In October 2017, I competed in a trail run. I was fairly new to trail running and it was raining and super muddy. I made it to within a km of the end of the 13km course, and then slipped and fell. I rolled my ankle so badly that I couldn’t weight bear. Some lovely runners helped me get to the 4WD to drive me out and to first aid. I was then met by two beautiful RMA angels who held my hand while I cried. Scans showed a terrible sprain with only one ligament still intact.

 

I went to physio 1-2 times a week for months. I took up swimming, deep water running and the stationary bike as well as lots of upper body strength. I tried to go back to running but wasn’t successful. I had cortisone injections, but they didn’t help with the pain and stiffness either.

So in March 2018, I had surgery to clean up the scar tissue. I once again had regular physio and kept up with my exercises at home. I was non weight bearing for 2 weeks, and that nearly broke me.

Finally after 8 weeks I was cleared to run for 5 mins on a treadmill. Gradually I could increase my running time and speed. And finally in late June 2018, I ran my first 10km…it wasn’t pretty or fast but I did it!

Then came the Gold Coast 10km. I managed to finish in just over an hour. Not even close to a PB, but gosh I was happy!

My running buddy, Sophie suggested Blackmores half in September. So we started training. I did the Brisbane half in August as a training run. It was so challenging, but I got it done again.

In September 2018, I hit my biggest milestone! I completed the Blackmores half marathon, 12 minutes slower than my PB but it was the happiest I’ve ever felt running. This was 11 months since my ankle sprain.

 

Add another half marathon in October and a few virtual runs and that’s my year of running goals completed!

One thing I learned from this experience is not every run needs to be a PB. I now run for the love of it. My next big goal is my first full marathon in Canberra in April 2019! I’ve gone from my running peak, to my lowest of lows, and I’m slowly but surely working my way back to the top. I’m so proud of myself for never giving up. And I have a lot of running buddies to thank for supporting me along this journey.