Why Not? — Guest Writer Flannery Cerbin-Bohach
I am so excited to share This next guest writer on the blog. Flannery has, to me, always been an example of grit and perseverance. Below she has written an inspiring piece of striving for more and getting over the invisible hurdles we may put on ourselves. I can’t wait to share it with you!
Introduction: Flannery Cerbin-Bohach holds an undergraduate degree in Environmental Studies and a Masters in Public Health in Community Health Education. She currently directs an employee wellness program at a community college. Flannery and her husband also own Tailwind Acres, a 27-acre farm in northeast Iowa where they grow flowers for u-picks and weddings, as well as hold events in their renovated 1940s dairy barn. This past year they renovated their garage into a guest cottage for on-farm stays. Flannery stumbled upon cross country inmiddle school when she thought it was a requirement to be involved in an extracurricular activity and cried after the first practice. She ran track and cross country in high school and at the D3 level in college. She has dabbled with the marathon, but much prefers distances shorter than 10 miles. At 37, she is still setting new personal best times with her 7- and 2–year-old, in tow!
Why Not?
The summer Olympics just concluded and many of the performances are still fresh in my mind. I followed track and field the closest since my background is in running and, as such, most relatable. The U.S. had a whopping 34 medals in track and field events, the most since 1984. While there were certainly wins and fast times from the usual suspects, such as Sydney Mclaughlin-Levrone and Noah Lyles, it was awesome to see some under dogs fighting their way to the finish line. I was rooting hard for Kenneth Rooks who earned silver in the men’s steeple and Cole Hooker for gold in the 1500 meters. The U.S. certainly shook it up for top spots in the distance events alongside the typical powerhouses like Ethiopia and Kenya.
While winning is not everything; it is certainly contagious. You could see U.S. athletes juiced by the performances of their medal-winning U.S. counterparts; many ran, jumped or threw outside of themselves. I know the feeling and I’ve told myself before … if they can do it, why not me? I think the momentum will only continue to grow from here as the next crop of athletes will continue to strive to be bigger, faster and stronger than in 2024.
Photo credit of Flannery Running @l_nemeroff
I am not a professional athlete nor have ever had high aspirations of going to the Olympics, but I do take my training seriously. Exercise is me time in my busy life, but I also need something to chase as the next big thing. For now, this big thing takes shape as I strive for a personal best time in a respective distance.
I value trailblazers in my sport who defy the odds or norms. Decorated retired track star, Allyson Felix, rewrote the norms of track and field athletic sponsorships as she faced challenges with her sponsor Nike, who terminated her contract due to pregnancy. Allyson has been a champion for maternal advocacy in the sport. She used her notoriety to raise awareness around pregnancy and competitive athletics and sparked many overhauls in athletic scholarship to include maternity leave. She helped establish nurseries at the 2024 Olympic Games so athlete moms and families could send their children.
Another example of a recent mom athleteis Elle Purrier St. Pierre. She qualified into the finals for the women’s 1500- meter run in Paris and was a potential medal contender (she finished 10th ). Elle won 3k gold medal at the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships after having given birth to her son in March 2023. I am a mom of two young kids and have seen my better performances since giving birth to my second child. These women (and myself and loads of others) are shifting the paradigm that women should not exert themselves during pregnancy and that women are done with their athletic careers after having kids. More literature and more mainstream medical advice states that physical activity during pregnancy is a good thing for both mom and baby!
These role models give the rest of us a tangible example and permission to challenge ourselves to achieve our next big feat. In gymnastics the “Simone Biles Affect” has infiltrated gyms across the country. Simone has re-written the history books for what the “A standard” is in the sportand also now what is considered the normal age for competition. Simone has inspired little girls in gyms all over the country to keep training and pushing the odds of how many twists and turns are possible. Also, at 27, Simone was a full 10 to 12 years older than most other gymnastic competitors. I am an “aging” athlete at 37. While I could settle with my current fitness and be content having achieved most of my athletic goals in my 30s, the itch is still very much there. And the examples of Simone and those in my sport, distance running, show us boundaries are limiting, imposed by society or ourselves. Yes, there’s not a Fountain of Youth, and aging impacts performance mostly on a bell curve with athletic peaks ranging from 20-30s depending on the discipline. But, I refuse to let the fact I’m on the windward side of curve become an excuse or crutch for why I can’t do something. In our house, my husband doesn’t let our kids say the word, “can’t” without it being followed with a “yet.”
What if runners like Allyson Felix, Alysia Montaño, and Kara Goucher choose not to be vocal to advocate that women can be moms and still be competitive and can/should be guaranteed their job if they choose to have a family? Instead, they have helped shift the expectation in the industry around pregnancy, and the trickle down has meant more and more consciousness around moms in sport (e.g. lactation areas at sporting events).
In 1899 the Commissioner of the U.S Patent Office, Charles H. Duell, stated that “everything that can be invented has been invented.” What if we stopped with the invention of the radio? The internal combustion engine? There are norms and boundaries in so many arenas in our lives that deserve to be questioned and tested. We owe it to ourselves and all those looking up to us to say why not me?
Flannery and her family Photo credit: @sarahagemanphotography