In November, I ran this huge race called New York City Marathon.  It was not the performance I would have liked, in fact, I was very, very, very disappointed with it.  A few months prior to the race, I started noticing a pain in my hip.  I took time off, and the pain didn’t abate.  A few weeks prior to the race, I could not stand, sit, or do anything without extreme discomfort.  I went to a massage therapist to loosen what I thought was a tight muscle to no avail.  The race was expensive.  The race alone was almost $400.  We had pre-paid our hotel, pre-paid our airline tickets, and my parents cleared their schedule to come up and visit with the kids while we enjoyed New York.  I was not going to “not” run it because of an injury.  It was a once in a lifetime race.  I had waited literally years to run this race.

I got back from NYC, and went to the doctor.  Long-story short, I was told I would never run again, and was risking my long-term health by running.  I listened to the doctor long enough to call my mom and bawl.  I decided I would run again.  I went to a physical therapist and wonderful spine doctors, who told me that the doctor was WRONG, WRONG, WRONG.  My goal race in 2016– probably my last race was NOT in jeopardy.  I was going to run again.

The weather in Florida is not ideal for running during the summer.  I ran outside when I could tolerate the heat, I spent the rest of the summer on the treadmill.  I supplemented my training with walking, and doing Jillian Michael’s Body Shred.  I started to rebuild my base.  My long run was 4 miles, my short run was 2 miles.  In August, I signed up for a Sprint Triathlon.  Signing up for that gave me a goal to work for, besides the June goal of Grandma’s marathon.

Today I ran, and it was a huge milestone.  I ran 10 miles.  This was my first double-digit run since November of 2014.  It was not a hard run either.  It felt easy.  I ran it a 9:30 min/mile, which is the same pace I was training for Georgia Publix (my PR marathon).  Granted, I was inside, and on a treadmill, it felt comfortable.  It was fun.  I was smiling the entire time!!!  My weight is starting to come off again.  My weight had gone up since my dad passed in June, and now I have 9 pounds to lose before I reach my goal weight, and everything today seems so achievable.  What’s more, I just got an e-mail from a client!  She got my number from another runner, and I may be working with a high school soccer star on his endurance and running.