So first of all, when I call it a 'comeback' I don't mean some epic story of a guy turning elite or anything, because I was never remotely close to elite. I was a sort of mediocre runner in HS and I technically ran a year in college. My last season was outdoor freshman year in 2008. If PRs matter:
16:44 5k
9:57 3200m
27:3X 8k
34:xx 10k
THEN I gained a LOT of weight pretty quickly. I'am 6'3" and weighed 165 at the end of my running "career" (lol). My heaviest was 255ish at the beginning of this past June. I had grown to resent running because I made the stupid mistake that I'm sure other runners have made: running for a TERRIBLE D1 school when I had absolutely no business running at one instead of running at a local D2 or 3 or NAIA school. SO when I say I quit running, I literally did not run a step in 6 years. As far as I was concerned, I had totally lost the passion.
This past June, I started "running" (really, run/walking). My girlfriend wants to run a 5k, so I reluctantly started running with her, at first hating it. About a week or 2 in, I began to fall back in love with it. I felt like shit, but something about it was still exhilarating and it brought back fond memories. I also ate like shit and drank a LOT of alcohol and had high blood pressure for 6 years.
Today, I weigh 224. My blood pressure is normal. Last night I did a tempo run of 3 miles at 24:31. Even though it is nowhere near where I want to be, I was pleased and I am now more motivated than when I was okay at running. I think it is because I don't have enough ability to take anything for granted.
My question is: is it at all possible to race anywhere near where I used to? I am curious if anyone out there has had any similar experiences/success stories. I don't necessarily mean if it's possible to run the times I used to...I am more wondering whether I can ever, say, break 20 in the 5k ever again, or maybe break 40 in the 10k. That would be good enough for me.
Thanks for any feedback. Sorry for the super long post.