I Just Ran 100 Miles Through the Florida Keys (And It Changed Everything)
By Miri Lenoff
·May 12, 2026
So I did something a little crazy this weekend.
Ok, a lot crazy. But the good kind.
I ran the Keys 100. Well, our team did. It is a relay race where you divide the 100 miles between you, each person running their legs until the whole thing is done. My legs totaled 17.1 miles. And every single one of them was worth it.
For those who do not know, the Keys 100 is one of the most iconic ultramarathon races in the country. Teams of runners cover 100 miles across the Florida Keys, starting in Key Largo and finishing at the southernmost point in Key West, running along the Overseas Highway with the ocean on both sides of you the entire way.
It is stunning. It is brutal. And it is one of the most alive I have ever felt.
Here is what I did not expect: it was not the miles that got me. It was the people.
Every single leg, someone was ready with water. When my legs were done and my body was asking me to stop, my team was already there, holding out a cup, cheering me in. We tracked every mile on a list and checked them off after each leg. That little checkmark meant everything. Progress made visible. Proof that it was working.
We did not just run 100 miles. We took care of each other for 100 miles.
And I keep thinking about how much that applies to everything. To life. To business. To the way we show up every single day.
It is 1:50 in the afternoon. The Florida sun is not playing around. There is no shade, no cloud cover, no mercy. I have 4.7 miles ahead of me, straight across a bridge that stretches so far into the distance you cannot see where it ends. The ocean is below me on both sides, shimmering and infinite, and the heat is rising off the pavement in waves.
And somewhere in the middle of that bridge, I slowed down.
Not because I had to. Because I wanted to. Because I looked up and thought, I am running across the ocean right now. I am here. This is real.
That bridge could have been something I just powered through with my head down. Instead it became the most beautiful part of the whole race.
I was not thinking about what I had to do. I was thinking about what I GET to do.
You GET to go to work. You GET to build something. You GET to make the call, take the meeting, send the email, show up for your clients. It is a gift, not a burden. Not everyone gets this. Not everyone wakes up and chooses something hard and beautiful. You do.
You can do anything you set your mind to. A hundred miles through the Keys is proof.
But here is the real key: find your team. Find the people who pour water when your legs give out. Find the people who track the miles with you and celebrate every single checkmark. Find the people who push you harder than you would push yourself and take care of you when you need it most.
That team will change your life.