Confessions Of A Junkie

Many believe there is nothing wrong with taking an occasional jog.

"Just this once," they say. "I know my limits."

Well I was one of those people and like many others I started with the occasional 5k, all the while telling myself, "Hey, I'm not hurting anyone. Besides, I can quit whenever I want." Then before I knew it, I was running regardless of the weather.

Rain - no big deal, snow - so what, freezing temps - who cares.

You get the picture.

Then suddenly one day, the 5k fix wasn't enough. I needed more. So I ran a 10k. But soon, that too failed to quell the growing monkey which was now securely on my back and as its grip tightened, I did a 1/2 marathon.

My dresser drawers began to overflow with race t-shirts. I found myself hanging out with other users like myself. I was spending all my money at Fleet Feet. I would leave the house before dawn in order to hide my addiction from my family and friends. I was a full fledged junkie.

I finally hit bottom and knew I needed help when I ran my first marathon. Now I'm in rehab. And as you can tell from the photo, it’s extreme. It’s cold turkey for 3 months and then they tell me I’ll gradually wean myself away from the addiction.

I don’t know though. Right now, I still get the urge to get out there when I see some other poor soul pounding the pavement.

So be careful. This running is some powerful stuff. It will lure you in and then before you realize it’s happened, “I want to run” becomes “I have to run!”