Running Disappointment
Injury comes part and parcel with having an active hobby such as running. Six years on since my first run the inevitable happened. I wanted to fit in one final morning run to work before having a few weeks off running. I had a great route planned which would take me through four of our local parks. I love a good photographic post on social media so I was planning on taking some pictures on route to go with a written narrative of my adventure. The photo above is taken from the first park I ventured to - Landseer Park. It is very open in the picture above, but to the right in the tree line there is an amazing trail section. I set off down this path with big plans of completing five miles before a day in the office.
Disaster struck a further half a mile down the trail route when I somehow fell over my own feet and rolled my whole weight over onto my left ankle. I am not going to lie the initial pain was immense. I sat holding my ankle for a few minutes to compose myself and after trying to ring home to try and get a lift I realised I was going to have to try and waddle home.
The first few steps were quite tentative, but walking seemed to be ok. I therefore powered on home to try and locate some ice. Upon arriving home I was strongly in denial that anything was seriously wrong. On further inspection though my ankle was definitely not looking at its best. It was several sizes bigger than my other ankle and bruising was quickly starting to show. Panic started to set in that I could have actually broken it and only managed to waddle home due to the shock of it all. A quick decision was made that I should get down to A&E as quickly as possible to get it checked over.
Walking was now out of the question as the swelling made putting any pressure on it unbearable. I proceeded to hop into A&E on my good leg and waited to be seen. I cannot fault the hospital - I was seen really quickly, the staff were amazing and really supportive during my time there. I received an X-Ray and several medical professionals checked it over. The good news and conclusion was that I had a very bad sprain but no broken bones! What a relief.... although the reality was that running would be off the cards for potentially up to 8 weeks. A reality that I would need to get used to quickly.
Two weeks on an I am still out of action running wise but the healing process has gone really well. I have iced, elevated, compressed and all sorts and can now fully put weight on my ankle and walk for several miles. This is something I would not have expected two weeks ago. I feel really lucky and have a physiotherapy appointment booked to see how much longer I need to rest it.
During the whole period my fellow running buddies have been amazing. They have provided some much cheer, support and advice it has been amazing. Couldn't have felt more loved. I wanted to therefore return some of the support and decided that even though I couldn't run the Felixstowe 10 Miles I would go along and support my fellow runners. I spent two hours screaming and shouting encouragement to everyone as they ran along the sea front and tried to get some great action shots of them.
For those of you interested in the race - it is a great road course which starts at the leisure centre by the pier. You head off in a westerly direction down the promenade with the leisure centre on your right. At the end of the promenade you head onto a road which leads you up to a turning to Landguard Point. This is where a small fortress is on the coast. This is the furthest westerly point on the race. Here you turn around and head back towards the promenade.
The next part of the course will take you through the 4-6 mile point. This is when you run the whole length of the promenade with the sea to your right. This takes you back past the leisure centre and pier where you can pick up some water. At mile six you leave the promenade and head slightly up hill to the left towards the town. The good news is that once you have made it up the hill there is a steady decline down to the golf club. The route takes you along the main road that sits right in the middle of the golf course. As the race is on a Sunday the golf course is very busy and you must watch out for flying balls!
The most easterly point is by the Ferry Public House. When you reach this point to circle back on the the sea wall path. This route takes you past the Martello Tower on a slightly gravel based path. There will be a lot of people out walking on this section of the route so some time might be required to get past people. The gravel path brings you back to the entrance of the golf club, where you tackle the second incline of the course. This brings you to mile 9 where you can power down the final hill back onto the promenade. The final mile is the worst however as you can see the finish in the distance at the pier, and the promenade is fuller with tourists and people to dodge. You 100% have to keep your eyes open to ensure that you make it without any crashes.
The route is very subject to the weather conditions. This year it was very hot despite there being a strong headwind. It is never a PB course for me, but a great little race with some wonderful bling at the end of it. I will hopefully be back for next years race once the ankle has healed.