Hearing Your Stories: Lana Rodriguez
'The feeling afterwards — mind, body, soul — is what keeps me going'
Morning, friends! ☀️ Before we get into today’s interview, I wanted to remind you that we’re running a race together in person this fall, here where I live at the Atlanta PNC 10-Miler on Sunday, October 19.
👉 Get all the details here and sign up for the race here.
Now, without further ado… today we hear from Lana Rodriguez, a longtime THM reader whose life has taken her on a journey from small-town Texas to a career in the U.S. Navy, and now back to Texas where she lives with her family.
She played all kinds of sports growing up, but didn’t take up running until the mid-2010s because (like a lot of us, I imagine!) she dreaded doing it whenever coaches asked her to. Fast forward to today and she has learned the value of finding things out on her own, and discovered a joy in running she never thought possible.
I know you’ll enjoy her story as much as I did — and, if you feel inspired to share yours, please know I’d love to hear it. Reply back by email or in the comments below, and we’ll go from there! — Terrell
So, let’s hear a little bit about you! Who are you, your age (if you’d like to share), where you’re from, what you do, etc.
My name is Lana Rodriguez. I'm from a small Texas town, Hearne, Texas, which is close to College Station, Texas, home of the fightin' Texas Aggies- whoop! I currently reside in Brenham, Texas, home of Bluebell ice cream. I am 44 years young, and feel as if I'm on my fourth or fifth life now.
Two months after graduating high school, I shipped off to Navy boot camp and did nine years in the U.S. Navy where I worked with a couple of different weapon systems on ships in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and San Diego, Calif. Towards the end of my Navy career, I went to school at night and became a licensed skin care therapist, totally changing career paths.
In 2009, I moved back home to Texas with my two very young children, and worked two jobs while going to college at Texas A&M and graduated in 2014 with a degree in Communication and Journalism. (I was the first person in my direct family to get a college degree, and still the only one so far.) I have written for some small Texas-based magazines and also for the college of liberal arts at Texas A&M.
In 2015, I (finally) landed a federal career with the U.S. Department of Agriculture as an HR assistant, and over the last 10 years, I've worked my way up to become a Supervisory HR Specialist.
I have two children, my daughter is in college at Stephen F. Austin in Nacogdoches, Texas, and my son is a senior in high school this year. My husband and I also have four Yorkies — Rossi, Coco, Audi and Nico. I love to travel but do not do it often enough.
What does your running routine look like? How many times a week, and how far do you run?
Currently, I only run on the weekends — Saturday and Sunday, and I do four to five miles each of the days. I drive to town — I live about eight miles outside of the city, and it's not a safe area to run because of a gravel road and busy highway — to a nice park to run or go to the gym if the park is packed with sporting events or pouring rain. Light rain never stops me from running outside!
Were you an athletic kid growing up? What are your early memories of what fitness and health were about?
I was very athletic growing up, but did not like running at all. Running was my least favorite part of training. I remember dreading it!
I played every sport, but spent most of my time devoted to softball. I played little league, and in junior high and high school. My family did not have money to let me play in the leagues that cost money. The position I played was catcher, although I did play third base sometimes.
I also played while I was in the Navy on my ships' teams. Other sports played: volleyball, basketball, golf and track (high jump). I was always doing something, never sitting still. My mom played softball when I was very young and had my sister and I at the softball fields most weeknights.
How did you first get into running? Was there something that inspired you — like a performance at the Olympics, for example, or a runner you discovered by watching them on social media or TV? Or was there someone in your own life who inspired you to think, ‘maybe I can do this?’
I was inspired by one of my cousins. She has run full marathons in many cities, including the Boston Marathon. In 2012 and 2013, I was going through a weight loss journey — I have always struggled with weight and being bigger than my siblings and cousins — and was very active in a local gym.
I was working with a trainer, and I kept hearing about how much fun people would have at races, and signed up for a Thanksgiving Turkey trot 5K. I had a friend and her husband that encouraged me and said that they would do it with me. I did it and had the best time.
Ever since that race, I've done at least a dozen 5K races, several 10K races, and three half marathons. I plan to do another half this December (the BCS Marathon) and a 5K each in September, October and November (the Gourdy's Pumpkin/Fall Runs.)
How has your interest in running evolved since then? Do you run farther, or faster now?
I have ran further since that first 5K. I have not, however, been interested at all in a full marathon. Running makes me feel so good — If I miss my weekend runs, I feel “off.” Not complete, or something like that. I think a lot when I run, and even listen to my entire church services on Sundays when we do not attend in person.
What do you balance your running with? Do you have a family to take care of? Kids, parents or other relatives or loved ones? If so, how do you balance all of it and still make time to run/care for yourself?
I have a family. My son is a senior, and my job is very mentally intense and exhausting. I blame this for [my] not running during the week. Once I get off work (6:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.) I just do not feel that I have the energy to run.
I am looking for ways to overcome this feeling of fatigue and make myself go and get in some runs after work during the week. I'm hoping if the weather cools off in the upcoming months that I will be more motivated. It's been pretty toasty here in Texas, and the hottest time of day also coincides with the time that I get off of work.
My family knows that I run on the weekends and they let me have my "me time" without question. My son has done one 10K with me, the Bluebell Fun Run. He said he was miserable. He plans to join the military next year, so maybe after he runs more, he will eventually love it too. (Maybe? LOL)
Is there anything you’re especially proud of that you can point to your running and say, ‘this helped me achieve ______’?
Running helped me achieve weight loss goals many times over the last years. It's helped me achieve physical endurance and mental clarity — most every weekend.
What have you learned about yourself from your running journey? Is there anything that’s changed about you since you started?
I have learned that with minimal training that I can run 13.1 miles — a thing I never thought possible more than half of my life.
My body also remembers that I can run that far, so if I can get my brain and breathing in check and on board, running isn’t hard at all. I also learned to love running, versus thinking it was horrible, and how much it does for my mind and soul, not just my body.
Where would you like to go with your running? Is there anything special you’d like to achieve — like, say, running all six World Marathon Majors, or running an ultra?
I would like to do another half marathon each year. I have slacked off and not done one in a couple of years. I would also like to travel and do some runs in other places.
What keeps you going? Especially if you’ve been running for a while — do you ever get bored with it? How do you find new things to motivate you, to keep you going?
The feeling afterwards — mind, body, soul — is what keeps me going. As mentioned previously, I feel "off" or incomplete in a way if I do not get in at least two runs a week.
Look back at yourself when you were a kid, maybe say 10 years old. Remember how you felt, what you thought, especially what you thought you were capable of back then. If you could talk to that kid now, what would you say?
I would tell that kid to be more open minded. At a young age it's easy to take what others say, do, think and feel, and let them influence you, positively and negatively.
It's better to experience things and make your own opinion of them. That’s how you break generational curses — you do better, learn and grow outside of where you grew up, so that your children and their children will do and be better!
Explore more from THM
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Really enjoying reading this series and learning all the different ways people have come to running and why they do it.
I love this Lana ,what you would say to your younger self: "It's better to experience things and make your own opinion of them. That’s how you break generational curses — you do better, learn and grow outside of where you grew up, so that your children and their children will do and be better!"
This really resoantes with me.
Go get that marathon!! Cheering you on.