By Ambassador Lindsay McClelland

We’re less than two months out from race day, so I figure it’s appropriate to share my appreciation for the Chevron Houston Marathon, the committee staff and my fellow ambassadors. The Chevron Houston Marathon is a fantastic race and I LOVE the fact that the ambassador program allows me to share my experiences with the running community.

When I moved to Houston from Honolulu, HI almost two years ago, I wasn’t quite sure how to start building my network. Finding the Houston running community gave me access to an amazing network of people who share my passion for running. I’ve found that these people really have become my second family and that’s something that doesn’t come around everyday. We celebrate birthdays, running accomplishments and pretty much any excuse we can find to raise a glass, but we also work hard to reach our goals.

Post-race with some AWESOME runners!

I recently had the incredible opportunity, thanks to the Houston Striders, to hear CRO (chief running officer) of Runner’s World, Bart Yasso speak. Yes, that’s the guy responsible for those 800 workouts we all love (8 x 800s = Yasso 800s and a great predictor of your marathon time…read more here). Hearing Bart speak was inspiring, he’s run just about everywhere on earth, but the key message that resonated with me was the importance of the running community. Every race he told a story about had a greater message–the support system and inspiring power that a group of runners has.

When it comes to my experience as an ambassador, I’ve been pretty blessed. The other ambassadors inspire me, not to mention keep me accountable for my own training. It’s also been extremely rewarding to see that I’ve inspired other runners in the community and share what I’ve learned in an approachable way with runners that may be looking to run their first full or half marathon.

Me and fellow ambassador Heather.

So thank YOU for reading and for running! The running community wouldn’t be a community without runners. What’s your favorite thing about the running community? Send me a tweet to @LindsayLM to let me know!

About the Author: Lindsay McClelland
Lindsay is a 26-year-old PR & social media professional at MMI Agency in downtown Houston. About a year ago, she moved to Houston from Honolulu, HI to be closer to her fiance. While she does miss living in paradise, she’s fallen in love with her new city and it’s countless opportunities. She loves everything active, outdoorsy and fitness related. Her hobbies include running, crossfit, hiking, yoga, reading, dining out, writing, and traveling. She is a former collegiate swimmer and still loves to coach!  Lindsay has run seven marathons and more half marathons than she can count…she’s even dabbled in a few triathlons. Here in Houston, she trains with Kenyan Way. She comes from a very active family. Her father is also a runner and the Houston Half Marathon was his first half marathon ever, she had a blast sharing the experience with him last year. Her mom is a former professional ice dancer and is obsessed with tennis.
Twitter – @Lindsaylm
Instagram – @lindsaylm