And Then There Was Running

I was a smoker for a long, long, long time. During this time I thought that running was a horrible, painful experience that left you sore and feeling like you caught a cold for days afterward. What I didn't realize was that it was the smoking and lack of stretching and hydration that was causing it to be such a negative experience. If you had told me that one day I would be excited to go out and run I would have told you that you were crazy. You would have been right though. 8 months ago I quit smoking. One month later I went for my very first run as a non-smoker. I was really just toying with the idea and didn't really think that I would enjoy it. I was wrong, I enjoyed it much more than I could have imagined. I ran only one mile that day but it was my most important mile. It was the mile that started a whole new addiction for me. I felt wonderful afterward and couldn't wait to go out and run again. I was reminded what running had felt like when I was a child, how simple and satisfying it was just to run. That mile feels like a long time ago now and there have been many, many more since then but I still think that that first mile was the most important mile I have ever or will ever run.