
A few weeks ago, I lamented to my husband, "I want to run."
I have scoliosis. My back hurts when I do high-impact exercises. I tried Beachbody's Focus T25. I worked through the back pain, but then my knees started to hurt. After weeks of taking it easy, I visited my physician who explained what I had done to my knees with all the lunges. Bottom line: it would take a few months to heal. I gave up and resigned myself to bicycling, which I also love.
But our middle child, our youngest son, has taken to running 5ks. We show up at the crack of dawn, and I cheer on the sidelines, waiting for him to come into view and cross the finish line. I watch all the runners, and remember the season of track I ran in high school. I think of Jade running and wonder idly if I am living vicariously through my fictional character.
So when I told Jon I wanted to run, I was just expressing my frustration at something I didn't think I would ever really do again. His response? "So run."
I decided I would do it. I would push through the pain to experience the exhilaration and power of running. I had one more obstacle to cross. My chest had been hurting. I chalked it up to heartburn or stress, but decided at my husband's urging to see my doctor once more. After several tests, we determined I have mitral valve prolapse--common in women as we age...also not a huge risk. It turns out running could help lessen the pain I had been experiencing.
I downloaded the Couch to 5K free app, and started running. Today was Day 2 of Week 2. I haven't been at it long, but I can feel a change. My workouts are more walking than running right now, but when I push myself to get out there, I can feel my energy and motivation increase. Today, I ran/walked 3.06 miles in 40 minutes and 10 seconds. It's not great, but it's a start. And I'm writing. I love the endorphins running brings! I feel amazing!