Name: Martha Shedd

Age: 45

Profession: construction manager

How long have you been running and why do you do it: I decided to start running 7 years ago at my 20-year high school class reunion when I realized I had not yet accomplished enough in life. I hadn’t cured cancer or set foot on the moon. Those things seemed a little out of reach at this stage in life so I thought, why not a marathon? I believe the statistic is 1 percent of the population completes a marathon in their lifetime. I decided that was an elite group I wanted to join.

Do you prefer to run alone or with others: Currently, my schedule is such that running alone is sometimes my only option. It does give me time to decompress, to spend time working on issues in my professional or personal life. I do always wear my iPod and can usually be heard singing some vintage Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin or Rolling Stones. If I keep my mind entertained, the body will follow. I do prefer running with others especially on the 3- or 4-hour long runs. There is only so much soul-searching a person can do without going bonkers!

How often do you run and how far: Right now, I run 6 days a week. When I am not training for a specific race, I usually back it down to 4-5 days with cross training. I try to maintain a long run each week of at least 10 miles throughout the year. I run about 40 miles per week now, which will increase to 50 per week by April. I also swim at least one day a week and take a cycling class with Tatiana (featured in November’s INstride) at the Y on Saturday mornings. If you can live to tell about one of her classes you have arrived, and done so with a smile on your face!

Tell us about training for the Boston Marathon: When training for any race, I pick a schedule from some running expert and stick to it. I am using Hal Higdon’s Boston Bound Marathon Training Plan for this race. From my very first marathon I have taken the approach that if I diligently follow a plan I will be successful come race day. It has worked so far and this time I am counting on Hal’s plan! Go to www.runnersworld.com to find a great training plan.

Is this your first Marathon: Boston will be my 9th full marathon. My first (and 7th) marathon was Chicago. When I decided to sign up, I asked a colleague (Mike Lewis, editor Bedford Times-Mail and Boston veteran many times over) if he thought I could run a marathon. He said go run for an hour and a half this weekend and tell me how you feel on Monday. It was slow, really slow. I was sore but felt ok and 12 weeks later enjoyed the best day of my entire life as I completed the Chicago Marathon in 2003. There is really no better rush than a million people cheering while the adrenaline and endorphins carry your mind and body through every feeling and emotion you can imagine. There is usually a big party at the end!

What tips would you give someone looking to start running: Find someone else who is a runner or is at least interested in becoming one, preferably someone who is a little faster or more committed. It is much harder to skip a training run if someone is waiting for you. Running with a stronger runner or someone with just a bit more commitment will help push you through the times when you want to quit. It will be tougher but will be helpful in the end. I would say, (and have to many!) you can do it. It probably won’t be fun when you start but very quickly it will be the activity you look forward to—and not just pencil in, but etch in stone as part of your daily life.

For me, it works if I tell myself that my running schedule is no different than my job. If I feel well enough to go to work, then I am well enough to run.

Best lifestyle change in the last five years: Thanks to Margie Kobow and the rest of the gang at the Monroe County YMCA, cross-training has been the best thing for me. I took a triathlon training class last summer and added biking and swimming to my routine. That made all the difference in the world in how I feel, not only when I am running, but when I am sitting at my desk. Adding variety to the workout schedule really helps to cut down on monotony and helps with motivation. I think the best compliment someone can give is “When do you sleep?” I have so much more energy now than I did before I started this lifestyle.

What is the best health/fitness advice you’ve received/given: I recently read the book “Born to Run” by Christopher McDougall. In it, he talks about how all of us ran as kids and somewhere along the line we stopped. As children, running, and every other physical activity, was always fun. It has helped me to think about that and to realize it should be fun and has become fun again! Not unlike gardening should be “playing” in the yard instead of “working” in the yard, exercising shouldn’t be a “work”- out but perhaps a “play”-out! The best advice is to keep it fresh and fun. That way you will always do it.

What motivates you: Newly discovered muscles! In the past few years of running and cross-training I have lost weight, gained muscle and feel much better. Although that was not my original goal, it is rather motivational when someone says: “Have you lost weight?”

How do you stay driven: I have to have a goal to stay driven. I actually qualified twice last year for this year’s Boston. I missed last year’s Boston cut first by 59 seconds and then by 29 seconds 13 days later based on their rules of entry. I needed only to wait until I had another birthday to gain entry. That seemed so anticlimactic that I trained harder this summer than I ever had because my goal was to qualify at the 35-year-old age group at the age of 45. Even when not training for a race, I keep a training schedule. A schedule is a promise to me that I will not compromise.

What inspires you: I feel like a motivational speaker when I start talking about running. Nothing inspires me more than for one more person to stop smoking and/or to start running. To see someone accomplish a personal goal that I helped them set simply through my enthusiasm is the best inspiration for me to continue. Two of my coworkers, Martie Vandeventer and Cara Lewis, ran their first half-marathons in November and are hooked!

Who inspires you: My friend Betsy Greene likes to give me credit for her running accomplishments. I have not taken one step for her—I just suggested she try running since I was having so much fun with it. Two years ago, I was worn out with the rigorous schedule of training and was headed back toward couch potato status. I had made a promise to Betsy years ago that the only way I would ever train for and run another marathon was if she did. She signed up for one, giving me a renewed sense of motivation.

Are there special places where you draw inspiration: I am inspired by those that persevere despite physical disabilities. At races, I frequently see runners with prosthesis. This generally falls at a time when I think my personal pain is unbearable. It is easy to become inspired and to minimize your own personal pain when you see someone who has to dig so much deeper, yet they somehow still do. I often think of people in those situations when on long solitary training runs as well.

What three words would you use to describe how you feel after a run: In James Brown voice-over, “I feel good!” I recently gave this advice to a friend who was running her first marathon. It is completely true! It will be the most fun you have ever had. It will also be worse than anything you have ever done. That part will pass and come again and pass, etc.... When those agonizing parts sneak in I try to remember all the miles on the treadmill or in the snow, 10-below zero, or 90-plus degrees with equal humidity and how I only have an hour or whatever left to savor the experience that I have been working toward for many months. Think of the people that don’t have it in them to even try. Think of the fact that less than 1 percent of the entire population of the world completes a marathon and that you are now in that category!

My favorite motivational thoughts:

You have a choice. You can throw in the towel, or you can use it to wipe the sweat off of your face.—Gatorade

What distinguishes those of us at the starting line from those of us on the couch is that we learn through running to take what the days gives us, what our body will allow us, and what our will can tolerate.—John Bingham

I race in order to dig deep within myself and see what I’m really made of.—Maggie, Runners World