A year ago tomorrow I sat down to write about the completion of our first ever Sprint Triathlon. It was Matt's first "competitive" event since his surgery and essentially the first athletic
thing he was able to do in over two years! I'm so thankful I've
documented these milestones; although it's not always often, it allows
me to remember things better than I know I would have otherwise. When I read last
year's post I was reminded of how far Matt had come last spring and as I
think about last May in comparison to this May I am again left completely in awe of how hard he has worked. (And how GREAT our God really is!)
It
hasn't been easy, and just like last year, three mornings of swimming
per week have turned into three mornings of swimming PLUS a bike ride in
the evening or a three mile run and little by little Matt has gotten
stronger and stronger. Last year he finished the swim and bike portion
of this event and said, "Next year I'm going to do the whole thing."
This year came around and sure enough, I was kicked off the team...
And although I was a little sad, I was even more proud! Not only did Matt finish the whole thing this year he RAN three miles in under 30 minutes! His swim time improved by over 3 minutes (sort of huge for swimming), and he completed all three events in one hour and thirty-seven minutes!
This video isn't all that exciting. It's ten seconds of a thirty year old man running (with a happy family cheering in the background), but if you have any idea how long and hard this journey has been, you'll know how exciting it is!
Three years of hard work and perseverance and this man can RUN again!
His next goal?
... a HALF MARATHON!
"It's not exactly a 'spectator' sport..." (Sorry Dad, I had to add this! ;)
So thankful for and in love with this man!
And because today wouldn't be complete without this guy stealing the show...
... and in case this guy's not enough of a motivator, there's plenty of inspirational videos out there! Believe me, we watch 'em all! =)
Happy "training" everyone!!!
Nice post, babe...you should see how giddy she is that I'm leaving a post...anyway, our God is amazing and it blows me away every day. My doctors told me my recovery would take a year and that I shouldn't expect anything more than that. Well, my doctors were dead wrong and my Savior continues to heal my body each and every day...3 years later. I haven't felt this good since before my surgery and I can't wait to watch this process play out.
ReplyDeleteMatt
So proud of you and so excited to see how far you have come! God is good! It's been a long and slow painful process, but your perseverance has paid off. Keep it up. :)
ReplyDelete