MINNEAPOLIS — On Friday, Alex Vigil ran for the last time before he takes on the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon.
"The life that I'm living now, never once in a million years did I think that that was going to be possible," he said.
He can run circles around his old self in just about every way.
He came to Minnesota from North Dakota in 2019 seeking treatment to his addiction of methamphetamines and alcohol.
"I came to Minnesota, desperate, suicidal, afraid, low self worth, low self esteem, really just a tiny, tiny bit of hope," said Vigil.
He cleared his mind by jogging, and leaned on support. Keri Anderson was among those rooting for him. She started out as a church friend, and became his personal trainer at Life Time.
"When I first met him, I just knew his heart," said Anderson. "I don't think that ever left. That's still who he is today. But I think the opening of that heart and his truth within himself has been revealed."
Last year, he was finally ready to run the TC marathon, but it was canceled because of heat. Vigil ended up completing the Mankato Marathon.
Now is his chance to run through the city that has given him so much.
"Because of the resources and the accessibility that Minnesota has to offer, I was able to turn my life around," said Vigil.
He's giving back to it as an addiction counselor at NUWAY, the same facility that helped him recover.
"It's honestly just a dream come true, coming here in 2019 I never expected my life to be where it's at today," said Vigil.
Vigil said the old Alex has run its course. Now, he has a different route of 26.2 miles.