How I Went from Cancer Survivor to Running 300 Marathons

Julia crosses the finish line. (Photo courtesy of the author)

By Julia Khvasechko

Picture it: A crisp, early November day in 1999. I’m sitting in a wheelchair at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, a very special place for me, watching a parade of runners go by. It just so happens that I’m perched at mile 16 of the New York City Marathon. I’m mesmerized by the runners; I’m also jealous of their strength, as I am battling a rare type of brain tumor that developed from glial cells called an oligodendroglioma and, at this time, unable to walk unassisted, I am 25 years old.

I notice some runners get extra kudos as they run by. I’m intrigued: Who are these runners? Some are very fit and run effortlessly, while some are really struggling. All shapes and sizes and ages, all walks of life, it is humanity at its best. 

“Are they famous?” I ask someone next to me. They tell me, “No, they are running for Fred’s Team; they are running for us.”  

I get chills up and down my arms. These runners aren’t just running a race, they are raising funds for Sloan Kettering. They’re giving back. And they are inspiring. 

I made a deal with God that day: I asked the universe to regain my ability to use my body again, to regain my strength and in return, I would run for Fred’s Team.  

Once I made that decision, it was no longer about me. 

First, we make our habits, then our habits make us. I stopped feeling sorry for myself and changed my mindset to get to work.

I worked tirelessly for a year to get stronger, doing my physical therapy religiously, instead of complaining about it. I squeezed every drop of knowledge out of those sessions. Learning how to stand on my own post-op was a great challenge since I was so weak. Learning how to walk again was very frustrating because I was 25 and patience was something I still had to learn. But progress, no matter how slow, is still progress.

As I grew stronger, I started walking around the block regularly. Eventually, I walked to and from work. I progressed to three miles a day. I walked to school, I walked to do all my errands, walking became my way of life. First, you’re doing what’s hard; then it becomes a habit.

Now I was ready to start running. My first run lasted all of 30 seconds. I was out of breath and I felt defeated. But I didn’t give up.

I remembered coming here at seven years old from the former Soviet Union, not knowing a word of English. I was so scared to go to public school where I didn’t know anyone or understand anyone. I set an hour a day to go to Central Park and started learning how to run. At first, I could only run for 30 seconds, but I didn’t give up. Then one day, I started incorporating run-walk-run for a minute at a time. Eventually, I was able to run an entire mile without stopping. 

As I continued to get stronger, I kept setting my goals a bit higher, always having that idea of running the marathon in the back of my mind. It’s so important to have goals that are just outside your grasp, so you keep getting stronger, until, one day, you simply become. I was going to run the New York City Marathon someday, but first, I had to run around the park: six miles. I set a goal so big that I couldn’t possibly achieve it, until I grew strong enough and became the person that could.  

I loved how running made me feel: it made me feel strong, capable, free. At work, I became known as ‘runner girl’ and I liked that title a lot more than ‘cancer girl.’

The day I was able to run the entire six-mile loop of Central Park, I knew I was ready. I trained for my first marathon for half a year, dedicating my whole life to it, while raising funds for the hospital that had saved my life. Not just raising funds, actually, but also raising awareness and inspiring others who were still fighting, who were watching. I was keeping my promise to the universe that I made in 1999. I raised over $10,000 and completed the New York City Marathon when I was 32. I have never been prouder of anything in my whole life.

Little by little I was changing everything. I started to eat like I loved myself. I started to sleep like I loved myself. I started to practice self-care like I mattered. The people and things that were not supporting my new lifestyle went to the wayside and all the things that empowered me and my new running lifestyle became the epicenter of my world.

Practicing regular self-care meant weekly massages, eating clean and practicing yoga to keep my muscles loose, limber and ultimately injury-free. Boozy nights out weren’t part of that equation anymore and my friends changed from party friends I’d see in bars and nightclubs to running friends I met in the park in the mornings. 

My focus shifted; once I committed to something, there was no stopping me. 

When you find something you love doing, you want to do it all the time. You don’t quit because it’s hard, you become stronger so the hard becomes easy. You don’t skip your run because it’s raining, you don’t miss your 20 miler because it's 85 degrees. That is the difference between a hobby and a goal: You don’t do what is convenient for you, you do what is necessary to get the job done. Going out and doing the long runs on bad weather days made me more resilient; I acquired more resolve, more grit.

I used my long runs to practice my ‘why’ — to work on who I wanted to be in life, on who I wanted to become. I either meditated or listened to books. When the alarm went off at 5 a.m., I didn’t complain. I knew that running was a gift, and I was lucky enough to ‘get’ to do this. I started to see every set back as an opportunity.

After six years of racing, the marathons became less of a challenge. I wanted to find a way to up the ante so I decided to become a marathon pacer.  Pacers  — or pacesetters — are experienced runners who complete the course at a specific pace and finish within a certain, predesignated time. The goal of the pacer is to help participants around them stay at a consistent speed and – if they can maintain the pace – finish within the same time. I was initially terrified that I wasn’t going to be able to keep the consistent pace in the darker miles as your body starts to shut down, but you have to do things that scare you if you want to grow.  But after I paced my first race, the Las Vegas Marathon in 2011, I was hooked.  I loved seeing runners become their own hero's as they crossed the finish line.  I loved helping runners remember their ‘why’ when it got challenging on the course and help remind them why they started in the first place.

Again, my trajectory changed and now every run I did was focused on a specific time goal, the pace I was going to finish at the next marathon and bringing in the newbies. I was running to help others instead of myself. I was now determined to help others reach their first marathons and time goals as I sacrificed my own time and slowed down to be in the service of others.

During this time, my work was shifting, too. I left my job in finance to study to become a registered yoga teacher and then the universe led me to massage school. Because bodywork was so invaluable to me, I thought it could be valuable to others as well. 

Thirteen years later, I’m a full time yoga teacher, massage therapist, and running coach. I’m doing what I love, following my bliss, following my ikigai (a Japanese word meaning the place where passion, vocation, service, and hobby come together). I’m helping others achieve their goals and dreams, helping people find freedom and joy in movement, and I no longer have a life I need a vacation from. I feel a sense of purpose, a sense of fulfillment, a sense of community. 

Today, as I pace marathons every month and help first-time marathoners reach their finish lines, I know I’m giving back in a meaningful way. I feel like I found my calling; in the service of others, I found myself. Help someone achieve their dream and you will achieve yours. 

A guest post by Julia Khvasechko: Julia is a passionate world traveler, Marathoner, LMT, RYT, and a Running and Health Coach. She loves to inspire others to live their best lives by putting one foot in front of the other and challenging their self-imposed limitations.

We're honored to have Julia join us at TueNight's Birthday Bash, where she took the stage to share her incredible story. ICYMI: Watch TueNight’s Birthday Bash in full, here — we’re also sharing a few of our fave photos taken at our event, here.