When I am in the city (T.O) there are a few options when it comes to picking a workout venue. Today I decided to venture to Centennial Stadium in Etobicoke. My whole reasoning here is because I needed a hill and there are many close by, but really because my career as a competitor started in that stadium. I won two OFSAA medals (only the top ~20 H.S athletes in the province can qualify) here for Pine Ridge Secondary School in 1997 and it was my first year back to track after quitting for a couple years. Hurdles weren't even on the radar.
Today's workout called for a little bit more from me physically and I was going at it alone. So I needed the extra inspiration, it was corny, nostalgic and it worked. I recalled winning a silver in both the 100m and 4x100m relay and being pleased, but not satisfied. What a journey I have been on in the ten years since then. Being at that track made me remember how effortless and uncomplicated athletics was for me. This is not the case as a professional athlete and sometimes I miss the innocence of not having to think so much.
A Convo With Mom
I told my mom last night that today's workout would have been a piece of cake this time last year, but as it stands, today it will be a challenge. My mom let out a scream over the phone, the mere mention of her child back on the track excited her. "Pedeet, you training tomorrow?! Praise Gawd!". Confused by this I said "Ummm...Ya?". Evidently my mom thought the entire time I have been injured I have basically sat on the couch eating oxtail the last eight months. And today September 11th I woke up and decided to do "build-ups" just because it was that time. Gotta love her!
Really, it is my fault she had this impression. I have been pretty hush-hush about my progress and my status from the onset. I have found it easier to deal this way. It's a girl's perogative, right. So for all my mother knew, indeed I was nursing my injury as I was told to stay off it, hence missing the Olympics. And it would be just like her middle child to numb the pain with oxtail!
I wish.
I had forgot to tell her that I had started track workouts just a short time ago, but had them alternated with bike, pool and circuits. The phasing in process still demanded that I don't go back to back just to be cautious. My team is the best and most conservative bunch and their mission is to get it right, and I trust them.
Healthy Foot 101
Mother was so pleased to hear about my progress as I explained to her being in a cast for four weeks has an effect that lingers. If i was the average Joe'dita I'd be back to normal ages ago. However being a world class sprint hurdler there are so many checks and balances that have to be adhered to along the way. The proprioception, strength, elasticity and flexibility of the many bones, ligaments and muscles in my foot. Along with stiffness, rigidity, inflammation, pain, bone density and scar tissue all of which have to be addressed and combated against. If one thing is out of whack it puts the rest of my body at risk for injury and for it to not function optimally.
I have to get my foot to a point where it can with stand many times my body weight as I pound on it over and over again. If I were a diver or swimmer this wouldn't be as paramount, but this is very important since my event is high impact and asymmetrical, my right leg is my lead leg, the left my trail. I already have a built in dysfunction, so to speak. My left side demands much more than my right side, and this was the side I have had to stay off of. More than anything I need that confidence that I can blast off this thing without hesitation or being gentle with it. You can't train hard that way and you can't be a contender that way either.
Learned From The Past
No one more than my mother understood the need for me to listen to my body this summer and not come back too quickly. She watched my disappointment in Helsinki at the 2005 Worlds, I was the reigning World Champion and did not even make the final. In 2006 she saw me search for the consistency needed to thrive in this sport and not find it. All because after my 2004 injury I rushed back to training resulting in a litany of injuries. How does it go? "Fool me once...".
I told her I am where I need to be, now, only because she helped me make the decision to sit out the biggest event of my sport so I could live to race another day. My mother helped ease my fears of letting others down and let me know this was ok. Hitting home that my family is behind any choice that I make and they stand behind me in victory and they will do nothing less than that in my time of need. According to her "I am the gold medal".
So how right was it today to be at Centennial, back at the beginning, healthy and doing a real track workout, weeks ahead of schedule.
Instead of water under me, for the first time in a long time I felt the wind!
I can't describe it more than with this word: GRATEFUL.
Fall training here I come...no make that, here I am!
Happy Happy Joy Joy,
Perdita
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