03/21/2026
If you are a woman athlete turning 50 in the next year or two i would invite you to read the below, and even if you are not it is still worth your while to readđ¤
Iâve been sitting with a decision for a while nowđđźââď¸
The kind that feels bigger than a race.
Part of me felt this pullâŚ
Youâre turning 50 next year.
Shouldnât you do something big? Now?
There was a quiet pressure in that. Like a clock was tickingâ°
But when I slowed down, and really listened to my body, my life, my nervous system, something shifted.
What if 50 isnât a deadline?
What if itâs an arrival?
Instead of asking, âWhat do I need to prove before I get there?â
I started asking, âWho do I want to be when I arrive?â
MoreâŹď¸
Grounded.
Balanced.
Regulated in my energy.
Fully able to hold the things Iâm stepping into.
So this year, Iâm choosing the 5K distance.
This allows me to build in a way that supports my whole life. To focus on depth, refinement, consistency⌠and taking care of my nervous system along the way.
Because that matters.
And the bigger vision?
It hasnât gone anywhere.
If anything, itâs getting clearer.
Iâm looking toward my 50s not as a slowing down, but as a stepping into.
Into being stronger.
Into endurance.
Into experiences that ask more of me, because Iâm ready for them.
That includes the longer swims.
That includes becoming an ice swimmer, even if the path there isnât simple right now.
Iâm not giving up on any of it.
Iâm just choosing to build a foundation strong enough to hold it allđ¤
Because I donât want to rush into something big.
I want to rise into itđ
So if youâre feeling that pressure, around age, timelines, or what you think you âshouldâ be doingâŚ
Maybe pause and ask yourself:
What if this isnât a countdownâŚ
but a becoming?
For me, this next chapter is clear.
My 50s arenât about limitation.
Theyâre about expansion.
One stroke at a timeđđźââď¸