There was a time when Washtenaw County Fitness Ambassador Kristin Romelhardt, who joined Gov. Jennifer Granholm for the 5-mile Mackinac Bridge walk/run on Labor Day, wasn’t so active.
Then, something changed.
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“I don’t think it was anything monumental other than both my mother and grandmother had cancer and had passed away in their young 40s,” says Romelhardt, internship coordinator for biomedical engineering in the College of Engineering. “When I got to that age I started to get a little worried,” she says, adding she also was gaining weight.
So, about 10 years ago Romelhardt began walking on the dirt roads around her Dexter home. “I varied anywhere from 3-5 miles, even in winter. It was always by myself; I like to use the time to think,” she says. “Sometimes I would take my Walkman, but being out in the country there is a nice peace and quiet. I listen to the birds; I see deer and foxes. It’s kind of like being on a mini-vacation.”
Now committed to her daily walks, she spotted a flier promoting a race in Chelsea, and decided to go. “It was a lot of fun being with people who like to be healthy; I like the whole atmosphere. It motivated me to do a little more, to go a little farther and a little longer, and each time I went to a race there were all these fliers for more races,” she recalls.
The point wasn’t to compete with other runners. Romelhardt started by walking races, including the Potawatomi Trail 13-mile race near Silver Lake, and finished last. She decided to pick up the pace. “I call it jogging; I don’t go that fast,” Romelhardt says. “I’ll tell people you should go running with me, anybody can run the way I run, it looks like I’m running but I’m not beating up my joints.”
Romelhardt even has participated in two marathon (26.2-mile) races. “Running is more about attitude than physique for me. It is about a can-do attitude and how that affects our ability to do things we never thought possible,” she says. “That has given me confidence in areas other than running. And you not only feel physically better after running but also mentally rejuvenated.”
In her University job, Romelhardt says. “I try to establish positive relationships between biomedical engineering and industry, so when students go looking for jobs they can use alumni folks as mentors,” she explains. “I plan networking events with alumni, schedule students for tours of companies, help them get contacts, resumes; and just encourage people they can do this.”
She volunteered to serve as a Wellness Champion during the University’s Active U! challenge earlier this year, participates in a fitness group at her church, and after submitting her name online was chosen as one of 72 statewide fitness ambassadors by the Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness, Health and Sports. The naming of fitness ambassadors coincided with the council’s Active Michigan Summer program to encourage all Michigan residents to train to participate in a five-mile walk on Labor Day, either at the Mackinac Bridge or in a local community walk.
Romelhardt’s first Mackinac Bridge run was Memorial Day. “I’m really afraid of heights so it was an accomplishment,” she says. “I was really nervous. I had somebody who already did it tell me, ‘Wait till you have to run across that grate and see the water rushing under there.’ It is really a mind over matter thing, if you can believe it you can do it.”
Her interest in running has inspired her to do more. “I ride my bike, kayak, cross country ski; I just like to be moving around and be outside. I recently heard a really good quote: ‘The best exercise is the one you’ll do.’
“I’ve lost some weight and I’ve been able to keep the weight off. I feel like I have more energy. I see older people having trouble walking or getting up and down; I don’t ever want to be that way.”
She and husband Michael have three children, Tiffany, Travis and Tim. “I am middle-aged and prove to folks you don’t have to be a young athlete to be fit,” Romelhardt says. “I have the same challenges as most—family, full-time job—and can find time to exercise.”
