Pounding the Pavement For a Cause: Clinton Hill Woman Runs For Her Sake, Others

Like many people, Clinton Hill resident Kelly Thompson, 34, started running for the most basic of reasons: to stay in shape. 

Thompson said she's always been a runner, but on the most standard level. "I would do three miles and that would be my workout."

But that mindset changed after Thompson participated in the Tunnel to Towers run with friends. "It was the most positive experience; People cheer for you and cheer you on," she said. 

After that experience, she said, she decided to strive for more and signed up for the January 2013 ING Miami Marathon. Thompson registered for the marathon in October, giving the self-described "novice runner" three months to train for the 26.2 mile trek.

And for those three months, she trained extensively, running in and around Clinton Hill and Fort Greene. Finally, the time came, and wearing a tutu and a shirt with the words "Go Kelly!!!" scrawled across the front (Thompson said the more unique the running gear, the more cheers of encouragement from onlookers a runner will get), she went for it. 

"I ran it and I finished it," she said. "And I finished the race with perfect blood sugar."

While that might not seem like a huge triumph, it is for Thompson, who has type 1 diabetes— the more rare form of the disease, as only 5 percent of people with diabetes have this form. "I don't know that many type 1 diabetics," she said. "I've been doing injections for 20 years."

Though having a condition that is not entirely understood has been a part of Thompson's life for two decades, she isn't without concerns. "Running scares the hell out of me sometimes," she said. 

She recalled a time two summers ago when a woman passed out on Washington and Gates avenues while running. A physician's assistant, Thompson stayed with the woman until an ambulance came, but unfortunately the woman did not make it.

"She was fit, she was in shape, but she had a heart condition that she never knew about," Thompson said. "I still think of her and that was a big motivator, to see someone healthier than you... I knew I needed to do everything I could do to get in better shape."

And while running comes with a world of uncertainties, Thompson said its also where she is most calm. "I get into a zen zone," she said. "You get to think out your day. I find peace when I run."

This Sunday, April 14, Thompson will find peace once more: she is participating in the More Magazine/Fitness Magazine women's half-marathon in Central Park, a setting she said she's wanted to run in for as long as she has been running.

"I'm excited to run just amongst women," she said. More than 10,000 runners and supporters are expected to come together to celebrate the 10th anniversary race of the largest women's-only half-marathon.

"I just feel it's supportive," she said of a women's-only race. "I'm not part of a running group, but I like the idea of a collective. I like that idea of camaraderie."

Though Thompson isn't part of a running group, she said she hopes to form one soon. "My favorite moments [running] were when I ran with my friend," she said. "We talked, gossiped, ran and had a good time. I feel like that conversation makes [the run] fly by."

There are many runners in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill, she said, but forming a group would bring the runners together. "It's hard to meet new people and I feel like there's a ton of people running, but we're all running alone." 

She encouraged any runners interested in creating a group to email her directly. "I would love to start one right away," she said. 

Until then, however, she has plenty to prepare for. After she completes Sunday's half-marathon, Thompson will participate in the Brooklyn half-marathon on May 18, work to secure a spot for the New York City 2014 marathon and begin working to qualify for a spot for the 2014 Boston marathon.

To qualify to participate in the Boston marathon, she said runners must raise $4,000 for a charity of their choice, and Thompson will be raising money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, a foundation that is clearly close to her heart. 

"Potentially, there's a cure," she said. "I hope that in my lifetime, there's a cure."