A three-mile jog, followed by a 25-minute commute from Humble to Pasadena isn’t the most typical start to the mornings of many people, but that is how Pasadena High School head softball coach and freshman volleyball coach Angela Soliz starts her day.

As a coach, Soliz constantly encourages her students to push themselves athletically. Recently, she put her words into action as she dashed at the opportunity to run in the annual Chevron Marathon Exchange in Athens, Greece.

Although she had never run a marathon before, it had always been something she dreamed about. “If I’m ever going to do it, this would be a great way to do it, especially since Greece is the original home of the marathon,” Soliz said.

Soon after deciding to run, Soliz began a nine-month training process. She started running five miles every other day then seven miles every other day until she gradually worked her way up to 15 miles non-stop. Soliz trained consistently for about six months until her training was halted when she moved into her new home in Humble.

“When I started moving, I just stopped running. For a runner, whenever you stop you have to start all over. You can’t just pick up where you left off,” she said.

One month before the marathon, Soliz began vigorously training for the race and remarkably got back up to running 15 miles at a time. Soliz spent 10 days in Athens, and described the five grueling hours and 50 minute journey for 26.3 miles as the most challenging time of her life.

With her first marathon under her belt, Soliz shares her story that staying fit is a lifelong commitment. She is also making future plans to participate in a triathlon.

“I want to show kids my students that fitness is a lifetime thing. I want them to know that when I am putting them through hard workouts, I am putting myself through the same thing. Hopefully, when they are older and finish with high school and college they’ll still keep in shape,” she said.