SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — In less than a month, a sea of runners will flood the streets in this year's Sioux Falls Marathon races. Jill Waggoner will be one of those runners taking on the half marathon course. Waggoner is spending plenty of time at the Sanford Fieldhouse, training for her third half-marathon now just weeks away. "I like the excitement of race day in general. The crowd, everybody is pumped up, everybody is excited," Waggoner said. "I feel like going into this race, I'm going to have a lot more confidence."
Man walks 1 million steps to help homeless veterans Some of that confidence comes from being chosen as this year's 'Sanford Run Project' participant. "Our team gets together and selects a participant we feel is best suited for a race," Sanford athletic trainer Jenny Dalland said. "We're looking for someone who is going to be outgoing, optimistic and has a specific race goal in mind." It also means Waggoner gets to work one-on-one with sports dietitians, strength coaches and athletic trainers at Sanford. Wednesday morning, Waggoner completed a workout with Dalland on an anti-gravity treadmill. "…which uses air pressure technology, and so it allows runners to be in a more unweighted environment which decreases the amount of force that they put into the ground while they are running," Dalland said. Training for the 13.1 mile feat is no easy task, but Waggoner says the extra support is already making a difference. "I've never really incorporated strength training into what I've done before," Waggoner said. "Adding that twice a week, I have noticed the difference in the two months I've been doing it and being able to feel stronger, which I think has helped my running and my endurance." Dalland says cross training can be beneficial in distance running, especially when it comes to recovery. "A lot of times, that gets lost, is how well we are recovering when we are training, especially as we are leading into the last few weeks up to this race day," Dalland said. "Recovery is essential. Cross training should be a way to help alleviate the muscles, help you feel more refreshed so you can better prepare for the race." For Waggoner, now it's about those finishing touches in the days leading up to the race. "It really plugged into a lot of different people, services, and really cool technology to help me become a stronger runner, learn more about myself and reduce the risk of injury during my training and running," Waggoner said. Waggoner plans to run her first full marathon, which is 26.2 miles, in October in the Twin Cities. The Sioux Falls Marathon takes place Sunday, September 20th. Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KELOLAND.com.