Nita Sweeney started running at 49, and it started with sixty seconds of jogging in a hidden ravine with her dog. She was severely depressed, out of shape, and convinced her neighbors would laugh at her. She's now a marathoner, an ultra runner, and the author of Depression Hates a Moving Target.

We go all the way back: an Ohio farm childhood, a father who measured everything, a law career that eventually broke her, and the year she couldn't work at all. Then the Facebook post from a high school friend that got her off the couch, and everything that came after it.

Nita talks about why she needs a race on the calendar to keep moving, the three things she checks whenever she feels off, and why the running community turned out to be nothing like she expected. If you're at the beginning and wondering whether it's too late, start here.

Nita's website: https://nitasweeney.com

Her books: Depression Hates a Moving Target · Memorial: The Year My Dad and I Stopped Keeping Score · Make Every Move a Meditation

Everything from the show: https://linktr.ee/evanblakeney

Instagram: @evan_blakeney

Follow the show so you don't miss the next one, and come say hi on Instagram @evan_blakeney.

This episode includes discussion of depression, suicidal thoughts, and psychiatric hospitalization. If you're struggling, you can call or text 988 in the US to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, any time.

Just Keep Running is hosted by Evan Blakeney, a runner figuring this out alongside you. Nothing here is medical or coaching advice.

Episode Tags

running, beginner runner, marathon, ultra running, mental health, depression, couch to 5k, running community, Nita Sweeney, running coach, meditation, starting running later in life

Until Next Time: Just Keep Running