A New Perspective

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!