Gaby DuFour, 25, didn’t grow up running—she was introduced to it via the classic American Thanksgiving tradition: the Turkey Trot.
“I like to say my official run start date was a Turkey Trot in 2015,” she told Runner’s World. “It got me hooked on running. I loved that postrace feeling.”
She started signing up for more races—8Ks, 10Ks, 15Ks to start. Then came the half marathons, and the idea of running a full started to percolate. She signed up for the Chicago Marathon in 2017.
But during her training, she started to have some not-so-pleasant stomach issues arise—symptoms that went way beyond the magazines. Her freelance writing has been featured in.
“It was a lot of bloating, gas, and bloody mucus in my stool,” she said. “Or sometimes I would just pass bloody mucus. It wasn’t normal, but I was still functioning.”
Getting an Ulcerative Colitis Diagnosis
She was officially diagnosed with ulcerative colitis three weeks before the Chicago Marathon in September 2017.
Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that affects the inner lining of the large intestine and the rectum, causing symptoms such as cramping, bloody stool, diarrhea, nausea, fatigue, and malnutrition, according to the Mayo Clinic. Experts believe that it may be an autoimmune condition, meaning your body’s immune response turns on itself, attacking healthy cells and tissue. While there is no cure, it can be managed.
“At that time my UC was more minor, and it didn’t impair me from running the marathon,” she said. “It was 2018 when all my health issues got out of control.”
She had been treating her UC with suppositories and steroids to reduce inflammation, but she felt her care wasn’t the best it could be. So she switched providers, and soon after, her symptoms started to worsen. She was still trying to run—she had signed up for another full marathon in Chicago—but her symptoms started to get so bad that she was hitting a breaking point.
“I noticed I’d be sitting at work, and my stomach would cramp so badly. It was so painful. I didn’t really know what was going on,” she said. “I started having really painful bowel movements, and now the entire toilet was turning red from blood.”
After meeting with her gastroenterology team at Northwestern Medicine, she was hospitalized for a UC flare-up. After multiple scans, tests, and a sigmoidoscopy—a test that examines the lower part of the large intestine—they found her UC was worse than they thought. The inflammation had spread throughout her entire colon.
The persistent—and worsening—symptoms were super frustrating for her.
“I had signed up for six races in 2018, and I was only able to do three. I had to make the decision that it was not a smart idea to run, which was really hard,” she said. “Runners sign up and have the mindset of ‘Even if I have to crawl across finish line, I’m doing the race.’ So when my body was very clearly telling me to not run, I was bummed.”
Running With Ulcerative Colitis
While DuFour wasn’t able to run all the races she signed up for, she still has been able to continue running after her diagnosis. It’s been a learning curve, but she’s been able to do so by keeping a few things in mind.
For one, she has to be a little more careful when planning her run than those without the digestive condition.
“Whether it’s for training runs or a fun run, knowing where the bathrooms are when I’m on a run is critical,” she said.
While she loves running on Chicago’s waterfront, the bathrooms there don’t open until April 1. That means she needs to find a different route during her winter and early spring training.
She’s learned that flexibility matters, too. While it’s important to have a plan—like the route she chooses—it’s just as vital to be willing to adapt for whatever arises.
“If I go out and my stomach starts to cramp, I know I might have to turn around or cut my runs short,” she said. “I’ve found there are other types of cross-training I can do. You can make a plan, but plans are meant to be adapted. Everything’s not going to be perfect.”
Same goes for race day. Even if she has a time in mind, if the urge to hit the bathroom comes on, she realizes that’s something that takes precedence.
“Know there’s no shame in stopping to go to the bathroom. It may take an extra five to 10 minutes to go to the bathroom, but it’s okay,” she said. “And I may have to stop two to three times. It’s part of the process.”
Another part of the process, as she learned, is that her disease is not something that she needs to hide—whether on a run or not. She’s always been very open about her UC battle, and since September 2018 she has been a volunteer at Northwestern Medicine to help others going through the same fight. And that’s translated to the running community as well.
“Sometimes when I run with a group, I let them know that I might fall back, and they can go on without me. And they’ve been so supportive and understanding,” she said. “But I let them know that I’m going to do what my body needs.”
Looking to the Future
She was hospitalized again in January 2019 after another flare-up of symptoms, which has set some of her running goals behind.
To better control her disease, she now takes two medications, an immunosuppressive drug called Remicade and Lialda, to treat inflammation and pain, to manage her symptoms. And she’s always in touch with her care team to track her symptoms with the goal of remission.
But she’s taking it in stride and learning to embrace other forms of training when she can’t run. She’s turned to less-triggering forms of exercise like CrossFit and weight lifting on days when running bothers her too much or her UC symptoms are flaring.
“My goal right now is to run two to three times a week, with one or two times on the treadmill and one long run on the weekend,” she said. “I also do CrossFit, which I started in September 2018. I like how it makes me feel to use totally different muscles.”
And she’s still looking toward a full race calendar: The Naperville Women’s Half Marathon, which she had to defer in 2018 because of her symptoms, is coming up in April. Following that is the Seattle Rock ’N’ Roll Marathon in June.
[A Part of Hearst Digital Media Runner’s World Training Plan, designed for any speed and any distance.]
When she’s not training, she’s found joy documenting her UC journey on Instagram These Are the Worlds Fastest Marathoners.
“My biggest encouragement to other runners that have UC is to listen to your body. There is no shame in taking an extra rest day, cutting a run short, adjusting your training plan, or just not running for different periods,” she said. “The pavement is still going to be there tomorrow.”
Emily Shiffer has worked as a writer for over 10 years, covering everything from health and wellness to entertainment and celebrities. She previously was on staff at SUCCESS, Men's Health, and Prevention magazines. Her freelance writing has been featured in Women's Health, Runner's World, PEOPLE, and more. Emily is a graduate of Northwestern University, where she majored in magazine journalism at the Medill School of Journalism and minored in musicology. Currently residing in Charleston, South Carolina, Emily enjoys instructing barre, surfing, and long walks on the beach with her miniature Dachshund, Gertrude.
