How a local mom is training for the OUC Orlando Half Marathon
From Paris to Tokyo, Berlin, Chicago and Detroit, a local mother has literally run all around the world.
Right now, she is gearing up to run one of her favorite half marathons, the OUC Orlando Half Marathon on Dec. 2.
But even with all those miles under her belt, this race could be one of her most challenging yet.
That's because this year she now has three kids under age 3, having twins mere months ago.
We met up with super mom Gabrielle Russon to find out how she was getting ready for race day.
"I've been running since my 20s. I fell in love with it. The first 5K I did and I've been running ever since," Russon said.
She showed WESH 2 her medals from marathons.
"These are my marathon medals. These are my half and 5k medals. I'm not sure how many halfs I've done, but I've done 25 fulls," Russon said.
"This is probably my favorite race. I did the Berlin Marathon in 2019, and my husband proposed to me during the race," Russon said. "He was cheering for me on the sideline, and I run by him and he grabs my hand. I kneeled down and I was like, 'What's happening?' I was so surprised."
"I have a 2-year-old son. And in June, I gave birth to twin girls. Rosalyn and Brooklyn, and my son is Boomer," Russon said.
"I had a C-section June 22," Russon said. "I needed to wait until I got the OK from my doctor. And then in August, you know, I started out very slowly, walking a mile and then move a little faster, then go two miles running and walking. I did a 5K in August with one of the Track Shack races. And I'm now on running five miles."
Russon shared her routine for preparing for the half marathon.
"I have to get up at 5 a.m. while everyone's sleeping and go run around Lake Eola. That's how I'm doing it," Russon said. "I do the OUC half every year because it's a local race and it just, you know, doing a hometown race you have to do it every year."
"It's just a celebration. Everyone cheering you on, and you feel good about the community being out there," Russon said. "It's kind of my comeback race. OK. That's really exciting to me. But it's also running is really important. I'm a freelance writer, I have three kids, you know, it's a lot of stress. It's a lot to juggle. And when I run, I feel free. I feel centered, it brings me joy. It's my me time. It's just really special."
"There are hard miles, and then they're easy miles and fun miles and you just take it all in stride," Russon said.
Russon said running means a lot to her.
"I get chills thinking about it. It's going to be really emotional thinking of the finish line and how much it means to me and how I went from having a C-section and, you know, not feeling so great and worried I'd never be able to run again. And then just taking it really slowly and kind of getting my mojo back," Russon said. "And I think when I think about what running running means to my family, I want my kids to know, to be healthy and active. So I hope they'll be there when I'm crossing the finish line."
Russon is also training for a full marathon in London in April.
You can run with Gabby and Team WESH on Dec. 2.
Registration is still open for both the half marathon and the 5K.
As a special for WESH 2 viewers Track Shack is offering a discount for anyone who signs up for the Lake Eola 5K.
Use the code WESH2 for $7 off the 5K registration. The code is valid through race day.
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