Finding My Stride Again: A Story of Healing and Progress
Today marks two months until the Bondi to Manly, but when the starter gun goes off I won't be there.
“When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.”
Lao Tzu
Goodbye to the World of Ultras for Now
To say the last couple of months have been frustrating has been an understatement, I don’t recommend getting injured, and more so avoid getting injured in a way that the way you are impacted is hard to diagnose.
That’s perhaps been the hardest thing to accept through all of this, it’s not a broken bone, it’s not a pulled or torn muscle, it’s likely to be something mechanical which over time has lead to this injury, and at the end of the day there is still no definitive answer as to what part of my body is actually injured.
I’ve got pain in my adductors, but after recently seeing a great chiropractor in Mark Trbojevich (yes the NRL lads are cousins), we started to breakdown that tightness in my shoulders, and some imbalances between my left and right side are causing dramas.
His work on top of work already done by my physio Craig Honeybrook has me moving again with more joy, but there still isn’t the confidence that I’ll be building to an ultra anytime soon.
It’s disappointing considering it was close to five months ago that I noticed things were going wrong, and it’s just sort of spiraled since, but I feel good knowing that things are heading in the right direction.
It’s lonely being injured, it’s probably the one thing that needs to be looked at in terms of how people deal with their injuries. You lose your team mates, you lose your community, you lose your group runs, and sometimes you lose yourself. That comes in the form of a lack of confidence in both yourself and in your body.
But, I’m finding joy in the recovery and being back on my feet, I’m almost starting at ground zero again which can be both exciting and terrifying, but it perhaps allows me to go back and really enjoy some races that I’ve skipped over, and it’s also reinvigorated my hunger in football.
I know it’s been a time between blogs, and I’m constantly reminded that at this point last year I was a premiership player steaming towards Kosci, but I thank you all for taking patience and time in sticking by me.
My First City2Surf
Some don’t find a 2am alarm all that great, I’m sure my partner didn’t when she decided she was going to drive me to The Dock for our annual City2Surf trip, I missed last year and I wasn’t going to miss this one.
I was a bit apprehensive as I hadn’t run over 10km since June, and was really questioning how I was going to hold up over the course, I love hills so trying to take them easy was going to be the goal.
A sausage roll and monster energy drink had me fired up, as well as a morning Jack Daniels to calm the nerves. I found a friendly face early on after being split, Mark Parton, someone who had reached out to me early on after being injured.
Tens of thousands had gathered around the CBD, the atmosphere was buzzing and suddenly the gun goes off and away you go, I forgot what this feeling was like, I’d missed a handful of races because of my injury, but I just got the feeling early in this race that I was back to some kind of normality.
The first couple of kilometres were probably well beyond what I should’ve been doing, but I was just going with the flow and loving it. I ran into my friend Danielle not long after Heartbreak Hill when I was really tanking, and she helped me get the kick I needed to go through to the end.
I finished around 1:27, which I was stoked with considering my lack of prep coming in and the fact I just felt gone by the hour mark, the crew from R4R did such a good job we ended up at Recoverie in Coogee, where I stayed in the ice bath for half an hour, it sure felt good after that.
We ended up at a place in Berrima for a couple of quiet ones, and then some not so quiet Travla beers, I think a couple of the crew really enjoyed themselves, and it was so good to meet some people I’d never spoken with before.
All in all a great day and one I want to make an annual event on my calendar.
MC for a cause close to my Heart
I’ll be part of the first Running 4 Resilience Gala night, which will be an incredible opportunity to celebrate this community.
The night is all about celebrating us and the community, not raising money, and $20 from every ticket will be donated to Bravery Trek.
Just rock up and have fun!
Here are the details:
When: Friday, 6th Oct
Arrive: 6:30pm, Start: 7pm, Finish: 11:30pm
Food: Grazing Boards and Buffet (with GF and vegan options)
Drinks: Free Beer, Wine, Spirits and non-Alcoholic Drinks until 10pm
Tunes: Live music all night long
Tickets are $199 per person or $1550 for a table of 8.
Join us for a night of good food, good music, and even better company.
Watch out for that Knife in the Back
I’m an Elevate man, but I want to give some love to the Ultra Mediocre Runners of Canberra. I feel like there has been a gap in the back end of the calendar for Canberra running. Kowen and Pam Muston do an incredible job at the start and middle of the year, and the trail running series also feels a good gap, but then it feels like all the good races are interstate.
Que the Brutus and The Knife. One is a 60km race, the other is a 14km entrée to Brutus, with a brutal climb that might have a few people thinking of Mick’s Track at Bright.
Since I became a trail runner I’ve often thought Canberra’s west has been under utilised for trail running. Mt Coree is better than Mt Tennent yet never really got the same love, and the Cotter Loop is a great loop, but there is so much more to explore beyond it’s clutches.
I’ll be running the knife, if my small little intro has you intrigued, you can find more information here.
Poddy Going from Strength to Strength
To say the podcast has been getting some love is understatement, I’m so fortunate to be connected with some incredible people, with some more incredible people to come.
Simone Brick is a dominant force in Australia's Mountain Running scene, but it hasn't always been that straight forward.
'The Flying Brick' has been incredibly open about her battles with depression, anxiety, eating disorders and psychosis, but after coming out the other side, Simone is now here to spread the messages that are too often drowned out by doubt and lack of awareness.
A three-time Australian Mountain Running Champion, her debut season overseas took place when most of the world was still grappling with complex laws set out by the pandemic.
Throw in a couple of marathons with Erchana Murray-Bartlett, coaching some of the country's best up-and-coming ultra runners and raising awareness for our country's unsung heroes, you have a unique individual who has achieved so much already for someone in their 20s. Listen Here
Running became a love for so many of us during the pandemic, and for Jake Pearce it's seen him go on an incredible journey.
From hitting the wall in his first attempt at a marathon, just a year later he was running the Atacama Trail during a trip to the Americas with his girlfriend, and a love for the trails saw him race with the highest mountain in the Americas as his backdrop, in an incredible initiation to the sport of trail running.
Now he's hoping to take down Australia's highest peak in December at Ultra Trail Kosciuszko. Listen Here
It's not often you can sitdown with a dietitian the calibre of Lauren Nash shoot from the hip with questions.
An incredible knowledge base that is only growing, Lauren also known as the thexfitdietitian is a performance dietitian that has worked with some of the world's leading athletes across a wide variety of disciplines.
This was an insightful conversation, that delves into a range of different topics that is bound to benefit runners of all abilities, on their journey in the ultra world. Listen Here
Don't forget you can support the pod for just $2 a month at the Patreon
Thank You
Finally, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that has been there over this period, especially my fiance Cassandra who has just been an absolute rock for me while I was down and out.
Thank you to Benny and Clare for helping switch my focus, to my coach Shiree for always checking in and same with the Lazy Glutes.
Finally, I wanted to give a big shout out to one of my inspirations in Jasmina Svoboda, I’m a self confessed data nerd and I’ve loved following her journey to the grand daddy of trail racing that is UTMB. I can’t put into words how incredible this race is, but it’s essentially the Mecca of Trail Running, if there is one race you ever want to be in this is it.
When I was younger I thought when I got to a certain age my sporting career would be over, and that I’d have to live a sedentary life, but Jasmina has shown me you can still be elite for a long-long time to go, I know deep down this little blurb will embarrass her, based on how humble she is, but Jas you deserve this moment, enjoy every single little bit.
See you on the trails soon friends x
Love your work Brent. Will be awesome having you MC the R4R gala.
Agree we need to start thinking about another R4R - Rehab for Resilience. Too often we’re missing the opportunity to support people recovering from injuries in meaningful ways. After we get Strolling for Resilience running later this year I reckon this should be next.
In the meantime my long solo training runs wouldn’t be the same without hearing you say ‘I love that!!!’ So many times on Peak2Soon - an amazing podcast that inspires in so many ways
Cheers
Murray
City2Surf is my favourite race of the year. Such a good vibe the whole way to Bondi Beach. Hopefully next year I can have a proper crack again.