Today we’d like to introduce you to Rhonda Kirwan.
Hi Rhonda, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
When my then 10 year old son told me he wanted to run a marathon before he was 15 I thought that was an awesome goal… for HIM. I told my friend about it and she thought it’d be a good idea for US. I wasn’t a runner then. I could probably make it around a track for a lap or two but no more than that. Not a runner, not a fan of running, no desire to run, not me. Well… after much debate we signed up for the San Diego Rock n Roll marathon the following June. I found us an 18 week training plan and we went for it. Every run was awful and dreaded. Not my thing, couldn’t wait for this to all be over. Don’t get me wrong, I liked to work out. Needed to workout for my mental health but I didn’t consider running as a workout. It seemed like torture. But laced up for race day and knew that in just over a few hours this horrific run nonsense would be a thing of the past. Battled my way through every emotion for 26.2 miles and couldn’t wait to throw away my shoes! Crossed the finished line threw my arms in the air and told the world “I’m a runner!” and I’ve literally been running ever since. Not sure what flipped the switch but something thankfully did.
My first race was in 2011. Since then I’ve run 4 marathons, 11 half’s, a bunch of 5Ks and a handful of other different race distances. Even tried my hand at a sprint triathlon. But what makes me different or maybe somewhat interesting is I like running challenges and will sometimes create my own based off of something I see online.
In 2012 I ran 1000 miles – I heard some people were completing a 1000 mile a year challenge. I hopped on the band wagon. Because I was doing a figure competition that fall, I ended up running 10 miles a day starting in November to complete the 1000 miles. Those were some rough days. But I’m not a quitter. I set a goal and then do whatever I can to complete it. Sometimes successfully, sometimes not.
In 2013 I became a high school cross country coach AND I decided to run 1 mile every day for the month of September. So September 1st I ran one mile, the 2nd I ran two, the third I ran 3. Get the picture? On day 15 I ran 15 miles, day 16 another 16 miles… September 21 I ran 21 miles, on the 22nd 22 miles and so on and so on. Finally on day 30 I ran 30 miles about 11 miles around a track. 465 miles for the month! And, I had started a streak. Which is actually a thing. There’s a group called the Streak Runners International. To be a part of this group you have to run at least one consecutive mile a day for 365 days. You can run on the streets, trails, tracks, treadmills, wherever suits your fancy but you have to run for a full mile and every day before midnight (your time zone). If you happen to get stuck at a light and don’t want to run around in little circles to keep the run going then you gotta start over. If your shoe comes untied you can’t stop to tie it unless you want to start your mile over. And of course you can run as many miles as you want but to keep the streak alive, you have to do at least 1 mile. Ant there are LOTS of people in this group. However, my first streak came to a heart-breaking stop at 81 days. The September challenge did me in and I had to take a break.
Well, I rested for a few weeks and then came up with a crazy idea. I’d do a GREAT streak! Run 1 mile every day for the month of the year. In January I’d run 1 mile a day, in February 2 miles, March 3 and so on. In November I’d be running 11 miles a day and December 12 miles a day. It’d be challenging. It’d give me something to focus on and test my grit. My GREAT streak lasted until November and I simply couldn’t keep up the big mileage. One of my calfs felt like the muscle was being pulled from the bone whenever I ran. My hubby would tape my leg so that it felt like the muscle would stay against the bone but after a few days of that it no longer worked. I had to pull the plug on the GREAT streak but! And, there’s always a BUT! I kept the mile streak alive. For a few weeks the miles were painfully slow but it was at least a mile and it was a run – one foot on the ground at a time.
In 2017 I decided to run the year. So I ran 2017 miles or about 5 1/2 miles a day. And, I was able to accomplish that. My cross country kids were pretty inspirational during that year. They knew of my goal and kept me on track.
In 2018 I found Pilates. And this actually helped my running. My hip soreness was fading, my knees and ankles no longer gave me problems and I felt stronger. I loved it so much that I became an instructor and now teach Pilates full time.
I continued to run every day. I rarely get sick and any injuries I can pretty much run through. I run to keep my sanity as I used to battle depression but that 10-12 minutes of running every day is like a doctor prescribed drug. Works like a charm, seriously.
It had been a while since I had done a big running challenge so in 2023 I decided to run that “never again” marathon. Wasn’t pretty but it was good to have a reason to run longer and more focused miles. And, valuable lesson learned, never say never. Late in 2024 I decided to give my GREAT Streak challenge another go.
January 1, 2025 marked my 11th year of running at least one mile a day AND I embarked on the 2nd GREAT Streak challenge. So far, so good. I’m up to 5.25 miles a day. And in a few days it’ll be 6.25 miles. I add the .25 at the end of each run just because its 2025 and I want to make sure I don’t short myself. If all goes well, I’ll run 2025 miles for 2025 and probably hit about 2400 miles for the year.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Running is just a thing I do. One mile a day is a no-brainer. I have a treadmill so that makes it easy. When the miles are longer I do like to run outside. Sometimes my schedule requires me to break the miles up. So I might run 3 miles in the morning, teach for a couple of hours, run the remaining miles and then teach again in the evening.
Where I live is very hilly and the streets aren’t meant for runners or cyclists so to be safe I’ll go to a park, a track, down to the beach or somewhere where I can stay off the roads. In a pinch I’ll run the streets but I’d prefer not to. I’ve been in situations where a driver didn’t see me and I’ve had to jump out of the way.
Another weird kind of challenge is keeping track of the miles. I prefer to use the Runkeeper app on my phone. I used a Garmin for a while and one year I simply didn’t track it digitally. Ran naked as they say in the running world. Right now I’m using 2 online trackers cuz I signed up for the Run the Edge challenge and the Run Life LLC challenge. Both have an online tracker that you can either pair your devices with or manually input the miles in. And both of these challenges are to run 2025 miles for the year. You’d be surprised at how many people are into this kind of a thing! You even get a shirt and a medal! I won’t put my medal on until I’ve completed the miles but I’ll wear the shirt since its like getting a race day shirt at a local event.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m a Pilates instructor and Master Trainer with Club Pilates. I also assist my husband with coaching the cross country and track teams at Christian High School in El Cajon. Once upon a time I was the head coach of the cross country team and my husband was the assistant but I took a step back so I could focus on Pilates. He’s now the head coach and I assist. About once a month I take the team through a mat pilates workout. They love it. And, its helped reduce injuries with our athletes.
A Pilates instructor friend of mine and I are starting a Paddle Board and Pilates adventure. So that’s in the works.
Back in the day I had started a run club called Team Rockstar. I met a lot of amazing people in that group and many are still running. They’ve actually started running groups of their own.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
I was not a runner as a kid. Even remember hiding when my gymnastics coach would send us out on a run. I’d get about a half mile from the school, take a short cut, wait for the other girls to show up and finish the run with them. Running simply wasn’t my thing. My son, Cj, he’s a runner. He’s the one who wanted to run a marathon before he was 15. I started running because he had a dream. And, now I run because it keeps me alive. Weird how life works.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @workoutwrhonda
