One step at a time

After months (yes, there - I admit it - months) of not running, I was at a dead end. A six-week stint with bronchitis was a pretty good excuse for a while... I couldn't even laugh without launching myself into a full-blown coughing attack, so running was out of the question. Then I had a massive deadline at work, complete with late hours and sleepless nights. Running was not exactly a priority, since I was too busy trying to maintain my sanity (a full-time job in itself). Then the holidays - which included traveling to the snow-covered mountains of Colorado. My return flight apparently included a complimentary sinus infection, which meant yet another week of misery and several boxes of tissues. I spent New Year's eve cuddled up with my good friend NyQuil while my other pals were sipping champagne and setting off fireworks.

Even though I might have been in a medicine-induced fog when I made my 2012 resolutions, I was still determined to get the year off on the right foot (literally) as soon as I felt up to it. "Sunday," I said. "Sunday is THE DAY." No more excuses, no more reading Runner's World cover-to-cover and hoping by some kind of osmosis it makes me become a runner. It was time to take it to the street. After all, last year I successfully completed the C25K plan AND ran in a 5K. I was on a running high - I was going to train for a 10K! Then a half! And at some point, maybe even a full marathon.  But somewhere around June my enthusiasm sputtered out and the oppressive summer heat gave me the first of many excuses to skip my jogs.

No longer, friends. This weekend I finally took the most important step to getting back into a routine; the FIRST step. And then another, and another. Pretty soon I had finished off 3.39 miles. It was a tough, slow run, but I finally did it.

And you know what? It was worth the wait.