In the hit TV show How I Met Your Mother, Barney, a successful yet self-absorbed businessman played hilariously by Neil Patrick Harris, impulsively accepts a bet to run a full New York Marathon with no training – all in the name of showing his friends just how easy it is to run 26.2 miles.

To everyone's surprise, Barney finishes the event with relative ease and enjoys a perk shared by the other marathoners: free rides all day on the subway. Caught up in the rush of showing off his marathon completion medallion to the other riders, it's only when Barney tries to walk out of the subway car that reality kicks in. His exhausted legs no longer work and he's becomes trapped in the dark reaches of the New York subway system, desperate for someone to help carry him home.

I've run my share of half- and full marathons and believe there are some parallels and learning opportunities between Barney's ill-fated entry into the world of distance running and executing employee wellness initiatives.