Running NSV

Hello everyone,
I will start with a little bit of background about myself, so you all know where I come from. I have been overweight most of my life, and have been larger than average ever since middle school. I always hated running, and never did it unless I absolutely had to. The fastest mile I ever ran in highschool was a 12:34 mile, and I never dreamed of wanting to improve.

I had played rugby since highschool, and enjoyed it very very VERY much, so after a 2 year break, upon starting grad school, I decided to take it up again. I noticed myself loving it even more than before, and decided that it would be a perfect addition to my weightloss plan (as it burns so many calories). I had decided (at 207 lbs) that enough was enough, and that I was finally going to lose all the weight that was holding me back! I had loved working out with my team more and more, and even clocked in at my fastest mile time of 10:25! Unfortunately, 6 weeks into my plan, I tore my ACL entirely while at practice...and this derailed all of my hopes and plans. I never thought I could ever run again, and after reading more about the injury, and about the fact that, even after surgery, my reconstructed knee would only be 85% as it was before...I was very discouraged and felt that I had wasted my life, and ruined any chances of being a runner. In this time I put on 11 more lbs, and clocked in at my highest ever weight of 218 lbs. 4 months later, I had my surgery to reconstruct my ACL, and the little bit of hope that I had left seemed to dwindle away after each painful step I took, and even after 2 months, I had a huge limp, and immensely favoured my good leg. I decided that enough was enough, and that I needed to take charge, so I spent hours every week strengthening my leg, and 4 months after that, I was cleared to attempt to run. The first run I did, it took me 18 minutes to complete a mile, and I would run for 30 seconds, and stop for a minute or two in between. It was terrible and incredibly frustrating.

Today, I just ran my first 12 minute mile (And only 4 weeks into running!) Improved from 14:55-12:03 in 2 weeks! I am so excited, and definitely noticing myself getting stronger and stronger! Originally, my goal speed was to get back to my fastest mile speed of 10:25, but now I am aiming for 8:00, and also signing myself up for a 5k in June! 6 months ago, I never thought I would be able to walk without a limp again, or ever run again...but now I have surpassed my own expectations, and am so excited about exceeding even more! This time, no obstacle will get in my way. I will get faster and stronger than I ever imagined...and I will finally be the person that I had always wanted to be!

Just thought I would share my happy news with you!