Running (Literally) Away From Crohn’s

A few weeks ago, I was telling one of my friends that I ran a half marathon in October, and she asked me why I like to run. I thought it over for a few minutes and realized the reason is because of Crohn’s. This disease makes me feel horrible about myself sometimes, but when I run, it has nothing on me.

….I am so embarrassing

I used to hate running. I ran track in grade school but pretty much gave up all physical activity until I was a sophomore in college. The reason I started exercising again was because of my colectomy, which I had the summer before my sophomore year. After that surgery, when I went through such pain and fear and uncertainty, I decided I wouldn’t take my health for granted anymore. So as soon as I healed up, I started working out at my school’s rec center. It was tough at first; I couldn’t run longer than a quarter of a mile and I wasn’t strong enough to lift heavy weights. It was discouraging at first but over time, I got better, faster and stronger (just like Kanye).

I was set back by a couple more surgeries over the next year, and felt like I was starting back at square one after each operation. But after my ileostomy reversal in March, I realized that, for the first time in two years, there were no more surgeries in my immediate future. I decided to celebrate by setting a goal for myself, so I signed up for a half marathon with my sister. Over the next few months, I built up from one mile to 10 (that was the longest distance I ran before the half—the adrenaline of race day really pulls you through those last 3 miles!)

It also helps if you have pretty running shoes.

I remember during that 10-mile run, my legs started aching and I was desperately searching my mind for motivation. The image that immediately popped into my head was me walking down the hospital hallway a few days after my colectomy. I felt so weak, grabbing onto the wall and to my IV pole, hunched over and barely able to make it 10 feet. To think that now I was on my tenth mile of a nonstop run was so motivating for me and was enough to make me push through that last mile. Even better was the feeling a week later when I crossed the finish line at the half marathon. I have never felt prouder of myself, knowing I had come so far.

SUCCESS!

I can’t stress enough the difference exercise has made in my life. I work out regularly—usually six days a week—because I genuinely enjoy it. It makes me feel strong and healthy, which are two things people with Crohn’s disease definitely shouldn’t take for granted. And—bonus!— I truly believe exercise helps keep my disease at bay because it makes me stress less, eat and sleep better and just keep me in tip-top shape overall. What’s not to love about that?! Every college I’ve been to has a rec center that’s free for students to use, and if you haven’t taken advantage of that yet, I highly, highly encourage you to do so.

I wrote a magazine article a couple months ago about how to run a half marathon with Crohn’s disease, and I’m hoping to share it all with you soon so you can hopefully feel inspired enough to try one yourself!

Until then, I hope everyone has a great weekend, and make sure you check back next week for my post about love and relationships, just in Valentine’s Day<3

See you then!