SPRINGFIELD, Nebraska (KMTV) — Imagine having to juggle a full-time job, three kids and life as a semi-pro athlete. That’s exactly what Christina Elder does.

• At 36, she is a mother and a physical education and health teacher at Platteview High School; she is also a track and field champion.
• In the next few weeks she will be in Sweden taking part in the Masters World Championships.

TRANSCRIPT OF THE MESSAGE:

After a ten-year break from competitive running, Christina Elder returned to the track.

“I just realized the fire was still there,” she said. “I just wanted to see what my body could do, and here we are today.”

Four years after returning to the sport, Elder is traveling to a Masters World Championship for the second time.

She traveled nearly 4,500 miles to Gothenburg, Sweden to compete in the 400, 800 and 4×400 relay races.

“That’s the fun part,” Elder said. “You train so hard for 12 months and then you get to represent your country at a world championship. There’s just nothing like it.”

“You have to be detailed, but you also have to be committed,” said Christina’s strength coach Nick Crouse. “A lot of people say they want things, but there are also a lot of people who tell the truth, and she’s one of them.”

“It’s funny because I think there’s a misconception that people think I train all day, but that’s not true at all! I don’t have time for that!” Elder says, laughing.

“My priorities should be God, my family, work and then running. So I want to make sure there is an order there.”

The 36-year-old spends at least an hour a day training, takes care of her family, works and makes sure she gets at least seven and a half hours of sleep.

“Sometimes that means I can’t run one day because my kid is sick or something, but I try really hard to stay disciplined and still do it,” she says.

She also places a lot of emphasis on strength training, an element she added to her training program about three years ago under Nick Crouse.

“I said what you do on the track, what you tell me is there,” he said. “I said, ‘I’m willing to help you with anything,’ and she didn’t hesitate. She was like, ‘Hey, OK. You signed up for this, now you’re stuck with me,’ and it’s been a fun three years.”

“That’s the unglamorous stuff that people don’t see,” Elder said. “It’s like you’re out there sweating on the track, I come here, I lift some heavy weights and it’s a year-round process. It’s not like I just come when I feel like it. I know I have to be diligent.”

With the support of her family, coaches and community, Elder hopes the many hours she has put in will help her shave seconds off the course.

“I want to make them proud because I know they invest a lot of time in me,” she said. “And then this community and the high school kids. I want to show them that this time they invest will bear fruit.”

Christina tells me that she receives travel grants from her track and field club and USATF Nebraska, but pays for some things herself.

Of course, she says the investment is absolutely worth it.