Inspired

I had a moment yesterday that made me feel pretty good. I was at work taking people through our gait analysis. During the analysis we ask the customers questions to get to know them - what activities they do, their training goals, what injuries/pains they have, etc. So I was working with a customer who was new to running and following a couch to 5k program with a friend who has already been running for awhile. She told me she was trying to learn to love running but that it was just so hard. I told her that it does get better. When I started 3 years ago I could run for all of 30 seconds and then I'd have to walk for like 5 minutes just to recover. I was 200 pounds and horrendously out of shape. She said "Really? YOU were 200 lbs?" Yep. And while I float between 165-170 now, I'm much more muscular and my body fat is most likely around 23-25% which isn't too bad for someone who loves to eat. So I went on to say that I followed no real program, but I always pushed myself to go a little farther before stopping for a walk and limiting my walk breaks. And before I knew it I was running 5k's without stopping. Then I went on to 10k's and halfs. Running is never "easy", but it does get "easier" because you get BETTER. I didn't have a ton of time to talk to her because we have to complete the analysis in about 10 minutes, then set them up with another employee to try on shoes so we can move on to the next customer's analysis. But I caught up with her after she selected a shoe and she said "I just wanted to thank you, you've inspired me." These are the moments where I really love what I do. Being able to encourage others and give them the tools they need to find their fitness is why I love my job.

In other non-news I've just been running and lifting. Pretty sore from a killer shoulder and chest workout on Saturday, so I'm taking a rest day before hitting the gym tomorrow. My lower back also inexplicably hurts. I ran yesterday morning and have not worked my back muscles since Thursday, so I must have tweaked it while running. Hopefully it fixes itself soon.