Author: bmdeas

Brittany Deas is a physical education teacher by day and an avid reader and children's picture book author by night! She lives in Ohio with her wife, Kait, and their dog, Cash. Brittany has always been told that she has an active imagination and a strong empathy muscle so she loves to write books that are fun and silly that also have a moral or message to them. While she does not illustrate her own books, she is actively looking for an illustrator to collaborate with to make her books come to life. In 2013, Brittany had her first book published with America Star Book called, "It Came from Behind the Dryer" which was loosely based on a true story. As of July 2020 she has a second book published by Austin Macauley Publishing called, "Awesome, Amazing, Wonderful, Incredible, and Fantastic" which is about friendship and gratitude. She is looking for representation for her next project, "I Want to Know Everything".

My Running Team

On By bmdeasIn fitness, half marathon, running, teaching, trainingLeave a comment

On the days when running seems impossible, it always helps if you have someone to keep you accountable and motivated. This could be their team or their coaches. For some, they might not have a “team” in the traditional sense of the group taking their positions at the starting line with you. Their team might not ever cross the finish line, but there still is the team, the group of people who keep you going and help out any way they can.

My First Teammate: When I started running for fitness in college, I was never image1all that concerned with competition or running a race and trying to get a medal. It was all about my health and fitness. Being a PE teacher, I always think I would be a hypocrite if I was preaching to my students about needing to be up and active if I wasn’t doing it myself. I had hit a plateau in my running when I first talked to my best friend, Melissa, about my agitation. She was the one who suggested that we train for a 5k. Although we didn’t always train together on our runs, we Skyped weekly to give updates on our progress. She was the first person to ever hold me accountable and I consider her my first teammate and the first person to ever cross a finish line with me. She is the reason I got hooked on running.

My Coach: I still considered myself a novice runner when I met my “Coach”, Lori. A year older than me, at that time she had already completed four full marathons (currently she is now up to six). We talked often about running and I was constantly asking for help, tips, and advice. Running had become my new sport and I need someone like Lori to help me image1 copyout, especially because she is what I would consider an expert. Even though she runs faster and longer than I do, because of her motivating me and encouraging me to try longer and harder races, I have exceeded all of my own expectations. While I thought I was content on being able to run 5k’s, I can now say I am a half marathon runner. I swear I will never beat her at any of the races we do together (which is a lot) but I wouldn’t mind coming in close behind her.

My Cheering Section: There has only been a handful of races in the past four years (which is how long I have been running competitively) where I have not had anyone there to cheer me on. I consider my cheering section to be an important part of my team.

  • Mom: My mom, Gina, Often brings signs to my races saying, “Run Pretty”, or “Go, Bert!”. She is always ready to take pictures and drive me home after a long race and maybe even stop for breakfast with me.
  • Dad: My dad, Craig, comes to as many races as possible and has gotten up early to drop me off at races so I can run home. After my first half marathon, he was the first person to come find me and give me a high five and a hug. I believe his words were, “Give me some of that!”
  • Kait: Kait is my best friend and one of my biggest motivations. She has always told me that I can do any race at any length and has even volunteered me for races I didn’t know I wanted to do. Texts from her mid-race make me run a
    After completing my first half marathon on June 7, 2015.
    With Kait after completing my first half marathon on June 7, 2015.

    little more at ease and she does her best to help me out when I’m done with the race. That’s love, right there.

  • Nate: Lori’s husband who is always at the races with us and is kind enough to provide some comic relief in the stress before a race and also hold my keys and waterbottle when no one else in the cheering section comes to watch. He has even offered to come to races for me when Lori isn’t running.
  • Chelle and Pam: The first race they came to see me in way my half marathon and they drove everyone around to see me and Lori during the race. They also make sure to make it to some of my other sporting events as well.

My running team is very important to me and I appreciate every single one of them and what they do for me. I’m a better and more confident runner all because of their support.

I can’t say that I think running is an individual sport, because it isn’t. Obviously there are running teams ranging from the middle school level to professional level but for those of us who are not or have never been on a traditional running team, you have to know that you still have that support system. There are people in your life that even though they won’t be next to you on the course, they are there when you finish, and that is just as important.

Still an Athlete

On By bmdeasIn fitness, half marathon, running, teaching, trainingLeave a comment

If you would have told me a year ago that I would not only have completed my first ever half marathon but was also in the midst of training for a second, I would have laughed.

Growing up, I hated running. It was boring. It was hard. It’s not to say that I wasn’t an active kid, it is just that there were other ways that I preferred to induce sweating and an elevated heart rate. I have always played softball and was involved in basketball until high school. I love outdoor activities like kayaking and rock climbing and hiking. I always had an interest in fitness and exercise which was one of the reasons I decided to major in physical education in college.

Although I was having great success my freshman and sophomore years of school, there was one major difference from high school; I wasn’t on a team anymore. From the time I was five playing t-ball to the time I was 18 playing softball for my high school, I was always a part of a team and no longer having that group to fall back on was difficult for me and my fitness was struggling too.

I realized that I needed to find something to do that was active. I wanted to continue feeling like an athlete. After being denied a spot on BGSU’s club softball team (twice), I decided to try running.

I’m not going to lie, it was a tough start. I had good days and I had bad days. Days when running seemed to come so easy and I could bust out two miles to days when one mile seemed like a marathon. I wasn’t about to give up. I still wanted to be an athlete. This was about the time I voiced my concerns and frustrations with the sport of running to one of my best friends, Melissa. She listened to what I had to say and then simply said, “Let’s run a 5k.”

Looking back, That was just what I needed to fall in love with running. I had something to train for, a goal to look towards. I had a training buddy and someone to keep me accountable. We crossed our first finish line together on October 4th, 2012 at a time if 29:16 and I’m not afraid to admit, that she actually finished first. We celebrated, as any athlete should, with a trip to the apple orchard to pick apples.

I was hooked. In 2012, I ran a total of two 5k’s. In 2013, due to a surgery, I was only able to run one race. I bounced back in 2014 where I was able to run ten 5k’s and I also completed my first 5 mile race in which I came in first in my age group on a course where you ran through corn mazes, cow barns, and fields with tall grass and mud that I was warned would “suck your shoes off your feet if they aren’t tied tight”.

In January 2015 I set a goal that I would run a half marathon. The name of the race was the Lake Health “Hill Yeah” Half Marathon. If the name doesn’t give it away, the course was super hilly and pretty daunting in the moment. I was able to finish the race in 2:20:32. Looking back, I know it is one of the greatest accomplishments in my running career so far.

Training for my second half marathon, which will take place in October, is currently underway and thus far I am feeling faster, stronger, and more confident in my running. It is amazing how quickly your body adapts if you push yourself. It is also a great feeling when you can say to yourself, “Oh, it is just a 3 mile run” when exactly a year ago today, 3 miles was the ultimate max you could run.

Every runner has a different reason for running. I’ve come such a long way with my health and fitness in the past year and I feel more like an athlete now than I did when I was on a team. I have committed to a training schedule and make sure I plan around it, much like others would plan around a practice schedule. I think a lot of athletes will agree it is hard to give up that title. This is one of the reasons I make it clear to the middle school students that I teach that EVERYONE is an athlete, maybe they just haven’t found their sport yet.