What can you finish, but still not be done?

I promise I’ll get to the riddle - but first, a story.

On Thanksgiving, I ran our local “turkey trot,” properly named the Flying Feather Four Miler because it bypasses the traditional 5K and takes runners on a 4-mile course through our neighborhood and metro park.

I’ve been an endurance athlete since my mid-twenties. My twenties were about triathlons and my one-and-only marathon. My thirties led to half marathons and eventually 5Ks. Then I stopped running in the throes of early motherhood. My forties led me back to the track - but not in the way I would have anticipated.

In 2020 (the year I turned 40), my oldest daughter, Mary Beth, decided to join our church’s cross country team. My husband not only signed her up, but casually mentioned, “Oh, I checked the box to say you can help coach the team.”

Oh. Did you really?

Coaching turned out to be a gift. It meant I was out on the paths and trails at every practice, often serving as the course “sweeper.” I got to know the kids and families, and it gave me meaning during the strange, lonely days of the pandemic and early self-employment.

One of the best parts was that Mary Beth and I started running local 5Ks together (see the photo montage below!) From 2021–2024, we raced steadily - clocking an impressive number of events. But once she joined the high school cross country team, school races took precedence. Once again, I found myself on the sidelines as a spectator.

Flying Feather Four Miler through the years

Enter 2025: not one race entered. No Columbus Blue Jackets “finish on the ice.” No Ohio State “finish on the 50-yard line.” No regrets either - I kept my fitness up (yes, I hopped on the weighted vest trend).

But the Thanksgiving race is tradition. We’ve participated since 2019, so when the first email landed in my inbox, I signed up.

Then came the choice.

At my current fitness level, I knew I could run-walk the race - or even jog it slowly. But that’s not my style. If I’m going to show up, I’m going to actually show up.

I found a 5K training program on the Peloton app and started it in early October. And here’s the key part: I followed it exactly.

No adapting. No swapping workouts. No “making it my own” - which, if I’m honest, usually leads to not finishing at all and wondering, What would have happened if I’d just followed the program?

This time, I did.

On race morning, I still had one workout left - the 5K warmup. On the walk from the high school parking lot to the start line, I played it out loud, embarrassing Mary Beth as I launched into lunges and high knees among the other runners.

I ran one of my best races that day.

When I got home, I opened the Peloton app to see my badge for finishing the program - but it wasn’t there. It read: 23/24 workouts completed.

How was that possible? I’d done the warmup. I’d run the race.

Then I realized the program included a final workout: a guided 5K run with the instructor. That was what earned the badge.

A previous version of me would’ve let it go and moved on. Not this time. I actually wanted to finish something.

So on December 6, I hopped on the treadmill and ran the 5K. Badge earned.

As I ran that “race,” I found myself thinking about the year ahead. I plan to return to triathlons and have a goal to compete in two events in 2026. I immediately wondered whether Peloton has a triathlon training program.

And that’s when the riddle came to me:

What can you finish, but still not be done?

You can finish a program, a course, a book, a vacation. But you’re never done learning, growing, connecting, or getting stronger - physically or mentally.

This time of year, I often remind my audiences, clients, and myself that January 1 isn’t a magic day. Yes, the year ends - but we are not done.

Celebrate. Reflect. And don’t let the turning of the calendar halt your momentum.

Lately, I’ve talked with many people who want to completely reinvent themselves in 2026. I’m all for reinvention. And - I’m also mindful not to abandon everything we’ve built so far.

My biggest lesson of 2025?

Just. Keep. Going.

As you head into the new year, I invite you to sit with the question: What have you finished—and where are you still not done? If you’d like support figuring out what “just keep going” looks like for you, I’m here. You can also begin that work through my book, Let Her Out: Reclaim Who You Have Always Been. You don't have to have it all figured out to take the next step.

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