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During many of these years, the 31-year-old was also battlingcancer.
Courtesy of Brooks
After each treatment and surgery, Grunewald returned to running as soon as she could.
She now raises money for rare-cancer research and encourages other survivors to be active through herBrave Like Gabe Foundation.
SELF spoke with Grunewald to learn all the ways cancer hasand hasn’tchanged her relationship with running.
Courtesy of Brooks
The following conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Grunewald:I tried a bunch of different sports growing up.
In middle school, I got into running socially with my friends.
Courtesy of Brooks
After trying cross-country and doing mile runs, I was hooked.
It was a cool way for me to connect with friends, and I love spending time outside.
Grunewald:I was shocked.
Grunewald with her coach, Dennis Barker
My coaches wanted me to get it looked at.
I felt completely healthy, I was running races.
It came out of nowhere.
Grunewald:I had never heard of this cancer beforeone of the first things I did was Google it.
It was very scary.
But what I came away realizing was that it was going to be a short-term inconvenience with running.
The scary thing is that ACC often comes back later.
It was inconvenient but not life-threatening, though it had the potential to be life-threatening.
So I had a lot of things to think about.
But I was good for now.
I felt, ‘No reason I can’t go run and live my life.
Grunewald:They found this while doing a follow-up scan from the previous cancer.
I wasn’t expecting to have anything come up.
I had just had a really awesome year of running and just signed with Brooks.
I expected to have a solid few years of life without any interruptions.
It was hard for meit seemed cruel to have another surgery so soon in my neck.
I didn’t think I would be a two-time cancer survivor at 24.
It felt a little early to have another setback.
And between 2010 and 2016, I was living my life.
Grunewald:I was horrified.
It was a worst-case scenario.
I definitely was not sure how much time I had left to live at that point.
It was a sobering time.
It was a tough summer.
I didn’t feel sick at all, I didn’t have any symptoms.
You’re never ready for stage IV cancer, but I certainly wasn’t ready.
But there was no plan anymore after that.
Grunewald:I ran up until my surgery.
Running helps me clear my mind and feel calm and not worry about such serious stuff for a while.
Then the surgery required a 12- or 13-inch incision in my abdomen.
I couldn’t run.
I tried a few times with mixed success.
I would have loved to run, it would have been an easier time mentally and emotionally.
Running is my preferred way to work through tough stuff in my life.
Grunewald:I biked.
I was spending time with friends and family, cooking, taking walksrelaxing things that aren’t running.
I put things on the calendar to look forward to, like a little travel here and there.
Grunewald:After three-ish months I could run five miles in a row without stopping.
At five miles, I felt like I could run again.
I was really happy to be back running.
I was really out of shape but grateful to be alive and grateful to run again.
Running didn’t take away all of the issues I was dealing with.
Grunewald:I look at my running differently.
It’s something that’s easy to take for granted when it’s your job.
It’s such a big part of my life and identity.
I haven’t fully let go of my dreams of running fast on the trackI still raced last year.
It’s just a matter of my cancer cooperating.
I want to end my career on a note that’s not predetermined by a cancer diagnosis.
I have a hope and dream that maybe I can still have my moment on the track again.
And that keeps me going.
I’m not as greedy about what that means as I used to be.
Grunewald:I always tried to be public and share my story.
I thought there would be options for me, but that’s not the case at all.
There’s not even a chemotherapy that works for ACC, it’s off the beaten path for treatment.
Anything I can do to use my story to help raise funds for research helps.
It keeps me moving forward, one step at a time, though all these diagnoses and treatments.
Having a positive relationship with your body throughout the cancer experience is so important.
Grunewald:It’s hard to imagine.
It’s helped me get through some of the toughest miles in my life.
Some days I feel great, some days I don’t.
Running is such a gift.
Running is way for me to stay forward-oriented, and that’s so important as a cancer patient.
