Prologue

An exclusive excerpt from my unfinished manuscript:
Sometimes endurance training takes on a more significant role in the lives of runners than just training the body to handle physical challenge. It quietly assumes the role of mental toughness…something we all face a need for at different times in our lives. Our society, culture, and the media have taught us to respect the discipline of modern medical practice and while statistics certainly come into play, it is important to remember that the critical evaluation of many different angles, is ultimately what leads to answers that make sense. As we navigate through a world where technology has taken over, we can only improve and move forward by considering what is happening right in front of us.

My mom died when my son was 2 weeks old; we buried her the day before Mother's Day in 2008. I was 32 years old at the time, and being just 2 weeks post-pardom, it was a confluence of miracle and loss. She was a breast cancer "survivor" as they say, because she lived more than 5 years after undergoing chemo and a mastectomy. But chemotherapy was ultimately the poison that caused a different cancer, a blood cancer called AML, Acute Myeloid Leukemia. In the spring of 2007, when I was in the hospital giving birth to my daughter, my mom was in the hospital too, a different one...Jeanes (Fox Chase Cancer Center) in Philadelphia, receiving a Bone Marrow Transplant. My family lived it. I lived it…with a newborn. Then, when my daughter was 6 months old, I found out I was pregnant again. Throughout my second pregnancy, I treasured the time I spent with my mom (then several months post-transplant), and the time she got to spend with my daughter. Silly me for not knowing what was yet to come. With a big belly, a little girl, and as much strength as I could muster up, I drove my mom back and forth to appointments at Fox Chase. My mom was on the road to recovery, or so we thought. Then, little by little, month by month, the side effects from the transplant manifested. She spent the last 5 months of her life in the intensive care unit. I was supposed to have a scheduled C-section, but I went into labor 2 weeks early. I like to believe she held on just long enough to know that her new grandson was born and we were all okay. She died 2 weeks after Joe was born. Hindsight makes me wonder why he was early. Two weeks early. She never met Joe, her namesake. My daughter was 14 months old at the time, but I didn't have time to feel sorry for myself because now I had two beautiful children to raise. We donated the umbilical cord blood for both of my children to the National Bone Marrow Foundation. Six weeks after that second c-section I found my way back to running, and 6 months later, my sister Ann, my sister-in-law, Kim and I raised over $6,000 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. We ran the Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco, CA to honor my mother in both 2008 and 2009. The Nike Women's Marathon is the largest fundraiser there is in support of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. My family is certainly no stranger to running, my brother ran track for Villanova University back in the '90s, and my dad was one of the founders of the Pagoda Pacers Athletic Club in Reading, PA, back in the early 1980s. I learned a lot about myself during my runs, and a lot about what is most important in life. Now, I have an obsession with wellness, balance, and happiness. In the article, 10 Easy Ways to be Healthier and More Balanced Now! I talk about how these factors directly correlate with nutrition and disease. For even more inspiration, turn on your computer's volume and watch the video clip to the right of Ann, Kim, and me at the Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco.

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Kate Murray is a web & graphic designer, creator of Vogue Media & Managing Partner of Triumph Virtual Media, an e-marketing strategy firm in the suburbs of Philadelphia. Her dynamic style is influenced mostly by her family, but also by her travels, 10+ years in the corporate financial services industry, and by her ability to genuinely connect with people. Kate has the unique ability to introduce aesthetically pleasing design alongside innovative programing to create a user interface that is both beautiful and functional. She received her Master's of Business Administration in 2003 and her Bachelor of Science in Communication in 1996.