The First Steps
It's been a busy few months - hence why I am so late in writing this blog post. But the good news is, I have a lot to catch you all up on!
The focus since my last blog post back in late November has been increased time on the treadmill. This has been coming along slowly but surely. I am lucky enough to have found Gym and Tonic on the island, where I have been able to run on the Alter G treadmill. For those of you who don't know what an Alter G Treadmill is, it is basically a treadmill where you are able to take off your body weight whilst running, therefore you can run at a reduced percentage of your body weight, which delivers less impact on the joints. I'd love to be able to explain the science of how the treadmill works exactly, but I doubt I'd do a good job of it, so please follow the attached link if you'd like to find out more... http://mentalfloss.com/article/57102/how-does-anti-gravity-treadmill-work
As of this week, I am running at 80% of my body weight, so 20% of my weight is being taken off. I have been for four runs so far, my first run starting at 65% of my body weight, and I have gradually been adding weight session by session. Not only have I seen an improvement in the amount of weight my knee can hold, but I have also been building up time and speed gradually. My last run was at 9.8km for 20 minutes. The session have been tough, but I have certainly welcomed the challenge.
Back on solid ground, my runs on the normal treadmill have been slightly slower to improve. The idea is that I am doing my longer runs on the low-gravity treadmill and the shorter, faster runs on the normal treadmill. I'm sure you can imagine, I am being much more cautious on the normal treadmill as I understand I could react worse to this type of running, so I am careful not to push myself beyond any limits. A typical session on the treadmill at the moment is some short intervals - like 45s on, 45s off, at around 11km. I repeat this around 5/6 times. These sessions often lead me to looking a little something like this...
Ruth had set a target for me back in November time that I would start running on the track in early January. This is something I have obviously been holding onto and working towards. I met Ruth on the 4th of Jan. This was supposed to be the meeting where she gave me the all clear - however, it wasn't meant to be. After having struggled with some discomfort in the days leading up to seeing Ruth we decided it was wise to wait a little longer before reintroducing running on the track.
Instead, Ruth set me some new exercises, including practising my "set" position, and we decided to try and get some treatment in order to help with the discomfort I was feeling, which we expected was down to tightness in my ITBands. I booked a massage with Ollie Lockley, and we did a full lower body flush. I left feeling like a brand new person! After the massage, my discomfort had reduced significantly, and I managed to put some great sessions together both in the gym and on the treadmill over the next weeks.
I went to see Ruth again on the 18th of Jan, and despite bringing to light some new things we need to work on, she gave me the go-ahead to RUN ON THE TRACK!!!
This was my first time running on any athletics track since the 4x4 final in Gotland ( NatWest Island Games). 567 days ago... WHAT A FEELING!
I am pleased to say that I feel good running on the track. Great, in fact. It feels very natural and smooth - much more comfortable than running on the treadmill. Although I am promising myself not to get carried away and to keep taking things slow, I am getting excited about the months to come. I am getting fitter and stronger by the day, so I can't help but get carried away daydreaming about where I may be a few weeks or months down the line.
I cannot lie and say that getting to this point has been easy. There have been a few bumps in the road in the past months. However, with such a great team around me, I have achieved so much. They have managed to keep me calm, grounded, and most important of all, happy.
I am beyond thankful for the people I have in my corner.
Just in case anyone wants to feel as great as I did after my massage, get in touch with Ollie below!
Facebook - @ollielockleymassage
Email - ollielockleymassage@gmail.com
