How I got to the starting line of an ultramarathon—my first 50k— wasn’t exactly a straight line.

In a lot of ways, it reminds me of how I became an athlete to begin with— through happenstance that included an eating disorder, getting over that, freelancing for local newsweeklies and then a lot of Master’s degrees. It was a journey one of my thesis advisors asked, after reading my thesis, which turned into my first book: “Do you think this would be in the self-help section of the bookstore? Like, as a how-to for other people who want to get into long-distance running?”

“Good God, I hope not,” I said….