After a dream 2022 season, I was always going to be due a bit of bad luck. There’s no doubt about it, this year has been a challenging one for me with injury. The most frustrating part has been not really knowing or understanding what the issue actually is!
My knees have never been a problem area for me. Every athlete has their Achilles heel - that one part of their body that shows weakness and an area where they often pick up injuries. For me, it’s my hamstrings but never my knees. So, as you can imagine, I was a little concerned when both of my knees started to ache.
I got through two races, breaking national records in both, and managed to get on top of my knee issues. But during the Half Marathon, I tore my left hamstring. I should have known better than to jump back into training after a muscle tear but I ignored medical advice and pushed on to try and make the London Marathon start line. This was when my left knee really started to play up. Before then, it was manageable and we had it under control.
By the weekend of the London Marathon - I was unable to walk! The pain in my knee had become incredibly sharp, so I had an MRI scan and a catch up with the doctor to see what was going on.
Frustratingly, the first scan didn’t really show much in the area I was having pain. Then there was a little bit of miscommunication between myself, the doctors and the physios who were treating the injury - and it all got lost in translation when that first scan came back.
Annoyingly, it then meant that for the first 8 weeks we chased the wrong diagnosis and I underwent an injection into my knee - in completely the wrong area. It was a further set back.
Several weeks went by, and training was continually stop/start. The knee pain never went away. But I was always being told that my knee was incredibly healthy. Bone looked great. Ligaments, tendons, cartilage - all really healthy. It just didn’t make sense to me so I finally went for another opinion to a knee specialist in London.
The second scan seemed to give a much clearer diagnosis. An issue with my plica.
The plica is an unusual structure in the knee because not everyone has it! For a large number of people, this plica membrane is dissolved when you’re in the womb. However, my mum underwent surgery to remove her plica in her 30s so perhaps there is a genetic link to it!
I had another injection into my knee but again it seemed to irritate it further. We decided I needed to exhaust all options so I flew out to Limerick to see my mum’s old physiotherapist Ger Hartmann.
Ger is known globally for being a gifted physio - having seen some of the best athletes in our sport. From Paula Radcliffe to Kelly Holmes to Usain Bolt. He seems to have an incredible talent of being able to get athletes back on their feet again.
It felt good to finally have a clear plan of what was causing me so much pain over the last few months and despite making some really good progress - I’m not entirely out the woods just yet.
This particular knee injury is something that doesn’t just disappear overnight. Even more so now that it is chronic. It’s something I have to continually manage day to day and keep on top of.
I’ll be honest, it’s exhausting. But even if I were to take the next 3 months off running entirely - it’s highly likely it would just start right back as soon as I return to running again. Surgery is an option but it’s one we want to try and avoid.
We have made some really good progress over the last few weeks. I’m moving forward and doing around 90% of my full training. We have good days and bad days but the balance is starting to swing in my favour.
Due to the positive momentum, I’ve been selected to represent Great Britain in my FIFTH World Championships. The event takes place in Budapest from 19 August 2023.
Being part of my fifth worlds is something I definitely don’t take for granted. It’s an achievement I’m incredibly proud of despite all the challenges to get here. In order to be selected as part of the team - one of the requirements was for me to attend their GB altitude camp in St Moritz for three weeks. This gives the medical team a chance to keep a close eye on my injury whilst I look to ramp up the intensity in my training.
One thing I won’t do is rush. I won’t rush my progress - just to make the start line. I’ve learnt that lesson from earlier in the year. Of course, I’d love to make it to Budapest but if I’m not at the fitness level I’d like - I won’t race and will get myself ready for racing on the roads.
I go into the championships with my highest ever World Ranking at 6th.
However, having not raced since my injury in April, and with less than three weeks to the Championships in Budapest - it’s going to be tight. I know it. Michael knows it. My mum knows it. British Athletics know it. But we’ve all seen glimmers of my potential. We know I’m capable of breaking 30mins in the 10,000m.
We all know I will give it my best shot. But what we don’t know is whether my body will be ready in time. Only time will tell.
This blog was published on 1 August 2023.