing to just know that we're all human and we all have crazy thoughts that come through our heads all the time.
SPEAKER_00Yep. Yeah, so there's a Massachusetts saying the dumbest person at Harvard is still at Harvard. And you know, that how that really like, okay, you're already there. Like it does, it doesn't matter where you fit in, you're there.
SPEAKER_01Yes, yes, and it's so easy. I mean, it will be so easy to compare, to you know, compare to all of the other runners that are there. And I mean, this certainly is something that I've worked with, I've worked through so many times at triathlon is you get somewhere and you start comparing yourself, and you're only comparing yourself to the people who you think are better or whatever, you know, than you, and not even noticing all of the other people that are there. And I will say I really didn't do that this time. I was just like so in awe. I love seeing all of the people, I mean, all ages, all from all over the world, so many different languages, uh, people wearing. So you get a uh, well, you don't get, you can purchase a jacket. There is a a unique jacket, uh, unique colors for every year of the Boston Marathon. And what was really neat at the expo, they had a big wall and they showed a picture of every year. I don't know what year they started doing the jackets. It's been at least, I know I saw a jacket from 2000. So it's been at least 26 years now, uh, where they had pictures of the the jacket and the year. And it was so fun to see people are wearing jackets from previous years. And so you can kind of see um who's been there. And then this year's jacket was similar to to this shirt, very traditional blue and yellow colors for the traditional um for the for the 130th anniversary. But the jackets have been all different colors over all of the years. And so that was really that was really fun to see too. Just people walking around knowing, just like, wow. The other thing that was amazing, and there's so many different stories to tell, but the other the other thing that was amazing was they have what's called the quarter century club. And these are runners who have run at least uh 25 consecutive Boston marathons. And they had they were wearing a bib on the back of their shirt. They they went in the second wave, and I was in the fourth wave. So I passed several of these people, and some of them, as you can imagine, are getting up there in years because they have been running so many. And it showed this is my whatever Boston Marathon. And I I think the the longest one I saw was 46th, my 46th Boston Marathon. And there was a woman who she was wearing the quarter century club um bid, and she had written on the back of her jersey, um, I am 84 years young. Was like, wow, so incredible. And then another one that was just I mean, just so incredible said, I quit chemo to run this race.
SPEAKER_00Wow.
unknownAnd I was like, wow.
SPEAKER_01And when I saw that, I what the thing that came to me was every person here, all 32,000 of us, every one of us has a story, like the a personal story of what it took to get here, whether it was the journey to qualify, whether just being here at the start line, the I mean, just really and just thinking about the individual stories of the masses of people that were out there on the road was just really, really cool.
SPEAKER_00So you had mentioned stories, and and I wanted to ask you. So the other thing about Boston Marathon is that it's known for its grit and grace and its helpfulness of other runners. Um, particularly this year, we had a man collapse right before the finish line, and two runners came up behind him, scooped him up, and helped him over the finish line. Do you have any personal stories you want to share of things that you saw or experienced yourself while you were running?
SPEAKER_01You know, uh nothing specific. I mean, there were a lot of there were a lot of people running together. And so whether it was whether they knew each other, um, certainly uh the para athletes that have a support person with them, um, I think I was I was very aware of a a lot of that. Um, but I don't have any specific stories. I I did see a couple of people who were on the ground who had fallen, and other people were, it was kind of one of those where they were already down and other people were already around helping. Um, so I don't have a I don't have a specific story about that.
SPEAKER_00Maybe the support from the crowd. I mean, oh my gosh, screaming, like we're just constantly screaming as as observers to all of this.
SPEAKER_01The crowd was unbelievable. So two of the places where you run through, you run through um college kind of college campuses. One is around halfway, you you run through Wellesley College, which is an all-female college, and there is um kind of lore of being able to, you know, stop and get a kiss from a Wellesley girl. Uh, and then there's a little bit later on, there's Boston College. And I would say actually, the Boston College, they both, both areas, you know, filled with their just 20-year-old college energy, where they were just so loud. And I would say Boston College probably was even louder uh than the Wellesley College, but you can hear Wellesley coming. There's a right before you get to Wellesley, um, it's a it's a little bit of a more quiet spot, but you can hear like the screams that are you know coming down the road. And one of the things that was so incredible is um Derek and Carissa suggested they said, if you have your name on your bib, they will people will yell at you and they will yell your name. So we got from this um company called Pen and Paces, we got these bibs that you could put your name on. And so I had this um bib that has my my name on it that I just put like in above right above my number bib. And so people the entire way people were yelling, coaching, and also other names of people who also had names on their bids. But it was, I literally felt like people were cheering for me. And then when you would, and then I would also um I was over on the right-hand side and I gave high fives to people are out there like wanting high fives. I have never given so many high fives in my life. I mean, hundreds, hundreds of high fives, and especially in that college area, and they're like coaching, and you're like, Yeah, like responding to them, and then their hands are out and you're giving high fives. At one point, I think it was a Boston College, you start going downhill and they're out there and they're screaming and they're they're giving like hard high fives. And I remember at one point thinking, I feel like maybe I'm running backwards, you know, because I think I'd be like being pushed back with the uh with the high fives. But it was, I mean, it was just incredible. And then at the end, you uh you take the um you know iconic right on Hereford, left on Boylston to the finish. And I mean, it just the crowds are like four or five people deep, so many people. Again, they're yelling your name. Um, and when I made that left turn, I looked over into the crowd and I saw Todd. And there is one of probably my favorite picture of the whole weekend is of me. It's when I can tell it's right when I saw Todd in the crowd, and I was just hands up, like so excited. And I mean, it really was. I mean, the support from the crowds literally unlike anything I've ever experienced at any event I've been at.
SPEAKER_00Mm-hmm.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_00Did you uh I heard the Clintons were there?
SPEAKER_01Did you see the Clintons? I did not, you know, I heard about this uh after the race, but um I did, I did not see them. I did see uh Meb Kafleski. He there were two women who finished pretty much right in front of me. They were wearing, um, they had these little sparkly little unicorn headbands and little sparkly uh tutus on, and they finished right in front of me. And they they I don't know if they were fundraising for him or they knew him somehow, but he actually was putting their medals around their neck. So I got to see him.
SPEAKER_00So that was oh, that's cool. Yeah, and then um the astronaut SUNY Williams. Was there too. She was she is known for running a marathon in space as the first person to run a marathon in space.
SPEAKER_01Amazing. Amazing.
SPEAKER_00So there it's just like like you said, an incredible story for every single person running, including yourself. I mean, what it took for you to get there and you know, set this goal and then achieve it and get through the marathons that you had to qualify and the setbacks of your cow experience and your injury that you've been dealing with this year, I mean, it's just incredible.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_01I mean, it really has been so amazing. And I think it really is that testament of setting a goal and not giving up on it. Like just keep for so for anybody listening, it's like if this, if listening to this inspires you in any way, whether it's running a marathon or anything else, it's like set that goal, tell other people about it, and think about okay, what would it take? What would I need to do? What is the very next step? And just don't don't give up. And it probably will take longer than you think. And it will take a lot of help and support from other people. And and let it let it take how long it needs to take. Let yourself be helped, let yourself be supported, let yourself just learn and grow through it all. And even if you never get there, it's like who you become along the way is it's it really is the most important part. But then if you do get there, and it's like the experience, and I think the experience is only amazing if you allow it to be amazing and you allow yourself to enjoy it and to soak it all up. And I truly think if I had, let's say I had qualified that when I first tried eight years ago and gone to the race, I don't think I would have had the same experience because I would not have had the skills that I do now in terms of that awareness of myself wanting to kind of change the goal or put that new pressure on myself or want something else and not truly be able to just enjoy it and soak it all up and really just give myself permission to just savor it all. I don't think I would have been able to do that years ago. And so for that, I'm so grateful for the length and the journey and everything else, um, you know, that it that it took to get there.
SPEAKER_00That's really beautiful. And that actually answered my last question, which was since I've known you, you have fulfilled two lifelong goals. Starting your triathlon in New Zealand.
SPEAKER_01Yep, that's right.
SPEAKER_00Enjoying the Boston Marathon, and I have fulfilled zero goals, I feel like a slob next to you. So my my question was gonna be I mean, how do you how do you keep how do you make it happen and keep going when you you just feel like it it's it's like success is not guaranteed? How do you just take that first step, not thinking about failure, and just keep keep go getting at it and trying and working as hard as you possibly can?
SPEAKER_01Great question. But first I want to reframe for you where you say you've fulfilled zero goals. I think about since I've known you, what you have fulfilled in terms of the the work that you're doing, your Substack, your articles, all of the people that you're helping, like they may, you may not be out there chasing athletic goals and big events like I am, but there are a lot of things that you're that you're doing in life. So for anybody who is listening to this and feeling like uh lazy or whatever, because you're not out there doing athletic goals, really acknowledge what you are doing and what you have done for yourself because it's probably more than you actually than you actually realize. And even just that, it's like, oh, okay, yeah, I have. So your goals are just allowed to look totally different than anybody else's. Um, so as far as the question, like, how do you do that? How do you kind of uh keep going or knowing that success isn't isn't guaranteed? I really think it is um I think it is allowing yourself. I was actually just talking to somebody, um, somebody about this uh on a call. And this is somebody who has really had a a lifetime of a really challenging relationship with food. And I said, I want you to just open up to the possibility that it could be different for you. Start to imagine what it would be like, what it would be like to have the relationship with food that you want. So whatever your goal is, and I think this is really how mine starts like running the Boston Marathon, like starting to imagine what it would be like to actually go to be a part of this. I do think it starts there, like opening up to uh imagining the possibility, even if it feels like yeah, that's a very slim chance, just opening up, starting to picture, starting to imagine is I think the very first step. Letting yourself picture it, letting yourself imagine it. If you happen to be a person that that has a hard time actually visualizing, it's very common. Uh just imagine what it would feel like. You can do that. You can kind of step into that. I think that's step number one. Then step number two is uh what would what would need to change? What would I what would need to be different in order for me to do that? So let's say with Boston, it was like, well, I'm gonna have to run faster. I mean, really is it? Okay, how am I going to run faster? The next answer for that was I gotta find other people to run with, people who are faster than me to run with. And really, this journey started with that. Was like, okay, so then I reached out to some local people, was like, hey, I have this goal. This is what I'm looking for. I'm looking for people to to run with. Here's about my pace. I'm looking for somebody who's a little bit faster. And then I had other, then I had other people. It took me a while to kind of find great people to run with, but that was it. And that right there was huge in kind of taking that next step. So it's like open up, start imagining what what imagine yourself doing that thing, what would need to change. And then what is like the very just one thing that I would need to do? And it probably will be getting support in some way, whether it's support from somebody who has done it before, whether it's support from somebody who is a little farther along than you are. Um, because the truth is most of us aren't able to really recognize our potential or what we are capable of without somebody else, because we stop ourselves, right? Our brains are like, no, I can't do that. That's not possible. Or, you know, the like something else that just becomes much more interesting so that we don't push beyond our comfort zone. But when we get with other people, those things that didn't feel possible before, it's like, oh, I actually can do this. Or they they tell us a little something that helps us do something that we couldn't do before. And when we can start stacking those things up and celebrating those wins, that's then what starts building us closer and closer.
SPEAKER_00You make it very doable when you frame it like that. I I can I like that feeling of thinking about it as a feeling sense and what that's gonna feel like, and and kind of envision it first and then decide the steps of what I need to do to take to get there. And then one step at a time, just keep working it and keep working it. And you know, some of these things have taken you years, but I've only seen the last part of it, you know, the last years.
SPEAKER_01That's exactly right. And it's so important to know that, right? Because it's like, oh wow, look at look at these amazing things. It's like, but there's so many years. Yeah, definitely not overnight. And and support, I mean, support is a huge part of anybody who achieves any goal doesn't do it without support. So if you are if you are listening to this, you are trying to do something, go after some goal without support, you're trying to do it on your own. Find some support somewhere in this age of the internet. You can find support, you can find other people who are on a similar journey. It truly makes a huge difference.
SPEAKER_00Yes, that is true.
SPEAKER_01Yes.
SPEAKER_00So uh, I guess we'll wrap up. Let me just ask you one last question. Yeah, did you pack your cat and have it yet? I don't even know what you're talking about. For those who don't know, that is Boston. For did you park your car in Harvard Yard? Which is a very funny saying, which lets you really flex on the Boston accent. Um, if you've ever watched the movie The Town with Ben Affleck, you can really hear the Boston accent in there. Yes. Um, not everybody has the Boston accent. Uh, in the area that I lived, which was, you know, in that Hopkinton area, it didn't travel as far. But when you're right in downtown Boston, you grew up in the north end, uh, you diff definitely had a Boston accent going on. But that is the famous did you park your car in Harvard Yard? Just so you can have some fun with the language.
SPEAKER_01So good. Tell us, tell us again with the accent.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Did you pack your cat and have it? Yad.
SPEAKER_01Nice. Excellent. I've I for sure uh you could tell people who had the Boston accent. You can hear it for sure. So yeah, so good.
SPEAKER_00I just funny, a lot of funny sayings in Boston. Bang a Ui. You got your Dunkin', which is Dunkin' Donuts. Yes. Uh, you have um Packies, which are package stores. There's just a lot of a lot of living color in Boston. Uh it's its own little unique community.
SPEAKER_01We did remark uh with the Dunkin' Donuts, there were so many Dunkin' Donuts that we saw that we turned uh, you know, the the traditional slug bug game where if you see a Volkswagen, a BW bug, you you hit somebody on the shoulder. We turned that into Duncan. So we would see a Duncan and then we would we would hit somebody in the shoulder. So that's great.
SPEAKER_00I love that. That's wicked awesome.
SPEAKER_01So fun. The people of Boston were just amazing. It was so incredible the way they really just rallied around um the event, the racers. I mean, we would walk in around before the race, they would ask, Are you racing? After the race, they're just you know, really giving you congratulations. I've I've never been to a city for an event and had the locals just so open and welcoming and just really happy to have you here and to celebrate your journey to get there. It was was truly incredible.
SPEAKER_00And maybe it won't be a once-in-a-lifetime thing, it'll be a multiple lifetime thing.
SPEAKER_01Possibly never say never. I do feel like, oh my gosh, I had such perfect weather that maybe maybe what wanted done is okay. But it also was such an incredible experience. I would not at all be surprised if I didn't want to go back and experience it again, especially maybe with somebody else on their journey, you know, something like that. I I could for sure see that in the in the future, but not next year.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Yes. So wonderful.
SPEAKER_00Well, congratulations, Jane. I am thrilled and tickled that you have done this because you've been talking about it since I've known you, and the day has finally come. I was cheering you on from here, and I was just so excited to talk to you today.
SPEAKER_01Thank you so much, Shelby. I really uh appreciate you doing this. And it's so fun to have your own stories of your history, your perspective, your being at home cleaning your closet and also being uh being out there in in Natick uh cheering cheering along. So the spectators for sure create the experience along with just the uniqueness of Boston and those hills and those roads and and everything else. So I couldn't imagine anybody better to have this conversation with. So um I hope this was helpful for uh anyone listening and uh that you really do decide what goal are you going after? Open up, let yourself really imagine what it will feel like. What and then what is the very one thing, one thing that needs to be different, one thing that I can do? And is there support that I can get along the way? And uh just let it take as long as it takes while you just keep keep taking steps forward. So, all right, that's what I have for you. See you all next week. If you like what you're hearing on the podcast, you love my binge eating breakthrough. Why food isn't the problem and it really is. Discover why willpower isn't the answer. By restricting certain foods often backfires, and why understanding your brain and body is the key to lasting change. Learn to shift from shame and self blame to curiosity and compassion. Get it today at janepellica.com forward slash.
