I completed 3 marathons in 3 days at elevation in the Sierra Nevada. It was an incredible event. I started training in April and it’s hard to believe the experience was almost a month ago.

Prior to this, I hadn’t even run one marathon. The furthest distance I’d gone was a half marathon and that was about 15 years ago.

Now, I’m not suggesting you sign up for an ultra-endurance event but there is real value behind signing up for an event that is several weeks/months in the future and you commit yourself to the training.

There’s no reason you cannot set a goal and take steps to reach it.

Start Now, Start Small to Build Healthy Habits

Starting a journey toward better heart health can feel overwhelming, especially with busy lives and packed schedules. But the truth is, heart health improvements don’t require radical overhauls. Instead, they come from small, steady steps that build momentum over time. The first and most powerful thing you can do for yourself is simply to start—today. Think about the smallest thing you can do that aligns with heart health: a brisk ten-minute walk, swapping out a sugary snack for a piece of fruit, or spending five minutes practicing deep breathing to lower stress. It takes time to build healthy habits. These little actions add up.

It only takes 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week, which breaks down to about 20 minutes daily, to make a real difference in heart health. The beauty of starting small is that it’s sustainable. Once a habit is formed, it becomes easier to increase the intensity or duration of your activity. The key is consistency, even if the steps seem tiny at first. 

Tracking Progress for Heart Health

One of the most motivating aspects of improving your health is seeing tangible progress. When it comes to heart health, progress might not always be immediately visible, so tracking is especially helpful. Whether it’s through a journal, a fitness app, or a simple checklist on your fridge… keep track of your efforts. For the 3 marathons/3 days event, I printed off the training plan and crossed out each day’s activity as I completed it. That paper stayed in the middle of my desk the entire 6 months where I saw it constantly.