Now that it is late August and I have been running for a few weeks, I finally feel that I am turning back into myself. The last two years, from the time of my injury until my surgery and the long recovery after it, had been a long road and having that long of a stretch being unable to do what I love to do took something away from me mentally. I was never able to put my finger on it, but I had turned into a person that was okay with inactivity, first by not having much of a choice, later on by accepting that this is the way it would be until this injury/problem was fixed. I grew accustomed to slacking on my diet, my weight, and many other things that an athlete normally would take seriously. I was looking forward to surgery so that way I would be able to run again and have fast training times and races. And then I got back on the road ...
When I was finally able to start running what struck me was the true love that I have found again for the sport of running. As of right now, I am not concerned with fast times and races but living a lifestyle that makes me happy! This past weekend I went out for a long run with my roommate who is also a very strong runner and athlete, a long run in the sense that it was my longest run since surgery which ended up being roughly nine miles. My legs felt great until the last mile or so, but what I took away from it was a much greater lesson than my otherwise unimpressive time for the distance. I learned that this is a sport of progressions.
When I started going to physical therapy in my recovery from surgery I was not able to lift my leg off the table and into the air no matter what, it was rather sad. However, through a lot of hard work I progressed to walking without crutches, then progressed to walking without a noticeable limp and at a higher speed. Each step has been a milestone and a progression. Recently, my running has been improving faster than I would have anticipated and each day I am a little stronger and my love for running is coming back that much more. I have decided to forget about fast times and races down the road and concentrate on now. Almost two full years of my running career were wasted and I'm not going to start taking the days for granted now. I have made enough progress to where I can enjoy the sport for the first time in a long time, and regardless of how long it takes me to run each mile, I am loving each and every one of them!
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Digging Deep
When I was a little kid, around the age of 10 or so, I was at ski racing practice at Sunday River being blown away by the talent of the older racers. Desperately wanting to be half as talented as them some day, I asked my coach how I could ever get to that level or if it was even realistically possible ... "If you set a goal for yourself, and not only want to get to that goal but go to another level, you have to dig deep". Of course, at that time it didn't mean anything to me, but several years later I connect to that statement and always remember it. When things get tough, you have to find the strength within yourself to dig deep and get what you want.
I have a lot of interests, but three things that I love are skiing, running, and music. I was a successful cross country runner in high school, having placed well in several state meets. In college I was still running but wanted to dig deeper, find another challenge, and decided to run the Boston Marathon in 2006. After completing the Boston Marathon I signed up to run the Marine Corps Marathon in 2006 which I completed and was very happy with my performance. I was pleased with the way that I ran because I got up after falling on the 22nd mile and finished the race. That race was the last race I have ever run; I tripped on a rug/mat that was laying across the road and landed on the pavement with all of my body weight crashing down on my knee into the cement. I have not run consistently since then as I have a muscle hernia just above my left knee, and I am going to be having leg surgery in one month. In this blog I hope to be able to share my story as it unfolds from the perspective of a marathon runner, who hit rock bottom and was unable to run for over a year and a half, then back to my hopeful completion of a marathon in April of 2009 with all of the inevitable ups and downs that will come along the way. Time to dig deep, time to have surgery and start my trip on the long road back to the sport that I love!
I have a lot of interests, but three things that I love are skiing, running, and music. I was a successful cross country runner in high school, having placed well in several state meets. In college I was still running but wanted to dig deeper, find another challenge, and decided to run the Boston Marathon in 2006. After completing the Boston Marathon I signed up to run the Marine Corps Marathon in 2006 which I completed and was very happy with my performance. I was pleased with the way that I ran because I got up after falling on the 22nd mile and finished the race. That race was the last race I have ever run; I tripped on a rug/mat that was laying across the road and landed on the pavement with all of my body weight crashing down on my knee into the cement. I have not run consistently since then as I have a muscle hernia just above my left knee, and I am going to be having leg surgery in one month. In this blog I hope to be able to share my story as it unfolds from the perspective of a marathon runner, who hit rock bottom and was unable to run for over a year and a half, then back to my hopeful completion of a marathon in April of 2009 with all of the inevitable ups and downs that will come along the way. Time to dig deep, time to have surgery and start my trip on the long road back to the sport that I love!
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