Becky Wheeler is taking on the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon, traveling all the way from the UK! We can’t wait for Becky to experience The Greatest Spectacle in Running on May 6! Check out her Why I Mini story below to learn more about Becky, her fitness journey, and her advice to other participants.

This is my first Indy Mini. I have driven down through Arizona back in 2006, but this is my first proper trip to the States.

A few years ago I joined a Facebook Running Group and got to know quite a few other members. We would comment on each other’s posts, it helped a lot at the time. I became great friends with one particular member and our friendship has grown over the years. I passed a comment one day about coming to visit him and the family and that is what has brought me to the States now. He loves to run too, has done numerous Half Marathons and 12 Full Marathons, he’s completed the Indy Mini several times too! For me to come from the UK, I didn’t want to stay for just a couple of weeks. I’ve needed a good long break for a long time and haven’t taken a holiday for a number of years, so decided to take a couple of months off and come to the States for 7 whole weeks. I’ve been here now for just over 2 weeks, so still have a long time to go.

I completed the Carmel Half Marathon last weekend and have signed-up for the Kentucky Half as well as the Indy Mini. All these races will be run with my best friend Ryan Rivera who I’m staying with and who has helped to totally transform my running!

As you can see from one of the photos, I used to be alot larger than what I am now. At 5’2″ and 196lb I knew I had to try and lose some weight. Over the following 9 months I lost over 60lbs and that is when my love of running started. I started off hardly being able to complete 200m, but I wasn’t going to give up on it so just kept going, increasing the distance as much as I could. I started going to the gym and loved that too and it helped alot. I took on my first race, a Half Marathon, about a year later, that was back in 2018 and I haven’t looked back since! I’ve got no idea how many Half Marathons I’ve completed but have also taken on 5 Full Marathons, the greatest of which was completed the London Marathon last year, it was one of the best days ever! Have attached a picture of that day too. Like alot of other runners, I’ve suffered injuries and setbacks, but the love of running will never stop and I will always try to do what I can. I’m not where I wanted to be for this trip, but nothing will stop me lining up on that Start Line in May!

Everyone’s running journeys are different, but I would always say set yourself achievable goals especially when you’re starting off, a goal you know you’ll be able to reach but something that will make you work, this will help with the motivation of wanting to achieve more, you’ll keep thing what you could actually achieve. You need to also set a long term goal, like your first race or hitting a certain time.

Derek Savick-Hesser, April 2023

In 2021, I made the choice to up my running game and take on my first ever half marathon, and since then, the Indy Mini has been a staple of my yearly training plan. Why? Because the event has continued to provide a way for me to keep connecting and continue growing as a runner and person.

In fact, as I head into my third Indy Mini this year, I have begun to recognize the many lessons I’ve learned throughout my Indy Mini seasons.

Running is a Team Sport

As I amped up my training for my first Indy Mini, I ran the streets alone almost always. But, I realize now just how many friends, family members, and community supporters were rooting for me. Even on the virtual race day, my partner and I were dropped off by a dear friend who was there to cheer us on at that finish and celebrate later that day. This support only grew as I joined my first in-person Indy Mini. I saw a vast group of diverse participants and spectators who were there for one purpose – to finish together. That day, I knew that although I had to journey the course on my own, I had an entire team backing me up and wanting nothing but success for me and everyone else around us.

Resting is Essential 

Entering my second Indy Mini training season, I was ready to crush my goals. I was going to run 5-6 days a week, implement at least one day of cross training, and boost my approach to nutrition. Just one week into the new year, I was faced with extreme muscle fatigue, restricted breath, and more. Soon after this, I was diagnosed with COVID and would experience prolonged symptoms impacting my muscles and joints. As I continued to try pushing myself to achieve my steep goals, I experienced elevated levels of pain. Finally, I built in time to pause. I stretched, did yoga, walked, and even just rested. As I continued to focus on those moments of pause, I began to heal, and I began to focus on gratitude for my ability to move. Come the morning of Indy Mini race day, I was full of gratitude and ready to just be in community with other participants. Turns out that rest paid off…I was able to PR and exceed my goals thanks to my moments of pause heavily integrated with moments of activity.

Seeing Beauty is a Choice 

Every time I run the Indy Mini, I am reminded of the beauty within my city (which I miss when inside the hustle and bustle of the daily grind). The same places I see in a car every day look different and feel different when running the streets and choosing to really see everything around me. As I’ve come to appreciate being forced to take in my surroundings while running, I have owned the choice I have to see (and create) beauty in my community. Thanks to the Indy Mini, I now find myself not just seeing a city around me. Rather, I am able to see a connected community of people, places, and stories that form beauty all around us and deserve to be seen.

Succeeding Means Many Things

As someone new to running in my adult years, I had little to no idea of what success was. With no benchmark, I was eager to explore articles for qualifying times, pacing guides, and records. I was soon overwhelmed and uncertain that I’d ever be “successful” as a runner. Then, I ran my first Indy Mini. At the end, I felt it…success! Simply completing a distance and knowing I accomplished a goal was success to me. The more I talked to other participants, the more I recognized that success is really an individual definition. So, I run each Indy Mini with new goals and celebrate every other participant for coming to the race with their own. Together, we can all work to be the best versions of ourselves and succeed together, however different that looks from one person to the next. 

I am so grateful for the moments of pause and lessons I’ve learned in my Indy Mini journey. As you prepare to join in or support the Indy Mini festivities this year and beyond, I hope you, too, find time to reflect and recall the memories and lessons from your event involvement. After all, that’s the beauty of the Indy Mini and the 500 Festival!