Just As Well, The Women's Health Podcast - Ella Dove: How Running on a Blade Helped Me Celebrate my Body as an Amputee

Episode Date: September 6, 2022

Hey everyone, we're back! This season, powered by Nike, we're homing in on all things running. You can expect tips and tactics from Nike run coaches to build or elevate your own running practice, whatever your level. Plus, powerful stories from extraordinary women - some familiar, some not so - guaranteed to spark your motivation this back-to-school season. In today's episode, Roisín is joined by journalist and author Ella Dove. Ella lost her lower right leg in a freak accident, aged just 25. The word ‘inspirational’ is seriously overused, but if any adjective characterises her journey since that day, it’s exactly that. Whatever your personal barrier to getting what you want out of your body, mind and life right now, you might just perceive it a little differently after listening to her story. In today's Coaching Clinic, Ella is joined by Nike Run Coach and top physiotherapist Manni Ovola. He arms her with the tools she needs to really go for her own running goals: to run more evenly and break through the 5k barrier. Join host Roisín Dervish-O'Kane on Instagram: @roisin.dervishokane Join Ella Dove on Instagram: @ellarosedove Join Nike Run Coach Manni Ovola on Instagram @manni_o Join Women's Health on Instagram @womenshealthuk Like what you’re hearing? We'd love if you could rate and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts, as it really helps other people find the show. Also, remember to subscribe wherever you get your podcasts, so you’ll never miss an episode. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here's a question for you. What do you think it is that stands in the way of you really going for your health goals? Maybe it's your work schedule or your caring responsibilities. Perhaps it's a lack of self-belief or something else entirely. Just consider that as you listen to today's episode. Hello, my name is Roshin Derbyshire Kane and you are listening to Going for Goal, the Women's Health podcast. We are back every Tuesday for the next six weeks for a series. powered by Nike that homes in on all things running. You can expect plenty of expert advice on improving your own running practice, whatever your level, alongside real stories from extraordinary women, some familiar, some not so,

as they open up about the pivotal role that running plays in their lives. Because, as you'll discover, if you haven't already, there is so much more to running than putting one foot in front of the other. To kick off the series, I sat down with journalist and author Ella Dove. Ella lost her lower leg after a freak accident aged just 25. The word inspirational is seriously overused. But if any adjective characterises her journey since that day, it's exactly that. Inspirational.

Whatever your personal barrier to getting what you want out of your body, mind and life right now, I think you might perceive it a little differently after listening to Ella today. Let's get into it. Hello Ella. How are you? Hello, I'm really good. Thank you. Thanks for having me. So happy to have you on the Women's Health podcast going for goal. So obviously with this podcast, we are focusing on running and its power. So what was the last run that you did?

Well, funny you should ask me that. I actually did one at the weekend. not in preparation for this podcast, but I did this amazing event called the Superhero Try, which is a disability triathlon. So I actually did a swim in the morning. And then in the afternoon I did, it was only a 1K run on my running blade with my sister next to me. So it was amazing.

It's a really lovely, inclusive event, lots of different disabilities and, you know, everyone's welcome. And it's such a lovely vibe. So, yeah, it was really fun. Oh, that sounds amazing. And you mentioned there that you run with a blade. Yes, spoilers.

Spoiler alert for the story. And would you mind telling us how that came to be? So I'm an amputee, which is why I run on a blade. I'm a baloney amputee. I wasn't really much of a runner before my accident. It was a bit of a weird one, actually. I actually really didn't like sport. I was so unsporty.

I shouldn't be saying this on a lot. Women's Health podcast, but I just was not sporty at all. I loved swimming. I've always loved swimming, but I didn't really run that much. My sister has always been the super sporty one, doing kind of half marathons and stuff like that. So she was actually training, I think, for a 10K. And six years ago, when we lived together, and she said, will you come with me on this one morning? Will you come for a run with me? Not my normal thing to do on a Sunday morning.

but, you know, being a supportive sister, I decided to go with her. So we went out for about 20 minutes, just a kind of very quick one. We didn't take our phones with us because we just, you know, didn't have a bag or anything. So it was just a very, very brief run. Unfortunately, we were running back, running along a canal path in East London when I tripped over. Obviously, you know, we've all tripped over before. It was just a flat path sort of tripping over my own feet. but I didn't realise at the time how serious it was.

Basically, I knew I couldn't get up. I thought I might have broken my leg. And so I knew I needed an ambulance. But obviously, as I said, we didn't have our phones with us. So we had to wait for someone to call an ambulance. So this guy came along and phoned an ambulance and said, I've got to go, I've got a train to catch, and then hung up the phone and left us there.

Obviously, I was saying to my sister, go and get help, go and get help. She was saying, I'm not leaving you quite rightly. My leg was at a really funny angle. By this point, I thought, yeah, I've broken my leg, definitely. Eventually, another girl came along. It's really hard to say how much later, because I think trauma does very strange things to your brain. But she came along.

She phoned an ambulance and she waited with us. And then when I got taken to hospital, it was apparent very quickly that this was much more than a broken bone. and actually I dislocated my knee. I had had a severe fracture as well so my knee had essentially shattered cutting off the circulation to my foot. So I was rushed straight into theatre

where they kind of took veins from my good leg to sort of put into the bad leg to try and replumb my circulation. But unfortunately it didn't work. So that was kind of, I've condensed a very long story there but I was in intensive care for about three days. And over that period, I had lots of different operations. And then the fourth operation, the surgeon said, look, you know, the pulse in your foot is so weak now.

It's becoming a danger. You're at risk of developing sepsis. So I think amputation is the only option. So at the age of 25, I became a baloney amputee, which was crazy from running. I mean, can you believe it? Well, thank you for going through all of that, Ella. And that's such a, it's such a shocking story, isn't it? And something that I imagine is quite rare.

Yeah, yeah. I mean, my surgeons said they'd never seen anything like it before. Actually, the surgeon who was called to A&E, the first surgeon to treat me, thought someone had made a mistake. He was like, no, you don't, that doesn't happen from tripping over. You know, that's not something that happens. They said the chances of it happening were like winning the lottery. Obviously, it would have much preferred to win the lottery.

But yeah, that's just, that's how kind of rare it is for that to happen. It was, yeah, crazy. I mean, they've written papers about me and all sorts now because it was just such a rare accident. But I am also hypermobile. So I think that didn't help because my knee hyper-extended and then dislocated. So that made it worse. Wow, what an analogy to use winning the lottery.

I know. I'm trying to imagine your face when you were told. when you were told that. I can imagine mine. So you had a lot to reckon with then. You're a woman in your mid-20s. You've been able-bodied your entire life and suddenly you have to reckon with a disability.

Can you talk to me about how you got from that moment, that 25-year-old girl, to running inclusive triathlons on your blade? Like, that is one heck of a journey. can you kind of begin to talk me through at the beginnings of that? Yeah. So, yeah, you're right, it was a very long journey. So obviously this is six years on now where we are today.

So it's been kind of a very long process. I should say that for a long time, probably understandably, I didn't want to run again ever. I kind of just had this huge mental block about running. It was such a psychological health. hurdle that I had to kind of slowly overcome. So after the amputation, I was in hospital in total for, I think it was about eight weeks. Then I went home, but I was in a wheelchair for four months because I had to wait for my knee to heal, for my bones to heal before I could even begin

to start with a prosthetic leg. So I was in a wheelchair, which was really tough actually. I think psychologically, especially, like going from being really kind of independent and, you know, living the kind of like 20-something London life out all the time, you know, sort of hectic, hectic life to just being in a wheelchair and relying on my parents again because I had to move back to my parents' house because I just couldn't cope in my flat. So, you know, my mum pushing my wheelchair in the supermarket and things. It's just, I can't even begin to describe how difficult that was, you know, having your independence completely taken away.

Also just feeling so sedentary. I think because I'm quite an active person, just sitting down day in, day out. And, you know, I did, as time went on, I did try to go to the gym and do some upper body stuff. But it wasn't the same. Like, I really craved cardio. I really craved my heart rate going up.

And it was just really hard to actually get that to happen. So, yeah, it was very tricky. And that's so interesting after you said you weren't someone who was particularly, into sport. And then you have that ability snatched from you. And then as you say, it's so interesting the way you describe it as a craving. Can you remember a moment when you thought, oh my, all I want to be doing is getting hot and sweaty in a gym? Or what was, what was that? If there's a moment, like the apex of that frustration, when was that? Oh, I think it was certainly

quite early on, probably about a month. I'd probably, yeah, had my wheelchair for about a month. And I just kind of, I mean, my days were surprisingly busy for someone who obviously wasn't working at the time. My days were surprisingly busy. I kind of, I had a lot of, well, I had a lot of forms to fill out, you know, applying for kind of various benefits and getting a blue badge. There was a lot of sort of logistics when you have a kind of freak accident like that. So I was busy in that sense. But I just remember sitting on the sofa and just like sitting on this same cushion that I'd been sitting on like all day and kind of almost like, feeling the imprint of like my bottom in the sofa and thinking oh like I just need to move um

and then yeah I would try to do every morning I had I obviously had extensive physiotherapy and every morning I would do my physio exercises so that would involve kind of um various different ab sort of exercises sit-ups and things like that um I had the rubber therobans so I did a lot of stuff with those um you know with my arms and my legs um one-legged planks I was doing a lot of those and and you know so I was trying to sort of strengthen my muscles but obviously I'd been in a hospital bed for a long time so I was kind of you know I was very weak as well I was craving exercise but at the same time my muscles were very weak so it was really difficult because it was like my mind wanted one thing and my body couldn't quite sort of do what my mind wanted so yeah it was tough yeah I can't even begin to imagine how did you stay positive what kept you going Oh, that is a good question. I mean, the obvious answer is friends and family. You know, I am very lucky.

I've got a very supportive family. So that was really, really helpful. And I mean, my sister would arrange kind of visits from friends. Like she was sort of my personal PA. She'd be arranging, so she'd be like, right, so between this time and this time, so and so is coming to visit, you know. So that was really, really helpful. Having kind of, I'm quite a social creature.

So having sort of like social interaction to look forward to was definitely. a big thing. I got quite into journaling as well. Journaling was really useful for those times where I kind of couldn't verbalise, you know, I had some quite dark thoughts as well around that time that I just couldn't have verbalised to anyone. So actually being able to write those down, probably the first time in my life I'd ever really done any journaling, but I found it very useful. And almost sort of getting them out, like my auntie, who happens to be a physio, which is very handy, she told me about a technique where you write down your worries on a piece of paper and then you rip that piece of paper up. And it's surprisingly therapeutic, just kind of that physical act of ripping up

your worries and, you know, the things you're stressed about. So that was really handy. Kind of gratitude exercises. Writing goals as well. Setting goals is a big thing. Obviously, you know, the name of this podcast going for goals. It's going to say terribly on brand there. Yeah, exactly. But setting goals was a huge thing, smaller things. and bigger things. So, you know, I would think, oh, in, you know, a couple of years' time, I'd love to go on holiday with my friends again, for example. And, you know, kind of, it's almost like looking to the future rather than dwelling on the past, I think. And I'm lucky that I do, you know, I say so myself, I do have a good sense of humour. So that helps as well.

And that's so interesting that you're, it was someone who worked with the body, a physiotherapist, that actually had some of the best cognitive and mental advice, which I guess makes total sense, because an injury, it's a physical thing, but it takes over your whole life, doesn't it? It changes your entire reality. That's fascinating. And on the subject of goals, I'm very interested to know after overcoming this, you know, there was this massive mental block understandably that you had with this type of exercise. At what stage were you in your recovery when that started to be a goal?

Yeah. That was definitely later on. So after the four months in the wheelchair, I went to a rehab centre, an amputee rehabilitation centre, which is an inpatient unit where amputees, upper and lower, can stay for 12 weeks. It's an NHS unit. And there you have intense, I had physio twice a day, I had occupational therapy. It was very kind of grounded in the real world. So the occupational therapist would take me on the tube and practice my commute to work.

And, you know, things like that that were really kind of handy cooking. you know, making a cup of tea in a wheelchair, all things like that that you wouldn't even think about. So I was there for five weeks and in that time that was when I got my first prosthetic leg. So the accident was in the May and this was in the October. So it's quite a long time before I actually started walking again. And I think around that time, after I'd kind of been walking for a bit,

you learn to walk first of all with crutches and then with two walking sticks, then with one walking stick and then eventually, obviously, nothing. And, you know, that was kind of a long process. I left rehab with two crutches and I had two crutches for a really long time. I think I was kind of psychologically rely on them as well because it felt like a almost comfort blanket. People could see me more easily. You know, now, often I'm on the tube and people don't, people don't look down so they wouldn't notice I was an amputee, but if you've got crutches, it's more obvious. So I had that for a few months. It was probably about a year until I said myself, okay, I'm going to get a running blade. And I had to crowd fund for it because in the UK

and as you're under 18, you can't get running blade on the NHS at the moment. So I had to do a lot of crowdfunding, you know, holding various events, had a just giving page, all the rest of it, eventually managed to raise the funds to get this blade from this amazing prosthetics clinic called the London Prothetic Centre. And I started slowly, choking on it. It takes a long time for your stump to get used to the pressure of wearing a running blade because it's a lot of impact. It's not, I'm not supposed to run really long distances even now

because it's not brilliant for, it's not brilliant for your other leg. It's not great. It puts a lot of strain through my good leg and my knee and stuff. So I kind of had to build it up over time. And actually, I think the sort of main time when things changed was actually in lockdown because I couldn't do any other form of exercise and I thought right I'm going to have to get my running blade out

I was always scared of it I used to wear knee pads and elbow pads every time I ran because I was so terrified of falling over a couple of times I did fall over and that was really really hard but yeah so it was lockdown that was probably the sort of turning point for when I actually did it

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especially when you know what a fall had done to you previously. Can you tell me about that moment when things started to fit into place? Like that first run where you really felt like, yes, this is working. So I started going out on my own. I probably had had the blade for about six months when I started going on my own. Before that, I would only ever go with my sister. And quite often I'd be linking her arm while running because I was just so terrified of falling.

And there was, yeah, it was probably about six months in. I decided, I'm going to just do this. So obviously strapped on all my protective gear. Off I went. And I just went around Victoria Park in London because it's got a lovely kind of even surface. That's the other thing. If it's uneven, the slightest little twig on the ground

or stone or anything can really just can make me trip. So it has to be a kind of, even now, I prefer running on a flat surface. is I can't run on grass, for example. So that was a lovely path, and I felt sort of safe there. It was an area I knew really well. So that was where I chose to go. And I do remember people sort of other runners passing me

and looking at me and kind of smiling. And there was one guy who even said like, oh, go girl or something. And, you know, hearing that, when you've been through so much and you've kind of gone through this cycle of not wanting anyone to look at you. When I was in the wheelchair, I just honestly wanted to be invisory. at times because people treat you very differently and they look down on you and they speak in a sort of patronising tone at time, you know, it's really hard. Going from someone who is super confident, super chatty to just not wanting to be, you know,

not wanting anyone to look at me, then being on the running blade and thinking like, yeah, everyone look at me. I look great. It was like a real, it was a real turning point. And, you know, I do think the running blade looks super cool. And actually I kind of enjoy it when people smile at me because it just makes me feel sort of sense of solidarity, I guess, that I didn't have before. So when you have your running blade and you talk about their feeling you're hypervisible

and you're owning it and you've got people's attention and it's positive, do you feel an extra level of comfort in your body when you've got that blade on or is it finally that it's just matching how you feel when you're going about with your prosthetic leg as normal? Yeah, that's a really good question. I think I'm definitely more visible because, I mean, I mean, the running blade obviously doesn't have a foot on it, so I don't wear a shoe on that side. And it is just this sort of big C-shaped bouncy thing coming out of my legs. So I'm definitely, I am more visible. I obviously can't wear it every day because you can't really walk in them.

Like when I walk, I've got a real limp when I've got the blade on because it is, it doesn't have a heel. So it's like walking on tiptoes. But I do feel really great when I wear it. And I think it kind of, yeah, it probably does match the way I feel inside now. I don't really mind being looked at at all these days. It's kind of, I often don't even notice. Like a friend will be like, oh, did you see that way that person was staring at your leg? And I'll be like, no, I didn't.

Honestly, it's like I've blanked it out because I'm so used to it. But no, I mean, I do definitely, I love it when people look at me running. And I've started in park run now as well. So when I'm doing park run, and obviously it's such a lovely environment anyway, but, you know, the sort of marshals are cheering. And that's the first park run I did. was actually only a few months ago and crossing that finish line was amazing

because it was just kind of, I don't know, just everyone clapping and you just feel very supported and encouraged, which is lovely. Well, it's such a show of strength and determination. And I think your story is so inspiring because the barriers that you have overcome in order to be able to do that. It's huge.

So when you're crossing that finish line on your blade, you've got everyone cheering. do you feel like you have reclaimed running? Oh, definitely, yeah, absolutely. I mean, I enjoy it way more now than I ever did when I had two legs. So that's what's really weird about the whole thing. I actually much more, you know, I feel much more kind of pleasure from it now than I used to. You know, it can be painful too.

You know, my leg can kind of rub, I get sore spots. But that happens with any of my prosthetics if I kind of overdo it. I've really learnt the value of sort of listening to my body, which is why I've never gone further than 5K. I haven't sort of, I get to a point where it is almost like a wall, I think. I probably could work on breaking down that wall, but also I know that there's a balance between doing that and pushing myself and kind of seeking endurance, but also looking after myself physically.

You know, it's that body and mind thing again, isn't it? But yeah, I definitely have reclaimed it and I would say that I actually never thought I would actively say that I enjoy it, but I do now. So I'm not going to be in the Paralympics any time soon, but you know. I love that picture you paint of people cheering you on in the park. Like, go on, girl. How important a role do you think events like the Paralympics

and the recent Commonwealth Games play when it comes to increasing able-bodied people's ability to understand and celebrate runners with disabilities? Yeah, I do think it's really, it is really important. And I mean, you know, things have come on leaps and bounds and it's amazing to see more of that kind of thing. I think I often go into schools now and do talks with children and, you know, quite often they've never seen a prosthetic leg before. Or they might have done but only on TV. They've never sort of seen one in person.

And when I take all my legs in, it is often the running blade that gets the biggest reaction from them because they're just like, it's so bouncy, it's so cool, which is so nice because it just shows that, you know, it's so kind of easy. All it takes to sort of change attitudes really is just open conversation. And that's sort of what I'm trying to sort of trying to encourage in everything I do these days. Kids are brilliant, aren't they? Because they're so unfiltered. What's the most common question that you get from the next generation? Oh, gosh.

They ask me all sorts of things. You know, they ask me very gory questions quite often. Like, was there blood when you fell over? They answers no in case you were wondering. They're quite interested in this kind of mechanics of it. They always ask me how it actually attaches to my leg. They sort of say like, so is that coming out of your skin? And, you know, they don't sort of understand that it's, my stump is fully healed up.

And it's not, you know, there's not a metal rod sticking out of my skin. Although there are techniques now I won't. you too much, but Osseo integration is the technique where the metal rod actually is screwed into your bone. So it isn't a silly question because that is a thing, but just not so much on the NHS. But yeah, so they often want to sort of see how it fits on. So I often find myself taking my leg off in front of them and saying like, see this little hole, this fits in here and this is how it works. So yeah, it's kind of the nuts and bolts of how it works. And then amazingly, once they know and once they've seen it, they just move on.

I think children, it's like, okay, I've asked the question, I've accepted it, now I'm just going to move on to something else, which I think is just a great attitude. I love it. Absolutely, and that's such a good lesson, isn't it, for the rest of us? Before we move on, I have to ask, so you were saying that running blades currently aren't available on the NHS. Is there any move to kind of rectify that?

I mean, I've tried, you know, on my, so as much as I can try as one individual. It is just, I mean, you know, the sad fact is it is a cost thing. They're very expensive. The fact that children can now have them for free, that has only actually come in in the past sort of few years. There was an amazing lady called Sarah Hope who, her daughter lost her leg when she was two. And she's now about 14, 15. and she wants to be a dancer. So she kind of, she sort of spurred,

she won a Pride of Britain Award for spurring on this movement for children to get running blades. And that was a few years ago. I don't know of any sort of current movements, but, you know, obviously it would be lovely because, you know, to have that, to have the access to that is so important. Especially, you know, type 2 diabetes is the number one cause of amputation.

And often that's linked to obesity. So then you're in this difficult, vicious, where people need to lose weight or want to lose weight. And, you know, part of that is getting their fitness up and they're not able to if they don't kind of, if they can't crowd fund like I could, you know, or they don't have the money to buy a running blade. It's a tricky one.

But, you know, I mean, obviously I would love to see that become a thing. Well, hopefully there will be greater access for more people in the future to experience all the brilliant stuff that running brings physically, mentally, emotionally. And speaking of, before we need to part ways, can you tell me how running makes you feel? Oh, I think it would have to be empowered. Yeah, just and powerful as well.

You know, I kind of, I feel very, it sounds almost a bit cliche, but I just, you know, it's that kind of sort of serotonin level where you're just like, oh, I've done it. And relief, actually, as well, a lot of relief. But my sister does laugh at me, because when I finish Park Run, it takes me about five minutes for that elation to kick in. First of all, I'm just absolutely knackered and I don't really want to engage.

And it was quite funny. All the Marshall was saying, oh, well done. And I'm just silent. And my sister's like, didn't she do well? And then five minutes later, I'm ready to chat. It's always like I have to kind of, I've crossed the finish line physically and I have to kind of like remember mentally, oh, right, I have actually done it now, which is quite a weird feeling. Its own little journey. It is.

Every time. Yeah, every single time I run. That happens. And my sister kind of notices it because she, I think, feels like instant happiness when she finishes something. And whereas I kind of, it's almost like my mind has to catch up with my body. I see it. Powerful and relieved. Well, I think that's an excellent way to feel.

And Ella, thank you so much for going through all of that with us. You, you know, go without saying you are a total inspiration. I know I feel pretty inspired to take my trainers out of the slightly dusty drawer that they're in and go out and try and seek out my own sense of power and relief. So Ella, thank you so much. Thank you. Oh, what woman, hey? After my chat with Ella, we put her in touch with someone who could really help her go for her own running goal. That person is Manny Avola, a Nike run coach and trained physiotherapist.

He's honed his craft working with everyone from elite sports people to NHS patients who've suffered major burns and spinal cord injuries. Let's hear from them both. Hey, Manny, great to meet you. Hey, nice to meet you too. So I have been trying to improve my running technique. I have a couple of things I would love to chat to you about. One of them is when I run on a running blade, I'm not very even. So my hip drops a lot on my prosthetic side because it's so bouncy.

So one of the things I'd like to chat to you about is evening up my technique. And the other thing is previously I was chatting to Rochene about how I can do 5K confidently and whether I should be kind of looking to build stamina and pushing past that barrier or whether it's kind of better to sort of have a limit and have a sort of an area where I sort of stop. So yeah, I mean I'd love to get your expert opinion on those things. Those are two really, really good questions. I think to do number two and build that endurance, we need to make sure we do number one

and solve the challenges you're having with number one. So you've talked about, you know, this hip drop and feeling like you don't have maybe as much force on the side where you have your prosthesis. What I would advise is that we look at how strong and stiff you are on that side. So looking at your muscles, you know, close to you. your rib cage, so your obliques, they're really good at giving you that stability in your torso, and then also muscles at your hips. Runners need good glutes, and the glute medias is the

supporting muscle which helps stop that drop in your hip when you place your prosthesis down on the ground. So we want to make sure you're as stiff as you can be in your torso, and then also working on those hamstrings and building up all that resilient and force production through the ground. So I would really be encouraging you to work on that stiffness and some force production exercises. So maybe doing step-ups and creating force through that leg. So you feel more confident so you feel like you can trust it. Is that ever something that you, you know, you worry about kind of putting weight through that side? Yeah. I definitely notice in the gym actually that I am a lot stronger on my left leg. And I, you know, when I do squats and stuff, I notice that my weight

distribution is not central. I'm kind of relying on my left leg a lot more than I am on my right leg. So I think that's a common problem for amputees for sure. And you have to really concentrate. You have to really think about like, you know, use the right leg because it's so easy to just rely on the leg that is a lot stronger, I think. Exactly. And I think another thing that's really important is trying to do isolated exercises. So with a squat, it's a compound movement. It works on lots of different muscle groups. And as you said, you want to compensate and use the side that maybe sometimes you feel like you're more confident on. So doing things that are isolated, either lunges or step-ups where you're using something called a unilateral movement, so single-leg movement,

it's going to be really, really good for you. So that's the first thing I would say. What we need to think about next is when you are running, do you feel that your endurance is limited by the amount of energy you have in your legs or is it your breathing and you feel that your breathing goes off and your heart rate maybe is a bit higher? Which one do you feel causes you to stop? It could be either. That's not very helpful, is it? It's sometimes, no, it's probably more to do with my leg and kind of feeling like my prosthetic leg might start rubbing if I keep going. It's probably more to do with that. I think my breathing is more of an issue at the beginning of a run.

And then I sort of get into my rhythm. You know, I always find the first part of a run really hard to kind of like regulate my breathing. And I think also the park run I do is a part of it is a gentle incline for quite a long time. So you're sort of, it's the uphill thing as well, the uphill battle. And I think that those things you're talking about, they're quite common. We are all going to experience that. So I want to say that's okay. Those things we're all going to experience.

I think as you get stronger, your running economy will get better. So hopefully your breathing and the way you feel at the beginning of run should get better. And what I would say is sometimes to run further, we can do something more than running, which we've talked about obviously the strength work, but maybe cross training. So using a bike or using a cross-trainer to build your aerobic system. So the system that uses oxygen to fuel you. And that can give you a bit more to build your endurance over time. And in terms of the rubbing, if we can get you stronger,

hopefully that will stop any sort of friction with your prosthesis. So let's get you stronger, but then also do some cross-training and, you know, use other pieces of equipment to get your heart and lungs, Definitely. And what can I do for my balance? Have you got any advice there? So my first question is, what have you tried? So in physio I've done a lot of kind of trying to stand on one leg, using kind of a wobble board and things like that. You know, whenever I'm in a class, for example, or on a run, the same thing applies. I kind of, I will sort of very quickly put my good foot down. So for example, if I'm running,

I notice my steps are slightly out because I'm not putting my balance isn't on my blade for as long as it is on my good leg. So I've tried, I'm trying to kind of, you know, do lots of things like balancing on one leg and stuff like that. But I do find, especially also in classes, you know, say I do a yoga class and they're doing balance. It's terrible. It's really terrible on my right side. I mean, you're relearning things, right? So when we relearn things, I think one of the most important things is start with a simple base and that can be with your legs obviously parallel.

But if you've put one leg in front of the other into a lunge position, that can make it slightly harder. And then you reduce your base of support. So that can make it harder again. So a large base of support makes it easier, shorter, smaller base of support, feet closer together, makes it harder. Then we can actually close our eyes. that will help and challenge your balance. And then lots of different tasks. So if you have a friend or family member, get them to throw a ball at you, try and catch the ball.

That will just work on your proprioception, your perturbation. So your awareness of your body in space is really crucial. Great. Keep me updated. I will, thanks. I love that approach, methodical, consistent and with a bucket load of self-compassion. Thank you so much to Nike run coach Maniavola for all his wish. wisdom. That's it from us for this episode of Going for Goal. We'll be back next week. In the meantime,

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