At times I never wanted to step on a track again
One thing is certain, I won’t be on the track this time. Most athletes have to contend with serious injury or surgery at some point in their career.
It’s five months now since I underwent surgery on my Achilles tendon of my left foot — the foot that pushes at the hurdles.
Surgery ended my chances of competing in the 2014 indoor season but as it gave me a shot at the outdoors it was a necessary sacrifice.
Ever wonder what happens when an athlete is recovering post surgery? This week I’m writing about that process, from anti-gravity treadmills to the injured athlete’s mood swings.
I’ve just about rehabbed now to the point where I can complete a full training schedule though the road to this point was tough.
I’ve had close to four months of rehab recovery training. To just get back to the point where I can train, never mind compete.
In recovery, I did two sessions a week on the Alter-G treadmill — a special treadmill that reduces body weight and greatly reduces the impact of training on my injured foot.
I started out with 40% body weight and by Christmas my foot was able to handle 85% of my weight. This machine enabled me to run with a reduced risk of damaging my Achilles.
I also did three sessions each week in the gym. These sessions varied depending on how much my Achilles could tolerate. The next part of my rehab was swimming pool sessions. Rather than run in the pool, I took the opportunity to learn to swim. I’m still not a great swimmer but I look less like a cat in water now! The final element was physiotherapy sessions.
Throughout my rehab phase, I was based in the Irish Institute of Sport, working with physiotherapist Sarah Jane McDonnell along with good friend and strength and conditioning coach Martina McCarthy. This pair kept me going for the months after surgery, always finding ways to help me progress. They got me from crutches, to walking, to Alter-G running, to jogging.
There’s no exact path to get an athlete from surgery back to full training, everyone responds differently. Sarah Jane and Martina have been incredibly impressive in their approach. They’ve been very patient, even when I’ve been a complete pain in the arse!
There have been many challenges in the past five months. I had to stop setting major long-term goals. At first, post-op, I was intent on having deadlines for everything. I wanted to know when exactly I could walk, run or hurdle. After a while, I realised I couldn’t dictate recovery. ! The time I spent rehabbing was a rollercoaster of emotions. I swung from feeling incredibly motivated to unbelievably negative and at times never wanted to step on a track again. Mentally it’s been very tough. I went from running my fastest indoor time in seven years, to having surgery in the space of a few months. It was tough to stay positive throughout the experience and resist the urge to throw a pity party for myself.
In the past two weeks, I’ve started to feel like a runner again. My belief has slowly started to creep back. My coaches, Seán and Terrie Cahill have been able to set sessions for me and more importantly I’ve been able to complete them without pain. Thankfully my body hasn’t complained too much at my return to full training, making me want to high-five everyone in sight.
For the last week, I had an American competitor and friend staying with me in Dublin. My race manager, Paul Doyle, rang and asked could Nia Ali come and train with me between races in Europe.
Last year I trained with Nia and we did some great sessions together. She ended up running an incredibly fast 12.47 and making the US team for World Championships while I fell apart and ended up getting surgery.
It was good to spend time with Nia on the track again. She’s in the middle of an indoor season so I was able to watch her doing her hurdles and see the technical elements she was working on.
Outside of training, Nia and I spent lots of time talking running. Her outlook on my position was really interesting and probably something I needed to hear. Between now and outdoors there is lots of time, this gives me an opportunity to do all the small stuff right, to work on my weaknesses and become a student of the event. I haven’t taken this much time away from hurdles in over a decade so rather than view it as a negative, it’s time to use it as a positive. My body has had a break from intense training and it’s time to build up again. So I’m looking forward to a fresh start with nothing to lose.
This past week reminded me of things I’ve always known but had forgotten a little in the months of rehab darkness. Nothing comes easy in sport. It is going to take a massive effort to come back and run faster than ever before but it’s possible. I’ve always believed in fighting hard even if there is only a slim chance. After all fortune favours the brave and now that I’m starting on my training road it’s time to be a little brave again.
