1/2 Down and Miles To Go
Withum 300 is the firm’s health and fitness program, where participants are challenged to run 300 miles or more over the course of the year. The group was created in 2014, with just over 40 participants. Now five years later, we have grown to over 200 team members involved with this group. Each month, we plan to have one of our team members share their stories and motivations.
First up, we have Dana Yu, a staff accountant based in our Boston office. Although Dana’s been with the firm since November 2016, this is her first year participating in the Withum 300 program. This month, we sit down with Dana to discuss her health and exercise goals, and what prompted her to join the group.
First and foremost, what made you decide to join Withum 300?
I may have kind of forgotten about Withum 300 (whoops!), but had mentioned to (long-time participant) Krysten Hambrook that I signed up to run a marathon in 2019 and was going to be logging a lot of mileage in the next couple months. Krysten then enthusiastically reminded me that Withum 300 exists and that I should definitely sign up to make those miles count for something!
What is your running goal for the year?
I have two main goals for 2019. My first goal is to run a faster half marathon and the second goal is to complete my first full marathon! I’m signed up to run one in July near Seattle, WA!
Has anything surprised you as you’ve started training for your first full marathon?
When I signed up for my first half marathon, I was still swimming for my college team and figured that since I was a college athlete, I obviously didn’t need to do anything extra to prepare for the race. I think my longest run before the half was maybe 5 miles (if I’m being generous). Race day came around and I crashed at mile 9, ran/walked the remaining 4.1 miles, and was carried to my car after I finished the race. I definitely learned my lesson and I will never run a race without training ever again!
What motivates you to run and exercise?
I’m definitely motivated to run/work out by the long term goals I’ve set for myself. More often than not, all I want to do after work is flop on my couch and spend some quality time with Netflix. But then I remember that I want to run a faster half marathon and complete a full marathon which makes me realize that I need to be spending quality time with my running shoes instead. The feeling of accomplishment immediately after working out doesn’t hurt either!
Do you have a running routine?
For now, I’m just trying to build a solid running base before I really get into marathon training. I generally try to run 3 times a week (currently dependent on the delightfully chilly New England weather) and some form of cross training 3 times a week. Once I start training for the marathon, I’ll probably try run 4-5 times a week and cross train twice a week.
Where do you run?
I generally run along the Charles River either in Cambridge or on the Esplanade in Boston! It’s a great running path that I can customize mileage wise depending on how long of a run I am trying to get done. It’s also a great route if I want to see some gorgeous sunsets and sunrises!
That’s incredible! Is there anything else you’d like to share?
I don’t have any hardship stories but it is great that Withum donates 50 cents for every mile [to the Staff Hardship Relief Fund], regardless of if people reach 300 miles or not. It allows me to put my miles to work even if I don’t quite make the goal of 300.
Thank you, Dana, for sharing your story!
For those of you interested in our group’s progress, in the month of January, our runners completed over 4,500 collective miles, which means that over $2,000 is being donated to Withum’s Staff Hardship Relief Fund.
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