When I laced up my running shoes for the first time at the tender age of 44, I had no clue that I would, for the first time in my life, still be running, much less exercising on a consistent basis 4 1/2 years later. After all, I had spent 32 years of my life on a diet roller coaster and I must confess exercise was something that I once looked at with great disdain. It was something I felt I had to do in order to lose the weight and the health benefits that came with it were secondary. While I looked at this journey to reclaim my health as just that-a journey, somewhere along the way running become my passion. Last Sunday I had the opportunity to run a 5K/15K race with a couple fellow SparkPeople members from my neck of the woods. Having never met 'in person' we had made plans to meet at the registration area prior to the race. While waiting, I recognized a gentleman donning a "Chicago Marathon" tech shirt. I told my husband that I thought he was the gentleman that I met last year on my way to Chicago to run my first marathon. Of course never wanting to miss an opportunity, I stepped up, something that I would never have done in the past, and asked. And as luck would have it, it was Runner Dave, as I so admirably referred to him. Last year he was running the Chicago Marathon to qualify for a faster corral in Boston in 2010 as he had already qualified for Boston months before. I was eager to hear how he did, not only in Chicago, but Boston as well. This is a man who has spent the better part of 35 years running and who has qualified for Boston more than once. I was not prepared to hear what he had to say. He proceeded to tell me just shortly after he signed up again to run the Chicago Marathon in February of this year, just 6 weeks or so shy of Boston, he took a misstep and fractured his leg in two places. The injury was so severe that it required surgery. Sadly, he was unable to run Boston, nor was he able to run for months later--even his doctor was not sure if he would ever be able to run again. Sunday's 15K (9.3 miles) run was to be his first race to run after his injury-- his longest run to date since his injury had only been eight miles. I must say, I was so shocked that in a split second his life changed . But I was even more surprised to hear his humbled response to the change in events. It was what it was, it was just an obstacle to overcome in his view. He was just so thrilled to be running again. This race wasn't about finishing first in his age division or even running a personal best, but just the mere fact that he was able to run again. During my runs I do a lot of thinking and reflection, it is when I really connect myself to this journey we call life. After hearing Dave's story it reaffirmed the notion that while I may never qualify for Boston, I can be the best runner I can be at this point in my life. Boston, or any other race for that matter will not define me as a runner. Having the ability to wake up every morning, lace up my shoes and hit the ground running is a blessing. One of best parts of Sunday's race was hearing someone shouting my name across the course and yelling "Run, Nancy run, you can do it." When I looked to see who it was, it was Runner Dave, smiling and waving and embracing the love of running. Have you ever experienced an injury that forced you to start over or made you change direction? Did this help you appreciate what you can do, not what you once could do? |
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