No Excuses...If I can Do This, You Can Do this.

So many people seem discouraged lately. I don't know if it is the people who are coming off their new years resolutions and have now gotten tired of the effort or the long winter that has plagued much of the USA or something else. But I'd like to share with you my story in hopes that you will understand that you CAN DO THIS. Is it going to be easy, nope probably not. But if I can do this, then I think you can. I don't really think of my story as anything special. It has been my life. It is what I know. But here it is, if you eek an ounce of motivation out of it, then it will be worth it.

In 1997 I was in a car accident where I spent a long time under a tarp with a medic face to face with me as he laid on top of me and held my head so it didn't move as other rescue workers cut me out of what was left of my truck after an elderly lady blew a stop light at 60+ miles per hour and t-boned me in the drivers side door. I've worked in public safety for 27 years now, but that gave me a real appreciation for the work and skills required to do it. I had a closed head injury that left me with memory loss, disabling vertigo and serious headaches...daily. Along with that I had an injury in my upper spine, nerve damage and torn muscles in my back and shoulder. I spent a lot of time in physical and occupational therapy and it took 5 years before my life seemed to return to something normal. But in that five years I had gained some weight. It took me two more years to think I was going to do something about that gained weight and I began to walk. I lost some weight, I started feeling like my life was back in my control.

In 2007 I was riding my motorcycle when a lady was distracted by yelling at her kids and turned into me at 40 mph. (I tell people in 2017 I'm going to be walking across a street and a bus is going to hit me, it appears to be my luck). This time I shattered my right foot and great toe, fused my right ankle, separated my right shoulder, totally destroyed the joint in my left shoulder, injured my lower back, and apparently damaged my innards which down the road a bit caused my colon to rupture. Since 2007, I have had 7 surgeries. I work full time and have insisted on continuing. It's what I know. I have to smile when people ask me "how do I do it". You just do I suppose, or you don't. My latest surgeon, a neurosurgeon who fixed my back on December 10th of 2013, told me "there are two kinds of people who tell me they have a high pain tolerance, the first kind is full of *kitten*, the second kind is you and I don't know how people like you do it." Well you just do. But there are side effects to this kind of injury and for me one of the side effects was gaining over 100 pounds.

One day I woke up and my scale was tipping almost 300 pounds. I had no idea how I had allowed myself to get there and at the same time I wasn't sure that I cared. I was still lost in the muck. One day, December 27, 2012 to be exact, I went to my doctor and she said ENOUGH. It's time you get yourself under control. You have to quit making excuses and do what YOU can do. You CAN do more then you are. My first response honestly was "HUMPH" you just don't understand. But after prayerful and thoughtful consideration I realized she was right. I started the "Year of Sue's Fitness" (you can read about it at http://sueburkhard.blogspot.com/ if you care to). I first started eating right, then the "Fat Chick" joined a gym. By early summer I was jogging. I would never have thought.

In August I realized I had a problem. Well I knew I had a problem for a long time but in August the pain got so unbearable I went back to my doctor. I had agonizing hip pain when I tried to stand or walk. If I ran it helped. That was odd. So I began running all the time. I got MRI's, I got hip injections, I was sent to physical therapy. It was there the therapist said "I don't think you have a hip problem, you have a lower back problem". Back for more MRI's and sure enough it wasn't good. I had a trauma injury at l4, a ruptured disc at l5 and a compression of the nerve at l6. Surgery would be required. Worse, they told me I had to quit jogging. That was the hardest thing to do, believe it or not. I had back surgery on December 10th and the second week of January my surgeon, shaking his head said in response to my pestering him "I suppose you can start walking SLOWLY on a treadmill. But I know you, DON'T do anything stupid." A few weeks later when I pestered him some more he gave me a date I could start running again. March 10th. That's today. Here is my facebook status I posted a little while ago :

On October 17, 2013 I met with my new neurosurgeon and was told that I needed back surgery ASAP and that while I was waiting I had to stop running. Something that a year ago if someone told me I had to stop running I would have laughed at the absurd ness of the thought that there would be any chance at all that I would be running. The news honestly has been one of the hardest things I've had to obey. Before surgery there are a few times I didn't obey. The momentary satisfaction was quickly lost in both the physical and spiritual ramifications of falling to that temptation. After surgery I asked the doctor for a date that I could start running. He said March 10th. He further explained that even though I might feel like I was all better and it would be ok sooner, that it takes a full 3 months for my spine (on the inside) to close and heal. He was right. I have felt for almost a month like I could run. I've wanted to run. It has been very very hard not to run. Today, because of God's mercy and grace, through the strength I get through Him, today I shall run. And yes I have my body guards to make sure I don't over do it....and the results are-
I was going to be grateful for one mile, but my goal was 2.5 miles. At 2.5 I was feeling no pain and really good so figured let's go for 3 miles. At 3 miles I figured what the heck why not just get that first post back surgery 5k out of the way and go for 3.2. At 3.2 the time numbers weren't even so I figured let's just even the numbers out and pushed it to 3.5 miles. I finally felt like I was done at 3.64 miles...all running...and I still feel pretty darn good!

Today I also lost 2 pounds putting my total at 97 pounds lost. I know its hard, I know its frustrating. After surgery I was in a 7 week plateau before I saw the scale move a pound. There are days I want to give up. There are days it hurts to much. It is too much effort. I feel like it isn't worth it. But you know what? I am worth it. I have a herd of high school senior girls I mentor who need a positive role model in their messed up teenage lives. I have a niece and nephew who I adore and want to be able to have them look at me and think good things, not be embarrassed at how I look. So no excuses. It's been one of my motto's since day one. And if I can do it, I KNOW you can!