Lauren Barhorst

Hi! My name is Lauren Barhorst and I am a Sophomore in college working toward a Bachelor's Degree of Science in Business Administration with a focus on accounting. Outside of classes, I have a passion for running.

Back in high school, it seemed that everyone participated in some sort of fall sport. Being the busy-body that I am, I wanted something to keep myself occupied. I had heard good things about cross country including that they had pasta parties every Thursday. That was enough to sell me, so I joined my Junior year.

The first practice was a hot August day and we were expected to go for a 40 minute run. I made it not even 10 minutes without needing to stop to walk. As race season approached, I feared the thought of having to run a 5k. My entire first season, I had to stop to walk at least once during almost every race except for the very last one of the season. When I made it through the whole thing without walking, I felt on top of the world.

When my senior season ended, I was so sad for it to be over, but I continued running almost every day. Now, almost 3 years later, it continues to be a huge part of my life.

Almost every day, I tie up my running shoes, start my watch, and run for at least an hour. It is an hour a day that I spend all to myself. I let my mind wonder as my feet carry me.

I love running so much because it gives me a sense of accomplishment each and every day. There may be a million things in my life that I feel I cannot handle, but each day after that one hour, I have something to be proud of.

If you would have told me 5 years ago that I would be running at least an hour almost every day, I would not have been able to even imagine it. It is crazy how much that decision to join cross country changed my life. I thought it would just be something fun to do in high schoo, but it ended up changing my lifestye. I never would have thought it would give me something that is so important to me.