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Tuesday, October 15, 2013

2:49:47! I did it!

2:49:47. Ninth woman overall. 
Yes friends, you read that heading correctly.

2:49:47 in the Melbourne Marathon. 

A new marathon PB. More importantly, proof positive that I have conquered high hamstring tendinopathy and I am back and running stronger than ever.

At the end of last year I was told there was a chance I would never race competitively again. This ripped my heart out - not only did I love to run, but I had lots more I wanted to achieve with my running. The ensuing months of treatment and rehab and false starts and set backs are documented a little in this blog, although I refrained from posting about the really, really dark times.

Always, always at the back of my mind was Melbourne Marathon. My big goal for the year and, as the months progressed and recovery took far longer than I wanted, my ONLY goal for the year. I just couldn't write this entire year off - I needed something good to come out of it.

Crossing the finish line on the MCG on Sunday and seeing 2:49 on the clock was the most wonderful reward for all the work and patience and perseverance and the many, many tears that were shed whilst trying to get back to running.

Personal drinks ready to go. 
I can't even begin to express how utterly grateful I am to everyone who had a role in my recovery since last November. Without my wonderful husband Andrew, my family, friends, coach (Sean Williams), physio (Brent Kirkbride), doctor (Donald Kuah), massage therapist (Michael Viera - Complete Body Dymamics) and Mizuno I couldn't have done it. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

I know I'm going on as if I've won a gold medal at the Olympics or something, but I really need to express how much I appreciate everyone who has supported me. I love to run and, as much as I freak out before a race, I love to challenge myself by racing. I am so incredibly grateful and happy to be back at it again - and to be racing better than I ever have been before.

Wooooohooooo! Seriously! WOOOOOOHOOOOOOO! I'm sorry I can't be more eloquent - if you picture me running around madly waving my hands above my head you may have an inkling of how I'm feeling. 2:49:47!! YEAH!

The race went well. I wore the Mizuno Ronin - the first time I've worn them for the full marathon distance and they felt fantastic. No blisters, no bleeding and I still have all ten toenails. Excellent.

Early morning at the 'G'.
The weather wasn't as bad as I feared, although there was some wind and it started to rain a bit near the end. By about 9k I hooked up with two other women (Aarthi Venkatesan and Fleur Flanery) and we started to work together to maintain a pace of about 3:59/k. We were soon joined by some other women and a few men and our pack ran together quite strongly until that dreaded turnaround point near St Kilda Esplanade (25k). Not too long after that (I'm not sure where) we started to fall apart. Laura James and Hannah Flannery took off like they had jet-packs on - they both ran such strong, smart races and made it look so easy - while a few women fell behind me. I had a couple of bad stages but managed to hold a reasonable pace together until the 37k mark, where a hill and fading legs caused me to go from a 4:01km (@36k) to a 4:19km. Ouch. From there I had a couple of other bad splits which caused the anxiety levels to spike a little because I knew I'd be close to blowing the sub-2:50 time.

The last few seconds of the race, as I ran towards the finish and knew I was about scrape in under 2:50, were magic. A mix of utter relief and complete joy. The worst year suddenly became the best year, thanks to that little 42.2 kilometre run through Melbourne.

So happy. So grateful. So blessed.





Saturday, October 12, 2013

Let's do this

Apologies if this post looks odd. Im posting from my phone and Blogger is misbehaving.

I arrived in Melbourne yesterday after an 'interesting' flight on Jetstar that was late and also included a snotty nosed woman sneezing all over me twice. Nice.

Sorted out my bib in the afternoon (my original number, 8, never arrived in the post so I'm now 222. If anyone sees a runner wearing number 8 it'll be my postman!).

Drinks dropped in today followed by an athlete briefing. Short wonder through a few laneways for some shopping then back to the hotel to chill.

How am I feeling about tomorrow? Grateful that I am here at all, given the year I've had. Prepared, although I know my training has been cautious to prevent the injury coming back. Hopeful of hitting my target time. I would love to run sub-2:50. It's what I'm aiming for and it would make my year if I can do it. I know some people don't like to publicly state their goal - I don't always do it - but part of me is so relieved I am back racing strongly again that I'm not going to feel like a complete failure if I miss the goal and everyone knows it. Of course I'd be disappointed and I'm going to give it every single thing I've got - I desperately want it - but I feel OK with letting people know what I'm chasing.

It's a pretty obvious goal anyway. Everyone wants to slip down into the next time bracket don't they?!

The weather isn't looking great for tomorrow. The wind is my biggest worry so if it picks up as expected I'm hoping there will be a few of us together and we can work as a group. Hail is also on the cards although later in the day.

That's it from me for now. All the best to everyone running tomorrow, as well as my friends over in Kona for Ironman world champs.

Let's do this.

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Blackmores Sydney Half Marathon - I'm back!

I wrote the first part of this post the day after the Blackmores Sydney Half Marathon. I had every intention of finishing it the next day but life, work and worries about the looming Melbourne Marathon got in the way. 

So, here it is now. The Blackmores Sydney Half Marathon race wrap up.

After a nightmare year, it is with enormous pleasure (and relief) that I can say I have finally run another PB.

I raced the Blackmores Sydney Half Marathon on 22 September - but kept it very low key because I was feeling pretty nervous about it. I knew this race would give me a good indication of what sort of condition I am in for Melbourne Marathon (three weeks after the half) and I was concerned that if the race didn't go well I'd blow any sort of confidence I had to smithereens.

Luckily, it was a good day.

I finished fourth woman in 81:28 - a PB by one minute and ten seconds. And it was a 'good' race. I felt in control the whole time, I settled down almost instantly and got myself into what felt like a pretty good rhythm. I hung off the back of the 80 minute pace group for a while - which wasn't an intended plan but once the race was underway and the group was there I thought it would be nice to keep them in sight. I lost them a bit every time I grabbed a drink but would catch up again until the rope snapped around the half way mark and I wasn't confident enough to try and chase them down - I was worrying about blowing up towards the end so I kept to my own pace.

To be honest, I couldn't tell if the course was easy or difficult. There were a few ups and downs and a fair bit of twisting and turning, especially in the second half, but I never got to a stage where I started to think, 'Shit, this is awful, I just want it to end.' I was in fifth place up until around 16k when I snuck into fourth. The position very honestly wasn't important to me - I just wanted to see if I could run a decent time and compare my form to where I was this time last year.


The worst thing about the race was probably the super-early race start - with the gun going off at 6:15am I was up to eat breakfast at 3:15am. My husband had gone out in the city the night before (while I stayed in at the Grace Hotel and went to sleep), so he was certainly a little worse for wear as we walked from the CBD, over the Harbour Bridge and to the start at Milsons Point. Actually, at one point he said, "It's just lucky I'm still drunk." Hmmmmm. I think he was half joking.

In all, it was a good race and it showed me I'm certainly much stronger and in decent form for Melbourne, which is now only four days away. From what I can figure out I think I will be close to hitting my goal time but it certainly won't be a given. I will have to really fight for it - and hope the conditions are absolutely perfect. I am hoping the extra strength I have gained through the months and months of exercises and rehab I've done to get over the high hamstring tendinopathy will mean I will be stronger through the second half of the marathon and maybe avoid slowing down as much as I did last year.

Big thanks to my coach, Sean Williams, whose program and advice has been invaluable in getting me back racing. Also thanks to the eternal pessimist (!) but best physio in the world, Brent Kirkbride, who was responsible for putting me back together when I was broken.

I'll post one more time over the next couple of days. Taper is in full swing right now and I am about to explode!

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

First post-injury win - Sutherland Half Marathon

Again, it's been some time between posts. The good news is things have been going really well. For the first time I'm beginning to think I've conquered this high hamstring tendinopathy. Seeing as though I was told in no uncertain terms that there was a chance I wouldn't get over it, I'm very happy with how everything has been going.

My best piece of news is that I've finally won a race again - my first win since being injured. My coach put the Sutherland Half Marathon on my program - a tough little off road race. I knew it wasn't going to be a fast day so I thought that if the pace was right I'd try to stick with the front girls and hopefully outlast them.

The start of the Sutherland Half Marathon.
Surprisingly, the plan actually worked. There was a group of four women early on which dropped to three, then to two by the turn around point (a little over half way). I thought I'd try and put a bit of a gap between myself and the other female, which I managed to do. I'm not actually sure how much space I put between us, but after I while I couldn't hear her anymore so I relaxed a bit and kept the pace comfortable.

Now, at this point, let me point out one thing. The woman in second place was Laura James - who is a much faster runner than I am. My advantage came from the fact that Laura had already run, and won, the 10k race earlier that day.

Getting closer to the end of the half I considered speeding things up a bit, but given that the terrain wasn't great, and I tend to be pretty uncoordinated, I thought it'd be safer to stay at the pace I was at. With 4k to go Laura pulled up along side me - 'Oops', I thought, 'I should've run a bit faster!' Luckily I had some fuel in the tank and managed to put a gap between us again. I won, but I really do want to say what an awesome effort Laura put in. Winning the 10k then coming second in the half mara after it - she's such a strong runner.

The time was nothing to be proud of - even for a tough course - 87:29. Having said that, I made a conscious decision to race for the win, not for a time, and that's what I did. I raced the race I was given and, thankfully, it went my way.

After the horrible year I've had it was really nice to finally achieve something. Although, I guess it should be said that recovering from the injury was a pretty big achievement in itself.

Thanks to Sutherland District Athletics Club for putting on a great event. I got to speak to a few people from the club and they were all really friendly and enthusiastic about running. I love this sport.

Since the half mara training has been solid - up until last week when something weird happened to my ankle/foot. After the Sutherland Half my ankles felt a bit stiff - I just put it down to racing off road, but it was enough for me to comment to my husband on. Then I got a pain on the medial side of my left arch, which was a bit worse after being on the dance floor at the Pink concert wearing Converse boots. After a couple of days, that arch pain moved and I started getting a pain up in my ankle joint. It was also a bit swollen, tender to touch and felt hot. I iced it, put some anti-inflam gel on but nothing helped and I ended up skipping a couple of runs, including a 35k long run (I did 12k and called it quits) because I was worried about doing damage. Out came the anatomy diagrams so I could try and figure out what  on earth was wrong, but that whole area was just far too confusing so I booked in to see Brent (physio). Better to get straight on to addressing whatever it was.

I saw Brent after work on Friday and whatever manipulation stuff he did seemed to help a lot. He said I probably did something at the Sutherland Half (likely, given that I nearly tripped over a handful of times). His advice was to watch it, ice after running, use anti-inflams if I needed it and don't run off road on uneven surfaces. After physio I gave it another day to settle down, and had a couple of anti-inflam tablets, and by Sunday it was much, much better.  I got through a strong 35k run and only noticed it a couple of times, and even then if i hadn't been consciously thinking about it I doubt I would have taken any notice of it at all. It has stayed settled down so I'm hoping it was just a small hiccup which is on its way out.

Just over three weeks until Melbourne Marathon.



Wednesday, August 7, 2013

On the up!

I have been on 'blog hiatus' for a while. At first it was because I thought the injury was rearing its ugly head again and I didn't want to deal with it, then I got busy trying to get right into my training and I thought the blog could wait for a while.

At the time of my last post  I was having some niggles again which were worrying me. One day I did the hamstring bridge test, which is an indicator of the state of the tendons, and I felt a tiny bit of pain - a sure sign things weren't great. I was told by my physio that if there was ever pain I had to back it off and not run to let it settle down so, in my new-found obedience, I took two days off running. During that time I focused a lot on the stability/strength exercise that has my back laying on the fitball, my feet on the floor and my knees bent at 90 degrees - then lifting alternate feet whilst keeping my hips level. I swear, this is a magic exercise - it, above everything else, seems to bring things back into line. It feels like it's switching all the correct muscles on again and stabilising everything.

After getting through this brief bumpy patch, things have been going from strength to strength. I haven't been this happy (or this fatigued) in a long time and it's wonderful.

I did my first race on 13 July - the NSW Road Relay Champs. This was a good, low key way of getting back to racing. It was short (4k) and I asked to be one of the middle runners (I was second) so I just blended in and didn't really have to think about a starting gun or a finishing position.

I guess it was a solid result - officially my time was 14:43 (I recorded it a bit quicker - there was a timing problem and my chip didn't register, but we'll go with the official time). That pace isn't great - it's pretty much the same pace as I've run my 10k PB in, but it was a race and it was so great to get back to it. Our team (Hills Open Women) finished in sixth place and my time was the 11th fastest run in the Open women's division.

The most positive things was that there was no pain during the run, no pain after (even though I had to drive a fair way home and sitting in a car never helps) and the next day I did my 31k long run without any issues.

Two weeks after the road relays I did my first half marathon since being injured (last November). Again, I did it in a really low key way - as part of a two-person relay in the Westlink M7 Marathon. My coach, Sean Williams, put the race in my program as a training run, so there was no taper which I was a little concerned about - I didn't want to run really slowly because I was both out of shape and tired!

The day before the race I realised how out of practice I am at preparing for a race. I couldn't remember the little things I do and even getting my clothes organised became an issue that I was overthinking. I thought I'd carry a gel in case I needed it but then discovered all my gels were past their used-by dates because it's been so long since I've used them. I found one that had only gone out about a month ago and figured it would still be OK. (I didn't end up using it so I don't know if it was. Most of them were probably fine but I didn't want to risk stomach problems from a dodgy one).

M7 Marathon Relay.
I paired up with another local runner, Jim Perrett, and he was fine with me running the second leg which meant I didn't have to deal with starting gun nerves. Jim got us of to a great start, running 79 minutes. I started my leg too fast (yep, as usual) and the first nine kilometres felt really clunky and uncomfortable (but no hamstring issues). Thankfully by 10k the running started to feel fluid again and I was loving it.

With 4k to go I was passed by a runner in another mixed team - Tim Molesworth. Not only is Tim fast, he's also one of those runners who puts it all on the line and doesn't stop until he detonates so, even though I tried to hang on to him for a while, he wasn't going to let our team have the win. Jim and I finished up second in the mixed pairs division and my half marathon time was 83:35.

I was satisfied with my time, given that I very honestly had NO IDEA what how fast or slow I would run. It's actually only 58 seconds slower than the PB I ran when I got second in the state champs last September (although I've never been happy with my half mara PB - it's soft).

Since then my tendon has behaved itself perfectly. I'm getting through all my sessions with hardly any variations (a couple of times I've had to swap things to different days to fit in with other commitments) and I'm working hard enough to have that wonderful fatigued feeling, but not so fatigued that I can't get through my training. I've had a bit of a flu-type thing for the past few days but other than that all is good.

Things are on the up. I'm so, so grateful.

Friday, June 28, 2013

Speed kills. Tendons.

Speed kills. Tendons.

Well, my tendons certainly seem to dislike speed - or to be precise, my left hamstring origin tendon dislikes speed.

Sigh. This was supposed to have healed by now.

I had to skip my track and long interval sessions last week - my left leg was still not up to scratch. I hated having to skip sessions so early back into training, but I guess if I push through things now I'm going to make it worse further on down the road.

To be honest, I'm feeling very up and down right now. After initially thinking I was about to get back on track, time seems to be slipping away rapidly and I often feel myself starting to panic when I realise how quickly Melbourne is approaching. But, in reality, there's no point in panicking is there? It's not going to help the situation - it'll just make me more frustrated. Instead, I have to take this whole thing One. Day. At. A. Time.

Yes, there is still a 'big picture'. And I'll get there. I have to. It's just going to take a bit longer than I originally planned. Freaking crying about it won't help.

Interestingly, while we're on the topic of Melbourne, the Melbourne Marathon isn't the Australian Championships this year - they've gone to Sydney. Even if I were in top form I doubt I would have changed my plans and run Sydney. Melbourne has always been faster for me and the elite athlete coordinator, Tim Crosbie, does everything possible to make it a really positive and easy experience for us. I'm out to get the fastest time I can and I think Melbourne's the place for that. Especially now they've sorted out the merge with the half marathon runners.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand.

I did 30k on Sunday (23/6) for my long run. Do you know, I'm pretty sure that's the longest run I've done since Melbourne Marathon last year. It felt good to get it done and the tendon was OK. My endurance held up fine and the next day I only had a tiny bit of tightness in my calves - nothing you'd think twice about and my morning run got rid of it.

I've also been in touch with Mizuno to ask about some other shoes that might be worth testing out. At present I am running most of my kilometres in the Elixir, which is working out well. The Elixir used to be my marathon race shoe and I trained in the Nirvana because it had more support so would be kinder on my body. I'm doing all my track work in the Ronin, which I love. Love, love, love. Best shoe ever.

I've found that using a lower profile shoe, such as the Elixir instead of the Nirvana, helps me maintain the body position and form that I need to focus on to get myself through this injury (and to stay uninjured). There doesn't appear to be any scientific evidence for this - even the Mizuno podiatrist said there wasn't much correlation with hamstring injuries and lower profile shoes and my physio said he didn't know, so all I can go on is how my body feels and how it reacts to different shoes.

I am going to try the Inspire as a training shoe - it's got a little more support than the Elixir but less that the Nirvana, so it might be good for doing lots of kilometres. I supposed I'm lucky in that I'm a lightweight so it's not as vital that I have shoes with loads of cushioning, but I'm going to test the Inspire out and see how it goes. A friend recently started running in a pair and he's really happy with how it feels.

So where to from here? I'm literally taking things day by day - seeing how the body is feeling then deciding if the program has to be modified. This week I swapped some days around but I did all the sessions (but again, the track session was cut short - probably a wise move because my 4k cool down had some 'not-right-discomfort'). I had a 25k trail race scheduled for this Sunday - I had a choice of two. I entered one - Woodford to Glenbrook, that I've won the last four years in a row - knowing I'd only be a 50/50 chance of actually racing, depending on my leg. However, it's been cancelled because of flooding. The other one, the Wingello Trail Classic, is a new race in the Southern Highlands. I am doubtful I'll head down to that. Even if I feel OK on Sunday morning, a two-hour drive before a race is never going to benefit the tendon. Sitting in a car for anything more than 40 minutes still causes it to ache.

I do need to get a race in soon though - just to get it over with. I haven't raced since last November and I'm nervous (more nervous than usual!)

So that's where things are at right now.  I'm still fighting.










Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Two steps forward... and...

I have been making solid progress in regards to returning to a 'normal' training program. I'm now into week three and, generally, the hamstrings have been behaving themselves and I've been able to do some solid training. Last week I did 95k in total, with a fair bit of quality running. It's made it feel like a weight's been lifted off me and I've been feeling so happy and motivated.

Yesterday and today, however, were not good days. My left hamstring/tendon was definitely feeling something so yesterday I decided to swap Tuesday's track session with Wednesday's 14k run in the hope that an extra day away from the track would settle things down.

Unfortunately when I woke up this morning my hammie felt a bit achey and, as I feared, when I did the hamstring bridge to test things out I felt the slightest little twinge up under my butt. Just the slightest bit, and only for a split second at the start of it, but it was there. Not what I wanted.

So, in an effort to let it settle down completely, today was a cycle only day - as per my instructions from physio Brent that if there is any pain when I do a bridge I'm not to run (let alone to the track session I was planning on doing). I've been feeling very positive these last few weeks so today broke the spirit a little bit. I'll admit to having a bit of a cry this morning, then another one this afternoon when the Athletics NSW email newsletter arrived rubbing salt in the wound.

I just want this to disappear once and for all. I suppose I was naive in thinking there wouldn't be any setbacks when getting back into training. At this stage I suppose I'm prepared to modify my training every now and then to cater for any niggles but the worry is that I'll have to keep modifying it, and modify it too much, to the point that I'm not going to get the best out of myself.

Bah.


Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Here we go again

I am officially on day two of 'proper' training. Woo hoo!

I finished with my physio last Friday - we just went through the exercises I needed to keep doing (as in, keep doing forever and ever, amen, if I want to continue running) and talked about the warning signs I had to look out for that would signal tendon problems.

The biggest warning sign is pain when I do my hamstring bridge - that's my number one test to make sure everything is still OK. If I get pain I have to back off the training until the pain goes away.

I am also about to start riding around on a scooter. You know, one of those push scooters that kids use. I thought my physio was joking when he told me to use one - he wasn't. It makes sense because it strengthens all the areas I need to work on. This weekend I'm going to go to my parents' place and dig out the (awesome) scooter my younger sister used. And yes, it will probably look like I'm a crazy lady trying to reclaim my youth. I don't care. I'll do anything if it helps my running!

Today I hit the track, as per my program. I've done some track work over the last month or so but they've been short sessions with decent recovery between reps (very basic - two mins fast, two min recovery, just so I felt I was doing something). Today that recovery time was cut in half (two mins fast, one min recovery) and we added some one minute reps (with 45 sec recovery) at the end.

Yes, it was tough for me - it's been at least six months since I've done this. Yes, some of the reps were a bit off the pace, but some were faster than the set pace. In all, I feel so positive and happy that I'm finally back to it.

Life is good.

J

Friday, May 10, 2013

Ready... Steady...

One more physio visit to go. Only one more!

It's like looking forward to graduation. Or prison release. :)

J

Monday, May 6, 2013

Some days

Some days it all just seems so hard.

I feel like I'm trying to climb backwards up a waterfall.

Ironically, now I am almost on top of this injury I am feeling completely hopeless. It's like the past five months (yes FIVE awful months) it's taken to get me to this point were only the preliminaries. The real hard stuff starts now, when I have to come to terms with just how slow I have become; when the end goal is now so far away I can't even see it anymore.

Last year I was finally starting to feel confident in myself as a runner. Now I am struggling to see anything beyond these terribly slow runs that appear to be taking me nowhere.

Ironman Australia was yesterday. Ouch. Twelve months ago I had such different plans - I had entered to race Ironman and I was excitedly freaking out about it. Then, when my running started to make progress again, I made the decision to withdraw from Ironman so I could focus on some key road races in the first part of this year and really do well in them. To be honest, the decision wasn't really that difficult - running will always be my first love and I truly believed if I worked hard I could do well.

As it turned out - I didn't do any of it. Nada, nothing, zip. Instead, I've spent five months trying to rehabilitate two stupid hamstring tendons, always knowing there would be a chance they were blown for good.

Can you tell it was a bit of a tough weekend? Not only was Ironman yesterday, the state road 10k championships were on Saturday too. And I was... nowhere near either of them.

I have really tried to keep up the positive rhetoric as I've been treating this tendinopathy, but some days it just all seems too hard to believe. When I'm out running and only hitting a pace that's slower than my previous recovery-run pace, it's difficult to see how on earth a sub-2:50 marathon is on the way.

Sunday, April 21, 2013

Things are looking up!

The past week has been really promising and I'm starting to feel I truly am on the way to beating this injury.

I saw my physio nine days ago and he said it was time to start building up my kilometres to about 75-85% of my normal training load. He also said I could do one 'light' speedwork session a week. This was the best news I've had in ages.

I had some dry needling (which is apparently great for high hamstring tendinopathy) and we also talked about how important it is for me to consistently do strength exercises - glutes, hamstrings, hip extension. I've got a whole lot of different ones to do, some using body weight, some using weights and some using resistance bands.

I had two new 'toys' delivered early last week - a 'power band' to use for resistance work (rather than the makeshift things I've been using) and a 'pocket physio' that I can use to release some of the pain and tightness I get (especially after sitting and driving - I actually sit on it in the car).

Super band.
Pocket physio.

I got these online from Sport & Physio Supplies - I have absolutely no relationship with this business at all and I want to say how fantastic the service was. I ordered on Friday night and the parcel arrived on Tuesday. The price of the band was cheaper (in some cases much cheaper) than other places I looked and the quality seems good. (See the end of this post for a video of an exercise using the super band).

I'm really pleased to say my body has handled the increase in kilometres really well. Greta (Garmin) has come out of retirement once again and is back recording distances. Over four days last week (Sat-Wed) I clocked up 70.13km, including one small set of 6x2 min reps (with 2 min rest) at the track - my first time doing anything 'fast' since November last year. I had no idea what to expect in terms of pace when I was at the track. Part of me was really afraid I wouldn't even be able to get to 4min/k pace. Thankfully it wasn't as bad as I feared. My fastest rep was at 3:16k pace and my slowest was 3:32k pace. I felt strong through my glutes and I played it a little cautiously. I was prepared to call it quits if my hamstrings/glutes started to feel 'wrong' but it all went OK (even though the daylight suddenly disappeared and I found myself running in near darkness and guessing where the lane was. I was worried I was going to trip over because the grass track I go to is in crap condition and there were also water bottles and rubbish all over it).

After a great start to the week, getting sick wasn't the greatest thing to happen. Every second person seems to have a head cold or flu at the moment, including me. I didn't run Thursday, Friday or Saturday and today I did a slow 22k. My legs felt good (which is why I kept going to 22k) but I had a cracker of a headache and a bit of a cough. Nonetheless, it was very heartening to be out running without pain.

I know I have to be careful not to do too much too soon, but I have gradually been building up the running (on physio approval) over the last few weeks. I am paying close attention to how my body feels - I'm not going to jeopardise the last few months and set myself back again. If everything goes well over the next fortnight I'm hoping to be able to start proper training with Sean again (modified proper training, but at least following a program and starting to work towards goals other than 'fix injury) in about the second or third week of May.

Finally, here's an example (from YouTube) of another strength exercise my physio has me doing with the super band. The guy in the video talks too much but put up with it and you'll see the hip extension work I'm doing. The only difference with me is that I start with my knee bent (not straight like him) so it mimics the running motion.


Keep on keeping on.

J

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

For Boston

I, like so many people today, am trying to get my head around the gut wrenching tragedy that took place at the Boston Marathon.

There are no words.

I think runners, in particular, around the world are reacting so strongly to this because it hits so close to home - we've been there, racing towards the finish line, elated and euphoric. We've had our own friends and family on the sidelines cheering us home. From its sheer simplicity - running - comes a moment that celebrates all that is good - self belief, determination, community, camaraderie.

How dare some crazed, sick people take away our freedom to enjoy a life without fear? Who now will take to a start line without a worry, even just fleeting, that the events in Boston may be repeated? Innocence is lost.

My deepest sympathy to everyone touched by the bombings.

This popped up on my Facebook feed a little while ago, and it shines a little bit of light in a dark moment in time.

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Risk = Reward?

I can't believe Canberra Marathon is just over a week away and I'm not going to be racing. I've run the last nine of them - this was going to be my 'Griffin' tenth. It was also supposed to be the first time I ran under 2:50. Based on Melbourne last October, if I hadn't been injured and I'd kept up the training with Sean, I'm pretty sure I could have done it.

Instead, I'm frustrated as all hell. Looking down the barrel of months and months of modified training in the hope of getting back to where I was four to five months ago. And that's assuming I can actually start following a program soon and incorporating some track/fast running without breaking.

Without breaking. As Hamlet would say, "ay, there's the rub." I'm concerned that after all this I'm going to be overly cautious and not work as hard as I should because I'll be nursing my tendons. However, if I'm NOT overly cautious and I do end up breaking again I'll be left with nothing.

Is a modified program in which you remain cautious in the name of self-preservation better than risking it all to be the best you can possibly be?

I don't want unanswered questions. I want to know I gave it everything. I just hope over the coming months I discover that I do have more to give.

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Mizuno blog

Being a Mizuno Brand Ambassador is, for me, a complete privilege. I have access to really great gear, I can get advice on different types of shoes from people who know their stuff, and I have the honour of being associated with a brand that's known for excellence.

Now, with the launch of Mizuno's new blog, I'm also able to share some of my experience, thoughts and knowledge with other runners. Hopefully some of what I say will interest or help others - but if not, I'm sure something one of the other athletes posts will.

Over the coming weeks and months Mizuno will add more posts to the blog with the aim of making it a comprehensive resource for runners of all levels. There are a few posts up there now, including this one I wrote on being a runner.

For so many years I felt like a fraud - someone who somehow managed to make people think I was a decent runner. I thought it was only a matter of time before people discovered I wasn't really a runner at all. Slowly, it dawned on me that I was a real runner - not because of the times I posted or the medals I won, but because I was dedicated to the sport and I loved it.

With this high hamstring tendinopathy slowly starting to work itself out, I'm able to run more often and I'm telling you, my mood has improved dramatically. I'm not running fast, I'm not training properly and I'm not racing but I am outside doing what I love to do.

You can read the Mizuno blog here: http://www.mizuno.com.au/running/blog/

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Another rehab video

Because I know lots of people have found this blog by searching for 'high hamstring tendinopathy' I thought it'd be worthwhile posting another one of the rehab/strengthening exercises I'm doing.

Because I'm not too keen on starring in my own video, I found this example on YouTube:


If you're a fellow HHT sufferer and you have any rehab, exercises or treatment you're finding is working, you're welcome to post a comment or send me an email at johp.mail@gmail.com - I'll add it to the stuff I'm doing to try and get over this bastard of an injury and I'll share it with everyone else.

Currently my right side is feeling good but my left side played up in the last few minutes when I went for a 40 minute run yesterday. And I'm unfit. It's not a nice feeling.

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Ow, my bum

It's been a week since my second lot of PRP injections, and boy, has it been a long and difficult week.

Apparently I did too much after my injections last time so this time Dr Kuah said, very clearly, that I was not to run or ride for two weeks. I could swim but only if I used a pool buoy. He then wrote it all down and underlined the word 'STRICTLY' on it. He was serious.

The purpose of all this is to give the tendons the best possible chance to repair. It makes sense, but that doesn't mean it's easy.

Do you know that swimming using just your arms is boring? And slow?

To be honest, the main thing that has been hard to deal with isn't being told I can't ride or run - yes, that's not fun but I can see it has a purpose. The biggest hurdle I'm facing is coming to terms with everything I'm going to miss this year.

No Canberra Marathon. No SMH Half. No state road 10k. No SMC. No Woodford to Glenbrook (there goes the chance of winning five years in a row). Highly unlikely I'll be able to do M7 Cities Marathon.

It's a bummer alright and I spent quite a few days feeling really down in the dumps. And frustrated. And I probably wasn't the most fun person to be around. (Public apology to my husband and thanks to family who went on a 'cheer up Joh' campaign on Sunday).

Physically, I think the post-injection pain has been a little worse this time. I didn't bruise as much as the first time, but sitting in a car for more than 15 minutes really hurts it. When I'm working on my computer I move around a lot (the joy of laptops) so I'm constantly changing position. I joked with my husband that I think Dr Kuah must have done something different this time in order to stop me running too soon.

I'm back doing rehab exercises and my right side is responding really well - I actually think the right side might have been OK with only one injection. As for the left side, Dr Kuah said he feels it'll probably need a third injection in four weeks, but Brent (physio) will test things out before that date and we will decide from there.

I'm hoping it doesn't need another one so I can start getting into some proper (if modified) training. Another injection means more time spent doing nothing (OK, pool-buoy swimming). Having said that, I'm obviously going to do whatever Dr Kuah and Brent recommend. They're the experts, they've got a lot of experience with high hamstring tendinopathy and I've got a lot of confidence they're giving me the best treatment and advice.

Oh I miss running. Miss, miss, miss it so much.

Monday, March 4, 2013

Lost: Motivation. Please return if found.

The longer this injury goes on the harder it is to motivate myself to get on with doing what little training I can do.

Every weekend I'm seeing races come and go. I'm seeing other runners progress and I'm feeling myself falling further and further behind. I do try to remain positive, and I can maintain a positive rhetoric and say all the things I know I should be saying, but the truth is that it frigging hurts and it sucks and I'm sick of it.

When the alarm goes off in the mornings, these days there is a great temptation to roll over and go back to sleep rather than get up and ride or go for a pointless (i.e. no specific goal) run. On Friday my massage therapist asked me how my body was feeling in general and I said I didn't know - it doesn't feel like my body. I feel unfit. I feel slow. I feel out of condition. Actually, I AM unfit, I AM slow and I AM out of condition.

There has been a great deal of swearing going on in my house as I try and deal with the frustration I'm feeling. Not only is this injury a physical struggle, it's also taking a pretty big mental toll on me. And unlike when I'm dealing with other things that stress me out, I can't go out and run to relax because the running (or lack thereof) is the cause of it.

I have to keep reminding myself that it isn't all doom and gloom. I know I am improving, it's just that the rate of that improvement is far too slow for me and my goals for this year. With Canberra Marathon off the cards in April it looks like my first chance at a marathon won't be until the end of July this year. That's half the year gone without trying to crack the 2:50 mark.

Of course, I'm also looking at the shorter races I'm missing. I really wanted to give SMH Half a good go this year, but I'm beginning to doubt I'll be in shape for it. If (when) my hamstrings ever come right it's going to be such a tough job getting back into race condition. At least when I started training with Sean last year  I had a strong endurance base and all I was really trying to develop was my speed. Now I'm starting from scratch on both counts. Insert swear word here please. Make it a bad one. 

Forgive this uninspiring post. I do try to remain upbeat and embrace all the positives in my recovery but sometimes a girl's gotta cry a little and a good blog's all about honesty, right? I love to run. I love the sense of achievement it brings when all the hard work comes together. I'm really, really missing that right now. I miss the camaraderie too. It probably sounds cliched but it's true - I love running and racing with other like-minded people. Especially at races like SMC where everyone cheers everyone else along.

Finally, some basic housekeeping:
I have my second lot of PRP injections on Wednesday after work. A week later I'll go and see Brent (physio) and we're going to do a whole lot of strength testing to see how things are progressing.

I used my Garmin for the first time in months yesterday. I've been avoiding it because I knew the figures would just depress me. I ran for 60 minutes at 4:40 pace. Better than nothing I guess and at least I can now start tracking my progress.

Friday, February 15, 2013

Mizuno 2013 - love it!

Mizuno Wave Ronin 5
I received the best Valentine's Day presents. No, not flowers. Not chocolate. Not a romantic night out with my husband. Truth be told, the gifts weren't even from my husband. 

That's right. 

Oh, well played Mizuno. Delivering my parcel of 2013 apparel on Valentine's Day. You know how to make a runner's day. 

I received my shoes (Nirvana and Ronin) and compression socks last week and yesterday's parcel completed the package. It was like Christmas. Except better because you know you're going to love everything.

Embossed flowers and shapes on the singlet
This year the main women's apparel colour is pink (coral and rouge red according to the labels). And oh how I adore it.

Not only is the colour fantastic, but Mizuno has added funky little details - like the embossed flower motifs on the singlet and the print on the shorts. Oh, and the lining of the shorts matches the singlet too. I love feeling coordinated. 

The Ronin are FLURO YELLOW and I'm so excited about it. I love bright shoes (like the aqua Elixir from 2011). I've given them a test run which reaffirmed that they are indeed my favourite shoes ever. 

A quick side note on the shoes. For years my training shoe has been the Nirvana, a really comfortable and supportive shoe that I chose to do most of my running in. Now I'm running again whilst being treated for/recovering from high hamstring tendinopathy I'm finding the shoes that have a little less support (the Elixir and the Ronin - both of which used to be my race shoes) feel better for me to run in. This may well change when I begin to increase my distance again, but for now I'm doing most of my running in the Elixir. 

Another reason I like training in the Nirvana (aside from the support factor which is important when you're doing loads of kilometres) is that the it is slightly heavier than the Elixir (and the Ronin is lighter than both shoes) so on race day my feet feel super light and ready to run fast. 

Mizuno Wave Nirvana 9
Also included in yesterday's package were gloves, which I really appreciated seeing as though I threw my last pair on the side of the road during the Sydney10 last year. I strategically threw them somewhere I thought I could go back and get them (they were my good pair because I'd forgotten to bring a cheap throwaway pair) but when I went to find them after the race someone had already picked them up. 

Shorts - see the designs that show up in the light? Love it. 
I am incredibly grateful to be a Mizuno Brand Ambassador again, but I really want to make it clear that's certainly not the reason I'm so positive about all the gear. I want to be the best runner I can be, which means I'm not going to wear something unless I truly believe its the best thing for me. What's the point in having a relationship with a brand if that brand isn't going to help you reach your goals? Mizuno's philosophy is 'Never Settle' and it's something that strongly resonates with me. 

Back in 2010, after winning the Canberra Marathon, I was desperately searching for a new model of shoe. I had been wearing Asics up to that point but something had changed and the new Asics shoes were uncomfortable and causing me calf problems. I had friends who were having similar issues so there was obviously a change in the design. 


I was introduced to a Mizuno rep and he spoke to me about becoming a Brand Ambassador. I said I'd be keen to try the shoes as I hadn't worn Mizuno before and I was having a hard time finding a suitable shoe. As soon as I tried the Nirvana, I knew I was on to something good.

Since then I've been really fortunate that Mizuno has continued the relationship with me. I've tried a number of different models and I'm convinced the Nirvana (training, although we'll see what happens when I return from injury and get back to full training), Elixir (marathon distance racing, perhaps my new training shoe), and Ronin (so far up to half marathon, but I'd like to try it for a marathon) are the shoes for me.

Finally, I thought I'd include an extract from Mizuno's 'Mizunofesto' because I really do like it.


Our victories are personal.
Our devotion is perpetual.
And our potential is limitless.


Every day you make promises to yourself.
Be tough, only tougher.
Be strong, only stronger.

Be yourself, only better.

And, above all, never waver.
Never quit.

Never settle. 

So excited. Need to get out and race now. Hopefully that won't be too far away. 













Monday, February 11, 2013

Everyone's looking for an answer

The amount of people who have stumbled across this blog because they've been Googling "high hamstring tendinopathy" really surprises me. For an injury that's supposedly uncommon there are lots of us searching for a successful way to treat it and get back to our running. 

With that in mind, I thought I'd post another one of the rehab/strengthening exercises I've been doing. I found this example on YouTube. One thing you've got to be aware of (and something I've been doing wrong up until starting physio with Brent) is that you're not supposed to squeeze your butt cheeks together. Instead, you've got to focus more on the outer part of the glute. If you're suffering from HHT (and yours is anything like mine), the area you're supposed to be working is the same area you get relief from when you poke it/massage it, if that makes sense. 



After my injections on Wednesday I developed quite substantial bruising at the injection sites by Friday.  Big and purply/red. Yuk. I have a photo but it's not the greatest angle! The bruises have faded now and, although the injection sites are still a bit tender, everything is feeling much, much better.

I had my first run since the injections yesterday (Sunday), which was only 30 minutes. I ran again tonight for 40 minutes and I really felt great. Much stronger and moving a lot easier. I find it hard to believe that the injections have worked so quickly (they are a gradual thing, although I read somewhere they start doing 'stuff' about 10 minutes after having them), so I'm more inclined to think the rehab exercises are doing their job. I've biked every day since Friday (couldn't do a thing on Thursday). Aero position is great because there's less weight resting on the injection sites.

I miss training. I miss racing. I miss feeling strong. I miss the tired satisfaction of completing a difficult session.

I just want to get back into it.


Thursday, February 7, 2013

PRP injections

I had my first lot of PRP injections yesterday.

The whole process was pretty amazing. My husband and I went to SSMC after work (he had to come because I wouldn't have been able to drive home after the injections, especially in peak hour traffic. When I went in to see Dr Kuah, he looked at my MRI scans and talked me through what he was looking at. He said it was what he expected from someone with high hamstring tendinopathy. He then talked to me again about the PRP injections and why he recommended them. I'd already done a lot of research on them after seeing Dr Kuah last time so I was prepared to go ahead.

One important thing I did ask was about shock wave therapy, which someone else I know has been treating HHT with and has been getting good results. Dr Kuah said shockwave therapy has a good result with calcific tendinopathy (which she has) but not with what I've got. Apparently with me it may have some immediate results, but wouldn't help the tendon long-term, which it what I want/need.

To start the PRP injections I had four vials of blood taken out of my arm. This was then taken away (to a centrifuge I assume) so the plasma could be separated. While this was happening I had a local anaesthetic in both legs (just under my butt), which Dr Kuah put in with the guidance of ultrasound. I found it fascinating to watch the screen and I wanted to talk to him about it but I didn't want to distract him and make him mess up so I stayed silent!

Dr Kuah then went and 'harvested' the PRP. While I was laying on the bed in his office it was very reassuring to see signed photos from gold medal Olympians and Comm Games athletes with messages saying, "Thank you for keeping me in one piece." If they trust Dr Kuah with their bodies, I certainly do too!

The PRP injections were painless (just felt a bit of pressure) and I watched them go in on the ultrasound. This time Dr Kuah talked to me so I figured I was able to ask him about what I was looking at on the screen. He pointed out different things (I was way off - what I thought was the tendon was actually the bone) and I saw how he moved the needle around.

After the injections Dr Kuah asked if I had any pain medication at home and recommended I get Panadeine or Panadeine Extra because things were going to get a bit uncomfortable. I nodded but had no intention of getting any - I rarely take any drugs and I figured I'd be fine.

About halfway home (in peak hour traffic) the pain started to kick in a bit. My husband said we were going to the pharmacy just in case. I acquiesced.

I ended up taking one tablet but it didn't really do much. The night was uncomfortable, as was today. I didn't do any form of training because I physically couldn't. I'm walking like the tin man, it's uncomfortable sitting on my butt and I feel like I really need to stretch. This was all explained to me and expected and I'm hoping it'll be greatly improved tomorrow.

In four weeks I go back to get my second lot of injections. In between now and then I've got to keep up all my physio excercises (once the pain from the injections is gone).

I hope it's not false hope but I'm feeling a lot more positive about things now. I'm pretty sure Canberra is a goner this year (which is a bummer because it would have been my tenth Canberra Marathon and I would have become a Griffin) so I'm looking towards making the M7 Marathon in July my first one for 2013. It seems such a long way off, but better late than never.

I AM going to run sub-2:50 this year!!

Ouch my butt hurts right now.





Wednesday, January 30, 2013

MRI results

Picked up my MRI results today. Why is it that the medical profession try to keep you from finding out what's going on in your body by sealing everything up tight and marking it, "Confidential. To be opened by referring doctor"?

I don't think so. If I pay a fortune to have a scan done I'm opening the results. So, taking no notice of aforementioned sticker, I tore the big envelope open to have a look.

FINDINGS: No oedema in the femoral head/neck. No oedema in the proximal femur. There is a tiny amount of hip fluid on both sides. No oedema in the muscle but there is substantial oedema at the hamstring tendon origin bilaterally moderate on the right and moderated to severe on the left in keeping with the suspected diagnosis of tendinosis at this site.

That's the whole shebang. It's less than was written last time I had an MRI for the same injury (2011), which I'm hoping is a good thing.

From these results Dr Kuah will determine if I need PRP injections in one or both legs next week. I don't care either way - I just want to be fixed.

Things are definitely improving, which is making me very pleased I followed the instructions of Brent and Dr Kuah (well, almost all of them. I did do a couple of runs when I shouldn't have but overall I have been incredibly compliant).

I had my longest run since November on Sunday - 72 minutes. I have no idea what pace I was running or how far I went because I have hidden Greta (Garmin) in the cupboard until I am running properly again. I have no pain up under my sit bones now, although I'm pretty sure if I started to push things to quickly I'd break again. It doesn't feel quite stable, although it's definitely feeling stronger.

I'm developing more muscle on my butt, which I need if I'm going to avoid this happening again. My Mum called me laughing hysterically the other day while she was watching Serena Williams in the Australian Open. Apparently she and Dad were trying to imagine me with a bum like Serena's. Serena's an incredibly powerful, muscular and fit woman and I really admire her, but somehow I can't see myself getting a booty like her, no matter how many butt exercises I do.

Had a massage today. Michael said my body was in the best condition he's ever seen it - not in athletic/race-fit terms but in terms of how tight and stretched/stressed everything is (or in today's case, isn't). I guess the body might be benefitting a bit from having some time away from strenuous training.

It better not get used to it because I'm getting back to training as soon as I'm given the go ahead. 2013 isn't going to be a dead loss if I have anything to do with it.

Saturday, January 19, 2013

Injury really sucks

Life has been difficult and pretty dark these past few weeks. Every day I've been seeing my goals for this year slipping away and it got to the point I was struggling to find motivation to do anything. I felt really, really lost. It was made harder by the fact that so many of my friends are athletes which meant it was very hard to avoid talk of training and racing.

Thank you to everyone who has sent messages or posted comments on my blog. It really is appreciated. I know I haven't been updating this blog very regularly but I hope something on here may help someone else suffering High Hamstring Tendinopathy. I've had messages from a few people who, like me, are frustrated and desperately searching for an answer.

I had more than two weeks off work over the Christmas-New Year break and usually this is my absolute favourite time of the year.  Therefore, it sucked to find that some days I'd wake up and couldn't be bothered dragging myself out of bed because I felt I was going to achieve nothing that day. 'FML' became a common phrase. On Christmas morning I thought, bugger it, and went for a run. It was probably too early in my recovery but mentally I really, really needed it. I then had to put up with sore calves for the next couple of days because my body was out of shape!

There have been ups and downs I guess. Or, on second thoughts, maybe not many ups - I won't lie to you - I've been feeling pretty shit. I have continued riding and swimming as well as my rehab work, physio and massage with Michael from Complete Body Dynamics (who has been really wonderful and has been looking for different ways of treating the injury). I've been able to do some short, slow runs (Brent approved). I've tried to tell myself that complaining or getting depressed isn't going to make one ounce of difference so I may as well just get on with what I can do rather than constantly thinking about what I can't do.

I had my first appointment with Dr Donald Kuah at Sydney Sports Medicine Centre in early January. He is one of those doctors that fills you with complete confidence and after only a few minutes with him I felt I was in good hands - he was really thorough and honest.

Dr Kuah basically backed up what my physio, Brent Kirkbride (also at SSMC) had told me - 2013 is pretty much buggered in terms of competing at a very high level. Hearing this was like receiving a punch in the stomach. But what do you do, huh? Crying won't change it. Yelling and screaming won't fix it. So after some discussion about options Dr Kuah booked me in for Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) injections in the first week of February.

I had an MRI on Wednesday and I go back to see Brent next week.

But in recent days, things have been looking up. I have noticed definite improvement and, although I am feeling incredibly out of shape, my ability to run is getting better. At this stage I still haven't attempted pushing any sort of pace but I am able to run pain free a lot of the time. Slow, yes, but pain free. It's a start.

It may be a coincidence, but I am putting this improvement down to a strength/stability exercise I've added in. Instead of trying to describe it I thought it'd be easier to find a photo online (source: Body and Soul):
This is pretty much it (but I think the woman in this picture is letting her butt drop a bit). I lift one leg at a time and I concentrate on using my hamstring and my glutes and keeping my abs switched on. I've really started to think this is a magical exercise. 

I know this is only early stages - Brent and Dr Kuah both told me I could easily get back to being a recreational runner. It's getting back to being a competitive runner that will put the tendon under stress, so I really have to make sure it's repaired before I start to push things. Slowly, slowly - I keep reminding myself that after making it this far I don't want to rush things and send myself back to square one again. 

Having said this, I haven't given up on achieving a strong marathon this year. My plans have obviously changed (I was originally aiming to go sub 2:50 in Canberra in April, then improve from there) and I am now hoping to be in top form for Melbourne Marathon in October. It seems so far away, but it's better than nothing, right? 

Now I feel I've come out of the dark cave I disappeared into for a while, I'll be keeping this blog updated more regularly. I'm really hoping to fill it with a lot of positive news as things progress.