I started to get serious about exercise and walking about 4 weeks post-op in January 2013. I would get my iPod, blast some of my Treadmill Playlist tunes (Eminem, 50 Cent, Nelly, Pink and even Justin Bieber), find my focal point and start walking. At first I could only walk about 10-15 minutes before it felt like my legs were jelly, but it felt good and I felt like I was at least moving. I always covered the time/distance display because I didn't want to get caught up in the numbers at that point- I just wanted to sweat a little.

About a month into this routine, I decided to start increasing the speed a little at a time. It was hard for my legs to keep up with the pace, but I did it. I finally got to the point where I felt strong enough to increase the speed to do a slow jog and only lasted about 2 minutes- MAX. The next day I did the same thing, but added 30 seconds. And just kept going until I found myself running on the treadmill on a regular basis. Say what?! I have NEVER enjoyed running, jogging or even sweating for that matter. But I started to crave this new feeling I got when I was running, a feeling I had never experienced before and find hard to explain.

Last week while I was on the treadmill, I happened to look down and caught a glimpse of my feet moving beneath me and I became mesmerized. Although I have been on "Charlie" hundreds of times, I absolutely could not believe what I was seeing. Less than a year ago, I could hardly go up a flight of stairs without being winded and avoided multiple trips upstairs at all costs. I started to cry while I was looking down at my legs and feet gliding along at a nice pace, it looked so effortless at that moment. I'll never forget that day. Kelly Clarkson was in my ear telling me "No one can hold me back, I ain't got time for that." I took a little video on my phone to capture that moment when I really started to believe that I AM A RUNNER.