Wes Tonn

My first experience with running was in 2016. While I was in fairly good shape from working on my family farm, I was looking for a new challenge. Running infrequently a few times a week and usually at maximum effort, I entered a few 5k races with decent results.

I took an unintended break from exercise as I was focused on a new career. With my menieres disease (similar to vertigo) flaring up frequently, I had to prioritize my health again. Changing the type of work I did, my food choices and exercising retuned very positive results. I started running again and seeing improvement.

Then life hit me fairly literally. I was in a multi vehicle accident on a winter mountain pass during a storm. With a fractured sternum, I was barely able to work or train for a few months. This was a tough patch for me physically and mentally. Without knowing how long it would take realistically to get back to where I was in training and running, I gave up. Not in a self harming way, but I stopped caring or doing challenging things to improve.

Thankfully I had parents who were very concerned about me and I used that as motivation when I didn’t have any myself. Living in a smaller community at the time, I was lucky to find some really good fitness coaches who had been through similar challenges and were able to start me on a sustainable fitness journey. Nothing drastic, just manageable nutrition and consistent training. 

Making good progress, I thought of giving running a try again. I found a local group to run and train with. They were very welcoming even though I slowed down group runs a bit. Building up confidence, I joined parkrun events on weekends. An awesome group of runners who were friendly and fast. 

Seeing more improvement in running, I decided to get a running coach local to Kelowna. Working with a coach was a great experience. She talked me out of over training and signing up for too many races when I was not ready. Helping me with varied training runs and setting realistic race goals helped quite a lot with injury prevention. Another tool that helped me with injury prevention was adding strength training. 

Being free of injury, I was able to train and race consistently. This in turn helped my running in all areas.

Improving mental health has also been important for me. While I was not a high level athlete when facing setbacks, working on balance in life has changed my outlook. While most people know me through running, I try try not to tie my self worth to a single sport or area of my life. 

My hope is that in sharing, someone might find comfort and motivation in your journey. If you are someone starting out, or returning to fitness, I am rooting for you.

– Wes Tonn