My Running Moment: After Sports

Note: This fall, the Ready, Set, Run! blog has featured a series of guest posts called “My Running Moment: _______.” This series of personal submissions has allowed guest writers to share their personal running stories, with the hope that their running stories will be a source of great encouragement to those who read this blog. If you are interested in contributing, please email Jeanne (jnielson@nays.org). 

My Running Moment: After Sports

I liked basketball. OK, I loved basketball. And, I still do. But, unfortunately, I’m now “on the other side” of the peak of my basketball career…if you can even call it that. I played through high school and, while I wasn’t a Division I talent, was fortunate enough to play college basketball at the Division III level. I loved every minute of it, and tried my best to get the most out of my talent. They were great years!
 

Then, after 4 years of college basketball, all of a sudden it was over. Just like that…no more games, no more fans cheering, and no more grueling practices with teammates. While I still like to play hoops now and then, it will never be like it was back then. So, basketball became something in my life – a place of exercise, physical exertion, and fun – that needed to be replaced with something else.
 

As a basketball player, I never thought of myself as a “runner,” or even a person who thought much about personal health and fitness. Even though I ran countless sprints in practice, I never really thought of basketball as “running.” When I stopped playing, though, I began to realize how much I liked just being active. How good it made me feel to run – to exercise in a regular way. And so, I did something I never thought I’d do: I started running. Not a lot, and not necessarily every day. But…running. Just for fun.
 

Running has now, more and more, become a normal part of my life – something that I do for exercise, health, and pure enjoyment. I try to run 2-3 times a week, often pushing my little girl in her jogging stroller. I’ve even run a marathon with my (more serious runner!) wife! While I probably won’t ever play basketball again in front of thousands of fans, I’m thankful that regular exercise and healthy living haven’t disappeared from my life. I can always run. And I hope I’ll be running for many years to come.


-Jon