Against the odds! This Girl Can - Marathon Update No.6

Today marks 22 days until the Virgin Money London Marathon.
I won't  lie, I did not expect to be in the position that I'm in with just 22 days to go. So let's recap:
I posted the below vlog on March 5th, I had picked up an injury and was really struggling, as with anything sports injury related, self diagnosis can be tricky and waiting for physio appointments, doctor appointments, X-Rays, and eventually an MRI scan is not a quick process!

I was up to 14 miles and feeling good about my training when I got injured, I think running a marathon gives you the drive to keep going, no matter what happens! When it happened, it never once crossed my mind that I wouldn't run on April 23rd, my instant thoughts were what can I do to keep training and get better! The anti gravity treadmill was amazing, but I was experiencing a lot of pain even running with only 20% of my bodyweight! As time passed I saw my physio twice, worked on exercises for suspected tendinitis and reduced my impact training with the cross trainer & cycling. - I still to this day refuse to ever go running in the pool and look like a drowning cat splashing around!
I saw specialist Dr Rod Jaques (He works on team GB's sport injuries!!) on March 14th and he was the 3rd professional that advised I probably wouldn't be able to run the marathon as he suspected I had a stress fracture. Now, as Dr Jaques is such an expert in the field, I honestly couldn't have seen a better man for the job, I presumed his diagnosis would be correct. Having to pay for a private MRI is pricey and I was tempted not to do it given the pain was still making walking difficult never mind running! He did however say he wouldn't treat me without a stress fracture being confirmed by an MRI despite his suspected diagnosis as he of course doesn't have X-ray vision! I had my MRI the following Monday. In the time I waited for the results, my foot was feeling much better, I started to feel no pain walking and was eager to try running again. Finally my results came through on Monday this week and against all the odds - it was clear! I've never felt so elated in my life. I didn't even realise how much the marathon meant to me until I thought I was going to have to pull out.

I just want to take a moment to mention my beautifully kind friends and family. In the week that I had to tell people I wasn't able to run, I was overwhelmed with love and support. From my manager and work colleague leaving me cards, mini eggs (my vice in life) and little presents on my desk, to my mum and sister sending me cards and sweets. - My sister even sent me one of those little 'winner' party medals as a consolation and I actually cried when I opened it! So sweet! I also received so much love in texts and messages from people who I told and each and every message of support kept me smiling so thank you!








So enough of the emotional stuff - what a roller coaster it's been! Its here, Its happening - I AM RUNNING THE LONDON MARATHON 2017! I'm honestly so excited, if anything, this injury scare has just made me even more motivated!
Let's be real, some goals have had to be reassessed! My half marathon time was sub 2 hours so initially I was keen to run in 4.15/4.30 hrs. Now I'm just looking to get round and finish, I have my final long run tomorrow and it will most likely be around the 15 mile mark. Most of my fellow runners will have done 20 - 22 miles by this point but I'm focussing on me and me only. It's time to be selfish, mind over matter, ignore the panickers and the doubters and just smash it like I set out to do all those months ago when I signed up for this challenge.
You may have seen the This Girl Can campaign in the media in the last year. If not here's what they aim to do;

This is a campaign that I always admired and believed in but never really thought it applied to me personally. I have always been involved in sports and never been afraid to join in. Running, however, was completely new to me which made it the perfect challenge to raise money for a very worthy cause. I've always been able to push myself in sports and perform well, never feeling judged or worried about getting stuck in because anyone who knows me will know I don't do things by half! The campaign has been a massive motivation for me since getting injured and losing nearly all of March from a miles perspective. I know I won't finish in the best time, nor will I breeze through the whole thing but I'm confident I can get through it and finish feeling proud for doing the best I can. This girl can!
Sponsor me to keep me going by clicking HERE! Now you know how much your support inspires me!

You can make your own 'This Girl Can' poster on the app on your phone http://app.thisgirlcan.co.uk

Thank you again for all your support, I look forward to updating you all come marathon day! My race number is 36998 which you can put in to the marathon app to track me on the course!
Until then,
L x