/runnings
I started running in my hometown back in mid-2018, just to get fitter for football (or soccer). The first 5K was painful and awkward, but I kept showing up, and one day I caught my first runner’s high . After that, I was hooked, and little did I know that a year later I’d be lining up for my first half marathon in Florianópolis.
Running is a big part of my life now, and I have no plans to stop. It’s much more than fitness: it’s resilience, mental health, exploration and friendship. In 2022 I ran my first 21K trail race and loved it. Mixing running with nature views is something else.
Right now I’m preparing for my second full marathon, and lately I’ve been a little too curious about the ultra world. Who knows.
I keep this page as a running log, part record for me, part open notebook. If any of it gets you to lace up, even better.
Follow along on Strava .
all time stats
this week
Jul 6–12 · 0.0 km · 0 runs
past races
marathon After my first half, doing it all over again sounded impossible. That feeling only faded once I crossed from 21k to 25k in a trail race. The first real step was just deciding, and signing up. The preparation was harder than I expected, and I learned it matters more than the race itself. I didn't prepare 100% like I should have: I skipped some weekend long runs and did almost no strength work. My goal was under four hours. It all went to plan until 30k, on schedule and feeling good, and then the REAL race started, just like everyone says the marathon begins after 30k. My training had topped out around 30k, so from there I was in unknown territory and kept getting slower. At km 35 I made a bad call: I thought I could lift the pace and hold it to the end, so I pushed with confidence, and 500m later I broke. Cramps in both legs, in spots I'd never cramped before. From there to the finish it was just slow suffering, but I never stopped and came in close to 4:30. I didn't hit my goal, but crossing that line was more special than any race before it. I even found a sprint in the last kilometer, carried by the crowd cheering. The end of a long journey, and only now do I understand it.
trail My first time going past the 21k barrier. I prepared really well for this one and it paid off: I felt good the whole way, so I just enjoyed the beaches and hills of the north of the island. I finished close to three hours, about the same as my other 21k trail races. After this one I knew I was ready to start training for my first marathon.
road By this point I was really comfortable with half marathons. I went with two friends running their first ever 5k and another friend doing the half with me, though we lost each other right at the start. Inside the tunnel my GPS dropped signal, so the splits make me look faster than I really was. That tunnel had a DJ at one end and a "scream" spot at the other, so of course I screamed. Another good race day with friends.
trail A friend from my hometown, an avid trail runner, called me four days before this one. His partner for the 42k duo in Bombinhas (a beach city about two hours from Floripa) had gotten injured, and he asked me to step in. I said yes and showed up with almost no preparation. The course was gorgeous, long beaches and beautiful hills, and I got to discover a whole new beach town through the race. It was REALLY hard with no training, and this time the cramps came way before the finish, but I made it. My friend is such a strong runner that we still took third in our category, so on top of the medal it was my first trophy. I had to head home right after, so I missed the podium, but we had a beer on the beach just past the finish line.
road My third road half marathon. Not my best time, not my worst, but a good one. I was short on training and on shoes! In the end, so worth it, as always.
trail My first trail race, and my first race back after the pandemic. It started at Santinho beach in the north of the island, and the hills and sand hit hard, a completely different challenge from asphalt. The trade-off was seeing trails and corners of the island I'd never seen before. The last three kilometers ran along a coastal cliff. I was so tired by then, but the view was stunning. Cramps hit in the final kilometer so it was painful, but crossing the line I knew I wanted to explore much more of the trail run world.
road My second half marathon, same year as my first, but this time I went with five friends. It came together almost spontaneously: four of them were first-timers and one was a strong runner. We made shirts and showed up. Our strong runner finished first woman overall, which was kind of crazy. I ran a great time, and everyone not only finished but all came in under two hours. It was a beautiful sunny day, and we spent the rest of it at Matadeiro beach. For sure one of the greatest days I've had in Florianópolis.
road My first official race. I almost missed the start, couldn't find an Uber, so I slipped in just after the gun. I wasn't fully trained, but I'd run the distance once on my own, so I knew I had it. Running the empty downtown avenues was something else, especially the seaside stretch. I wasn't watching my pace, so finishing under two hours was a happy surprise. At the end I asked a stranger to take a photo of me with my first half marathon medal. Thank you, stranger.