SSG Victoria Ryan, U.S. Army (1973-1988)

Throughout all of my school years and into early adulthood, participation in sports and any other physical fitness activities were non-existent in my life. Little did I know, that by joining the Army in late 1973 at the age of 23, my previous semi-sedentary lifestyle would become a thing of the past.

Basic training for numerous weeks taxed my endurance. I thought I would get a reprieve once I was assigned to my first permanent duty station. But soon, I learned that I would be required to pass a six-month physical training (PT) test, which at the time comprised sit-ups, push-ups and a two-mile run. This was a brutal, exhausting and dreaded event with no room for compromise. I barely squeaked by for several years.

The military hierarchy caught on to this ill-conceived strategy by those less than physically active for months and then proceeded to over-exert themselves every six months in order to pass by the skin of their teeth. So, a major change was made to the criteria of the events for the semi-annual PT test. The changes resulted in the participants needing to actively and regularly pursue fitness training to pass the test.

By then, I was married. My husband and I embarked on a daily evening jogging regimen. It worked! It was a physically demanding endeavor, but the results bore out the work. Eventually, I maxed the run in record time. I was so proud – but I was still not a fan of running.

After leaving military service, without PT test requirements and not pursuing an active exercise routine, the pounds began to add up. After divorcing, depression and solitude shadowed me for months, and I did not like my appearance so I decided it was time to get back in shape.

How was I going to accomplish losing the weight? I was not in a financial position to join a gym and running was the only affordable form of exercise I could realistically pursue to burn calories. But, I HATED running! Determinedly, I started off slowly and continued to build up my distance and speed. When a snowstorm the first winter prevented me from running, I was almost beside myself and it dawned on me. My dislike of running backfired on me. Now, I LOVED it!

Within one year, I’d lost just over 60 pounds and went from a size 20 pants to a size 6. I’d never looked or felt better when I moved to Florida in 1999. Florida is a runner’s paradise – it’s flat! No hills, and running was better than ever. Shortly after that, I was taught how to inline skate and found a park close by where I could skate almost 25 miles almost every day after work. Many weekends, I would run in the morning and skate afterward. I became a fitness junkie.

In 2009, a friend encouraged me to enter 5k races. Over the next several years, I entered numerous races, including a 10k. I placed 1^st, 2^nd or 3^rd in my age group, except for two, where I placed 6^th in each.

This routine sustained me for years, although not without mishaps. I sustained stress fractures from running and a few falls from skating, including a fractured shoulder and broken back, but nothing too severe, which did not prevent me from pursuing my love of running and skating.

When I began planning for my retirement from the workforce, I accepted that my skating days were numbered and running was becoming more of a risk for injuries. When I moved to Tennessee in 2016, I refused to adopt a sedentary lifestyle after my intense physical routines over the past 20-plus years. I joined two fitness centers and to this day, I spend an hour on the treadmill each morning and utilize eight or nine different weight machines. When the weather cooperates, I also take a 2.5-mile walk.

If I’d not had the physical training and testing requirements in the Army all those years ago, I would not likely be in such good health today. Physical fitness, and its effects thereof, have been the best habit that I have retained from the military, sustaining my life and physical well-being.

Read the Military Memories of our Runner-Ups.