I think the Dr. was giving me good news. He thought I should be thrilled, and I am from a certain point of view. It's fun to know that I will probably not follow in line with my father and grandfather, who died in their early fifties from COPD, emphysema and other smoking related complications. But there's another angle to consider.
My standby excuse for poor performance in the gym, general lethargic lifestyle, the amount of time I spend asleep (or wishing I were asleep), lack of interest in almost everything and life overall has been taken away. I had a stress test and some other routine 50 year old stuff done earlier this year, and my heart is as strong as ever too. So the two main concerns with my 30 year smoking addition have pretty much evaporated for now.
So, why do I get so winded after just a couple of minutes running slowly on the treadmill? I could understand it before. Last year while I was still smoking, I could barely walk fast for a few minutes. I am doing a lot better.
I remember back in college when I was encouraged to run. I had friends who very much enjoyed going for a good run in the morning. I never could do it. After just a few minutes, I just ran out of air. From then on, it was just meaningless torture to run more. And that was before I ever smoked a cigarette.
So I'm trying to work on breathing better. Maybe pushing my lower jaw forward and stuff. I tried it on the treadmill this week, and it seems to help a little. Maybe the bottom line is that I just need to do the one thing I don't know how to do...
Try harder.