The return

Yesterday was honestly a dream come true. I RACED! I RACED, I RACED, I RACED!!!! Part of me cannot believe that I am saying this, but an even bigger part of me knows this is well overdue.

I ran a 200m at Loughborough University at a Charnwood open meeting. A small meet, but in all honesty, it was the perfect reintroduction back into the racing world.

The lead up to the race was a real mix of feelings. Excitement, nerves, and everything in between. Racing is real unknown territory for me, after all it has been two years, so my emotions were all over the place. I went through my normal pre-"important race" ritual of FaceTiming Joe (my brother) who managed to get me so over-excited I had to take myself out for a walk to calm down after. I'm not sure who was more excited out of the two of us!

Yesterday was all just about getting back into the routine of things. Packing my bag with all my race kit, race warm up, getting mentally prepared. All things I've not had the opportunity to do for two years. And despite my time away, it kinda felt like I'd never missed a beat.

That feeling of being on the start line yesterday is a feeling that will be very hard to match. The sheer gratefulness and relief. The amount of people who told me I would never be there again, to give up, to move on. LOOK WHAT I DID!

Don't ever think you're incapable of something. Don't entertain people who tell you "no". Don't ever stop believing in yourself. You set your limits, no one else.

The race itself I am extremely happy with. Glyn and I discussed how we wanted my race to be executed, and I managed to do what we wanted. The time was 25.9s into a 2.8 headwind. For a starting point, I am super proud of myself.

Bigger and better things are coming, and I'm ready to go.