Kelsey Walla will tell you she hated running her whole life. In seventh grade PE she'd run a few steps, her chest would hurt, she'd get out of breath, and she'd think — this just isn't me. In high school she danced. In college she lifted weights. Running was never part of the picture.

Then she had a skiing accident that ripped everything in her knee. She couldn't walk. She couldn't use the stairs. She couldn't go to the bathroom by herself. And lying there on bed rest, watching people run past her window, something shifted.

The moment she got cleared, she told her PT she wanted to try running. Not because she thought she'd love it. Because the accident had shown her she needed to take advantage of her body and what it was capable of. She wasn't going to wait anymore.

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One goal leads to the next

Kelsey ran her first mile. Then a 5K — at elevation, in Estes Park, because why make it easy. Then a 10K. Then she signed up for the Steamboat Half Marathon, also not at sea level, also not the obvious choice, but that's kind of her whole philosophy.

Along the way her boyfriend at the time found a bike at a garage sale for twenty bucks. He negotiated it down from fifty. She hadn't ridden a bike since she was five, but she figured — why not? And then she thought — if I'm running and cycling, why not swim? And if I'm doing all three, why not do a triathlon?

She did her first sprint triathlon last year. Then her first Olympic distance triathlon. Now she's deep into training for a seventy point three. She's pretty sure a full Ironman is coming eventually, though she's giving herself two or three years on that one. And somewhere in there she's eyeing a 50K, possibly in YOLO County, which feels appropriate.

The pattern is always the same. She sets a goal that feels impossible. She does the work. She crosses the finish line. And then she immediately wonders what's next. Not because the last thing wasn't enough, but because crossing one finish line seems to reveal another one she didn't know was there.

Building community for the middle of the pack

Kelsey runs Wild Coyote Club out of Longmont. Monday nights at Wibby Brewing, early morning coffee jogs on Friday, and now group rides on Wednesday evenings at the Longmont Bike School Company. The whole thing is built around one idea — everyone is welcome, no exceptions, no pace requirements.

She walks at the back every single Monday night so nobody ever feels alone. She's a twelve-thirty-pace runner who has finished half marathons and done Olympic triathlons, and she makes sure people know that because she knows how intimidating it is to show up to something where you don't feel fast enough.

She's also started a cycling series on social media specifically for women getting into a sport that can feel very male dominated. She can't promise that every space will feel welcoming, but she can create one that does. And she genuinely doesn't care if you end up being her friend — she just wants you to find someone who's the right friend for you.

Why she shares her story

Kelsey started posting content in 2018 as Walla Workouts, back when she was just getting into weightlifting for entirely the wrong reasons — a not-great ex, a bad situation, a thought that maybe if she looked different things would be better. A few weeks in, she realized she was doing it for herself and not for him. And the confidence that came from that was something she wanted to share with other people.

The account grew. Blew up a bit during COVID when everyone was working out at home and looking for community wherever they could find it. Eventually she pivoted away from just fitness content to all of life, renamed it Walla Kelsey, and it became what it is today — real, raw, honest documentation of someone figuring out who she is by trying hard things.

She's a CPA with a full time job. She doesn't do this for a living. She trains twice a day during Ironman training blocks, gets to bed by eight PM, skips most things that aren't training or her community events, and still finds a way to show up and share what she's learning. The whole point is to show people that you don't have to be a professional athlete or a full time content creator to do hard things. You just have to decide to do them.

What the accident actually gave her

It's hard to imagine Kelsey's life without the skiing accident. She wouldn't have found running. She wouldn't have started cycling. She probably wouldn't have met her fiance, who has been next to her — literally, running ahead of her, feet in front — for almost every step of this journey. She wouldn't have moved to Longmont or built Wild Coyote Club or started showing up to races and signing up for things that scared her.

She doesn't think she would have gotten here without it. Or it would have just taken a lot longer.

That's the thing about the hard stuff. It has a way of opening doors you didn't know you needed to walk through.

What she'd say to her younger self

When Jon asked her what she'd say to the girl she was back then — the one in the bad relationship, insecure, doing everything for someone who wasn't worth it — she got emotional. She said she'd tell her how strong she is. That she can do the impossible. That she is enough and more than enough. And that she deserves the world.

And then she said that girl would look at her today and probably say — what the hell? Are you on drugs?

She's not. She just found what's good in life and she's living it up. Because life is short. And YOLO.

🎧 Listen to the full episode with Kelsey Walla on For The Long Run wherever you get your podcasts.

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Jon is a runner, cyclist, and podcast host from Boston, MA, who now lives in Boulder, CO. For The Long Run is aimed at exploring the why behind what keeps runners running long, strong, and motivated.

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