Four years ago today I ran a mile in 13 minutes and had problems walking down stairs for a week. That run tore up my thighs, and it was hot, and horrible, but somehow I stuck with it.
Back in 2016 I didn’t have much control of things in life, notably employment. Money. And then we all know how lack of moneys leads into other problems, like loss of autonomy, self worth, self esteem. Yeah, that was a dark time.
So every other day I set off, using a Couch to 5K app on my iPhone. One minute, then two, then four, then eight. Rest, repeat, do it again two days later. Before long I could run for 20 minutes, then 30, then 40. Since then I’ve ran 10 mile races, a half marathon. My longest run so far has been 18 miles.
The biggest take away – it still hurts. Not like, PAIN, but watching Star Wars is a heck of a lot easier. There’s definitely easier hobbies, I guess. But I leaned into this to lose weight, accomplish something, and become a runner. I wanted to go places and do things with just a pair of running shoes.
Since then, I’ve ran 3,111 miles. Onward to many more.