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From the ripe young age of seven, I had been surrounded by sports. I was never interested in musical instruments. I never enjoyed reading books. Stamp and rock collections were just not for me. Every waking moment outside of school, I would find a way to play sports. One day it would be playing catch with a football. The next day was roller hockey. The following included fielding ground balls and shagging pop flies, along with a short bullpen session. One on one basketball in the backyard or a game of H.O.R.S.E kept me from doing my homework. Skateboarding or riding bikes around the small backyard worked up a sweat. And this was all in between weekly tennis lessons and constant soccer practices. Any chance I could get to play sports, I was playing.

Sports has had a huge affect on who I am as a person and as a runner. Both individual and team sports taught me different life lessons. As a singles tennis player, I learned discipline, controlling my emotions, and taking ownership in my actions. When I'd lose a set or blow a point for my partner, I'd only want to get better. Playing soccer and other team sports for over eleven years taught me teamwork, leadership, and about having fun with friends. When we won, we'd go back and practice. When we lost, we practiced harder. Sports was my life.

But this all changed when I graduated high school and entered my freshman year of college. Since my school had no Division I men's soccer team, playing soccer was out of the question; and to be honest, I was burnt out. In addition, the year I entered college, my school was the Division I National Champions in men's tennis, and I was nowhere near their caliber. So instead of going to class followed by hours of tennis and soccer practice 5 days a week, I went to college classes followed by sitting on the couch, partying with friends, going out to dinner and enjoying the college life. And boy did it catch up to me!

I had lived 16 years of my 18 year life as one of the scrawniest, skinniest, shortest guys around. But let's just say I gained more than my fair share of the "Freshman 15." I never got any comments about my weight, but looking back at my school ID and freshman year pictures, my face had filled out and I was definitely not in shape. Krispy Kremes for breakfast followed by pizzas, burritos, or burgers and fries for lunch and dinner definitely didn't help the cause. But don't worry, in between those unhealthy meals, I was getting my fruits from a large Jamba Juice. Can you say 5,000 calorie diet?

While I was having the time of my life enjoying the college atmosphere, my energy level and quality of life had diminished, solely because I wasn't as active. I had never been one to sit in front of the mirror at the gym and lift weights. I thought ellipticals and stationary bikes were boring. I basically weeded everything out except for running. So to get back in shape and lose some weight, I started with a goal of running around the campus perimeter without stopping, which was exactly 2 miles. Simple right? It was definitely a challenge to start, but with some consistency and healthier eating, I was up to about 20 miles a week. Six days a week of consistent running brought me back down to my "normal" weight of 170 and rejuvenated my spirits; I was getting healthier and I was addicted to running.



Ambitious as I am, I ran my first ever race, the Los Angeles Marathon in 2005. I finished and never quit setting goals. I wanted to run a half marathon under 1:40:00. I wanted to do a triathlon. I wanted to get my mile time under 5:30. There were so many running goals I wanted to achieve; the sky was the limit. My most recent accomplishment was breaking the 20 minute barrier on my 5K at the Santa Anita Derby Day. I was running five days a week with a group of friends, including tempo runs around the Rose Bowl and hard track workouts in La Canada. I spent time as a pacer for Club Run LA and helped train people for the Santa Monic Classic 5K/10K, the Nike Run Hit Wonder and Remix, as well as the Nike Women's Marathon. I'd even run solo with my Nike+ Sport Kit, with just my music motivating me. I was in the best shape of my life and it was all due to running. Then in July 2008, fatigue set in and my body broke down. I'd go out on a planned 5 mile run and was literally exhausted a mile and a half into it. I was forced to walk. Something was wrong and I didn't know what. One visit to the doctor's office and a couple blood tests later, I knew what was wrong: I had Graves' Disease.

While it sounds grimmer than it is, Graves' Disease is the most common form of hyperthyroidism. The higher thyroxine levels in your body can greatly increase your body's metabolic rate, which could affect your moods and physical appearance. The symptoms I possessed were increased heart rate, heat intolerance, tremors, fatigue, weight loss and enlargement of the thyroid. In order to treat this disease, I was immediately put on two different forms of medication, one of which was to regulate my heart rate. I was very thankful that this was a manageable disease, but also upset because I was immediately cut off from all physical activity; no running, no cycling, no lifting weights, even walking was pushing the limits. I was cut "cold turkey" from running at a time when I was in the best shape of my life. I was devastated.

I received treatment for twelve long months, where I dropped to a weight of below 155 (I'm 6'3") and got up to a weight of 195. Every month I became more optimistic as my blood tests showed improvement. It wasn't until seven months into my treatment that my doctor cleared me for light physical activity. I couldn't wait. I was back...kind of. I slowly got back into short runs but cautiously monitored my activity, as even one day of hard exertion could flare it back up. It was at this time that I truly gained an appreciation for running and for having the ability to do it. Before my diagnosis, I was so focused on racing, getting fast times, breaking 20 minutes in a 5K, beating my friends, etc, that I never really got to enjoy running. Having time off from running, from racing, and having time to myself to think and reflect, gave me a new perspective on running. In fact, I run today to spend time with my girlfriend and her dog. I run today to hang out with friends. I run today to relieve stress at work. I run today to take Team Runstrong to the top. I run today because I can. It's fun and I enjoy it, with no added pressure, no times to beat, I'm just running to run.

On August 11, 2009 at 7:09pm, my plane landed in Portland from my short flight from Burbank, CA. I was excited, because the next day I would be at Nike WHQ with the other nine Human Race Ambassadors. I turned on my cell phone and it beeped: I had a voicemail. "Justin, the doctor got your test results back. He wants you to go off all medication. Your Graves' is in remission." Throughout life, everyone is thrown curveballs. It's not how you dodge them, but how you deal with them. So enjoy every day as it comes, make the best of every opportunity, stay strong, and keep running.

Don't ever give up! Run Fast, Run Loud, Run Hard, Run Strong. Just Do It!

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