Last weekend we, along with one of our long-time teammates, Mandi (Operations Manager), ran a grueling 8 miles starting in the wee hours of the morning to avoid the heat of the day. You may ask, “why would anyone do that voluntarily?”
At times, we asked ourselves the same question! Ha ha! However, there are many reasons why we did it. First, we are helping Mandi train for her first half marathon! She and Marion have been faithfully working out together 5+ days per week since last fall. She first started working out to get in better shape, but then she realized she could take herself to places she never thought possible. It has been tremendously inspiring to watch her turn into a “real runner!”
Aside from helping Mandi, we are training for this half marathon as a goal for Marion as she works past her many injuries sustained from her bicycle crash 3 years ago! You may ask, “why bother?” But as triathletes who view working out as part of their lifestyles, it has taken a lot of work to get her back to where she used to be. Yes, she is back on the bike and riding. She can swim. But running beyond about 6 miles has caused her pain.
We used to do one 26.2 marathon every other year for the last 10 -15 years, with many half marathons done over the years. Marion received a lot of Prolotherapy to her many injuries post-bike-crash. The worst injury has been the pubic ramus fracture which has now healed ligament and bone-wise, but some pain, pressure, and muscle imbalances remain. She has been working diligently with Back in Motion Physical Therapy and Personal Training, along with a few additional Prolotherapy treatments from our office, to get to this point.
Why are we telling you this? We want to encourage you NOT to give up. Keep on striving toward your goals. It may take longer than you desire, but that does not mean that every day is not a gift. You can still experience blessings and beauty.
Going through these challenging times makes you stronger. It also makes you appreciate good health and life more. It gives you empathy for others going through similar things. And throughout the journey, many blessings have occurred that could not have happened without that fateful bike crash day.
We want to encourage you today to keep on keeping on. God is good. Life is good. Good people still exist. Look around – and be a blessing to those around you. You may just get more out of it than they will!