There are plenty of news stories going around about today being ‘Freedom Day’ in England, which if you watch the news is fairly widely seen as a non-event, but for me it really has turned out to be just that – but no thanks to any politicians!
After writing previously how an innocent trip to the physio back in early June turned into a case of ‘thin-leg-itus’, I spent the last 7 weeks on my longest running break in nearly a decade, feasting instead on a diet of calf raises, glute bridges and golf ball rolls.
Without running or a gym membership to use up my restless energy, I was effectively confined to indoor rides on my new spin bike, the views along the way being confined to virtual rides around San Francisco on Les Mills The Trip, or longing looks towards the Malvern Hills in the distance from my back garden. Still, at least I managed to get in some cardio even if nothing like what I would have liked.
Maybe it was lockdown giving people little else to do, or more likely the old Baader–Meinhof phenomenon, but it felt like every time I left my house in June and July every single other person in my town was out for a run. Roads I had previously had to myself both on foot and in the car were chock full of foot warriors, braving the English summer to pound the streets. And all I could think about was how jealous I was, wanting to be out there myself, chasing them down, subtle nods as we passed each other, wind in my hair. You get the picture.
I had been counting down the days to today’s physio for weeks, just hoping the strengthening exercises had worked enough to be able to get back on the road. And well, the grand answer was: sort of…
It turns out that although things were improving, there is still plenty of work to do to even my legs out, the risk being that doing too much too soon could just put me back to square one and lead to further injury. However, things had improved, and the doc agreed that I would be able to gradually start putting one leg in front of the other again!
My initial request of a 5k was denied as a little too much, but 3k running seemed ok to start off with, ideally with some run/walk or fartlek type training to ensure I did not overdo it. Far too excited I headed back home and into my gear for a lunchtime plod. Typically today happened to be the hottest day of 2021 so far, a shade over 30 degrees, and ordinarily one I might have thought better of, but not this time – I would have run in the desert for this opportunity!
So how did it go? Well, a fairly average run actually, a less distance than I have covered in ages and even slower than my usual plodding pace, but my feet felt great – the extra cushioning in my trainers and specialist socks doing their job to numb my feet and going against everything Barefoot Ted preaches in ‘Born to Run’ (my thoughts on that book to follow another time) – and all in all a really satisfying experience. I definitely had a big smile on my face throughout, and the small amount of pain in my right metatarsals and left thigh felt more like my body waking up again and remembering how to use those dormant muscles.
After all that the big question still looms over everything: what about the Marathon? Well it is still not ruled out, and whilst I can now get back to training it is going to take time to build back up to the sort of distances I need to be hitting, something I don’t have a lot of with less than 12 weeks to go to the big day, making sure this will be by far my biggest challenge yet. But as I write this it makes me realise, that is what it is about. That is what it has always been about. Pushing myself to the limit and challenging my body. Going from 5k to half marathons, sprint triathlons to half Ironmans. I have never given up in a race before, and I am not going to let the biggest of all slip by now.
Bring it on!
Chile Challenge 