So I ran a 10K after losing 40 pounds (and beating long covid) in my 30's

The last time I paid to run was in high school (over 10 years ago). I ran a half marathon on two separate occasions- once with my dad and the other with some fellow cross country team friends. The first was a nice father/daughter bonding experience. Unlike me at the time, my dad was not an avid runner before he started training with me. But he dedicated himself to the cause and ended up finishing the half marathon with a great beginner time, despite battling scoliosis. We still remember it fondly.

I was also at the prime of my athleticism back then. I ran on the cross country and track team (I barely slept), maintained a whopping size double zero, and finished my first half marathon under two hours. My second half was no different.

Then, life happened. Very few us look and feel the same in our 30's as we did in high school.

That's my story but with a twist.

After high school, I went to college where I engaged in a typical college life: I partied and ate terribly. I gained the traditional "freshman 15" but I didn't look too different because I began college at my prime health. I didn't feel as good though and stopped consistently hitting the gym to improve my mental and physical state.

It really just got worse from there. I took a year off to study for the LSAT. Studying for a taxing (and oh so important) exam invited a lot of sitting and reading. I continued to party, but less so, and avoid consistent healthy habits.

Then, after successfully taking the bar exam, I went to law school naturally. It's obvious what happens next: I spent even less time at the gym and cooking healthy meals because "the law is a jealous mistress." I was almost constantly running around in an endless cycle of torment: class, study, internship, job, sleep, repeat. It was terrible, but I did relish in acquiring large amounts of knowledge in a short amount of time.

The bar exam was the icing on the cake: passing it required sitting inside a library for two straight months studying unspeakably boring material. I went through law school doing the same thing I did in college: eat terribly, drink occasionally, usually socially, when time allowed of course, and sporadically exercise. My stress levels were always dangerously high too. That doesn't exactly spell h-e-a-l-t-h-y.

I still couldn't catch a break after that. I entered the practice of law, which requires long hours at a desk. I did sometimes run to court before the pandemic but not so much during it. Zoom conference calls and Zoom hearings involved more sitting and they are still the norm. So I was pretty much always sitting and thinking. Who knew that thinking for a living would make one so hungry. I was putting on weight consistently at this point and filling my day with billable hours.

At some point, it became hard for me to believe that I used to be a high school with an enviable body. I couldn't believe my additional "bad" luck though. I started dating someone a few years ago. His love language was cooking. And he was good at it too (Italian men = good cooks). This sounds perfect to anyone reading this probably, but it turned into a pandora's box of temptation. I would unwind at his place with a couple glasses of wine and a casserole that would make most grandmothers jealous. That's when my body seemed to have foiled a plot against me. I was at my heaviest and I didn't feel good.

I wish I could spoil the reader with some good news, but there is still additional bad news. My past covid-19 diagnosis was initially fine because I had cold symptoms for about a week. But then I developed pesky underlying heart stuff. I could barely do anything cardio related without my heart slamming against my chest or feeling heart palpitations.

Even though I was steadily putting on weight over the years, I was still able to complete basic workouts without having to stop frequently before getting covid. I also maintained my love for the outdoors and tried to hike a few times a month. I could barely do any of that for literally three to four six months and I was only 30 years old!

My cardiologist performed all sorts of diagnostic tests and found nothing particularly wrong. I was frustrated.

I decided to take some initiative though and control the few things I could control - I began meal prepping every Sunday with my dad who was also trying to lose weight. We stuck with lowering our caloric intake (healthily) after speaking with a dietician. After a few months, we had both lost weight (me 20 pounds and him 25). I felt a lot better, and couldn't fit in some of my clothes, but I was still struggling with getting winded way too quickly.

While continuing to meal prep, I decided that I wanted to take a more hands up on approach to my cardiovascular issues. I walked on the treadmill three times a week for 30 minutes. It was a bearable and achievable goal.

One day, without planning to, I decided to jog on the treadmill four months into my weight loss journey. I was nervous.

It was my first time running in three years!

I remember hitting five minutes without getting winded. It seemed like a miracle. I stopped running after ten minutes even though I could have gone longer. After that day, I was hooked. I could tell that my body was getting stronger and would tolerate more running. My endurance strengthened over the next several months.

I decided to take the plunge and train for a 10k, which is 6.2 miles. Back in my high school prime days, I would have laughed. But things had changed. That length now seemed overwhelming.

But I stuck with it and trained weekly, building my endurance from a tolerating three mile run up to five miles. I was too nervous to run a full 6.2 miles before the actual 10k. It was honestly a mental not a physical barrier for me but runners know that the former can be worse. I trained alone too. Over time, my long covid heart symptoms disappeared, and I no longer experience them anymore as I write this.

On the morning of the race, I tried to remain excited and upbeat. I had my favorite workout outfit on and playlist ready. The race ended up being a beautiful run along the Tempe River in Arizona. I wholeheartedly enjoyed the race and had no issues completing it.

I did it! Oh, and I lost forty pounds too!