The Journey Begins

My first marathon is looming in the distance; true it is still six months away, but the journey begins now.

~~History~~

I began running in 7^th grade and haven’t stopped since.  However, like many people running wasn’t always my passion.  Although I had already been running for a few years, I didn’t become passionate about the sport until I was a junior at Tualatin High School in Oregon. It was about this time that I decided that competitive running was probably something I could do even into my college years.

After winning 6 state titles in Oregon, I planted myself in the Hawkeye State under the coaching of Layne Anderson at the University of Iowa.  Like the abundant corn fields that grow and blanket the Iowa countryside, my running career also flourished.

I left Iowa a 4-time NCAA All-American, 2-time Big Ten Champion and school record holder.  But, could I really make it at the next level?

~~Professional Career~~

I graduated from Iowa in the spring of 2008 and joined Team USA Minnesota under the guidance of Coach Dennis Barker and management of Pat Goodwin.  I chose to stay in our nation's “bread basket” because Team USA Minnesota was impossible to turn down. With so much support from organizations like Life Time Fitness and Twin Cities in Motion, Minneapolis represents an aspiring Olympians dream come true.

So here I am now, three years later. I recently married my high school sweetheart Cole and so my last name changed from Armstrong to Peyton (hence the title of this blog “Leg Strong”, which middle school classmates used to call me after I informed them that NO, I am not related to Lance).  As of July, I am training for my first marathon. I love the track and will not be giving it up any time soon, but I want to try my hand at the 26.2 mile distance next winter at the Olympic Trials Marathon in Houston, Texas.  Follow me in my training and give me tips along the way… "Citius, Altius, Fortius."