Overcoming Injury
Plus the physical and mental struggles that go along with it
Injuries suck.
They make athletes feel lazy, behind the pack, and inadequate.
I dealt with a hip injury throughout my soccer career and forced myself to play through due to an environment that didn’t quite “encourage players health and safety”.
I specifically had a torn Labrum, Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI), and tendonitis in my hip. The problem was it took a long time to diagnose. Physiotherapists didn’t know what it was and it often made me wonder if it was actually a serious injury.
But I knew the power in my right leg just wasn’t there. It felt as if I had 50 pound ankle weights on whenever I lifted my leg.
When I finished the bike portion of my first race I stood there for 3 minutes because I didn’t have the ability to walk. I began limping around repeating to myself “I can’t believe I have to run a f*%$ing marathon right now”. And then I ran a f-ing marathon at that very moment. Enjoy this picture of me crying my way out of transition!
During training I tried blaming my bike fit, so naturally I went and spent $1000 dollars on a new bike set up. AND GUESS WHAT! It didn’t help whatsoever!
The frustration of having an empty wallet while still having hip pain is inexplicable.
During Kona, I again couldn’t walk for a few minutes after the bike. The volunteer came up to me asking if I was okay. I responded with “yeah no, I just can’t walk for a few minutes after my bike ride, it’s completely normal”. For the record, it shouldn’t be normal.
I got through the race in pain and decided to get an MRI a month later. Immediately it showed what injuries I had. After that diagnosis everything fell into place. Physio finally understood and the road to recovery began.
SURGERY
There were two choices for me at the time. Surgery or no surgery. I could either grind in physiotherapy or get the surgery. After a few weeks of no results, I decided to get the Surgery in May.
The decision was brutal. It meant that I would have another season missed by injury. I was incredibly injury prone growing up and throughout my soccer career I was never healthy for an entire season. As soon as I change sports and see early success the same thing happened. I was pissed, don’t be distracted by my optimistic thumbs up.
I didn’t want the momentum to end. But I had to realize that making this decision early in my career will propel me later on. That realization was difficult to get to, and I didn’t want it to be the case. Here we are 6 months later and I feel fantastic. I didn’t realize just how much chronic pain I felt pre-operations.
I can lift my leg now which I gotta say is pretty cool.
RECOVERY:
After the surgery, I was bedridden for 2 weeks. I had to ice my leg using the Game Ready hot and cold system, 30 minutes on 1 hour off 10-12 hours a day. What did I do besides ice my leg during this time? The Harry Potter video game is what. All day. That’s the answer, and it was awesome.
After those 2 weeks I was clear to go on walks with my crutches. After 4 weeks I was able to go on 30 minute bike rides, 3 times a week, at insanely easy watts to teach my hip how to move again. After 6 weeks, I went to physio to work on the hip further.
Also pro tip: do not go to a baseball game while on crutches after surgery. Just saying you might end up crying to the usher asking for accessible seating.
All in all it was a super boring 6 weeks of doing nothing.
MENTAL BATTLES & ADVICE
During my initial recovery I had to defer the Lake Placid IronMan race. It was harder than expected seeing everyone start their season without me. I felt behind. I knew in my mind that I’m in a way better place then I would’ve been, but a part of me struggled with it.
Be patient. A lot of athletes view recovery in a toxic way. Recovery doesn’t mean you’re getting worse, it means you’re getting better. Injuries happen to mostly everyone, and when it does happen it does not mean you’re worse than everyone else. Your body is completely different from others, it’s not smart to compare yourself to anyone.
Saying all this is crazy for me because I used to think rest was for the weak. I just wanted to push through everything, and look at where it got me. 6 months bedridden watching others race. This was a huge learning experience for me and I hope this newsletter helps you have it earlier.
Finally, I want to express how important it is to stick up for you and your body in a medical setting. I had a lot of doctors make me feel like my injuries weren’t that bad. I’ve been misdiagnosed or diminished so many times that I had to learn the hard way to defend myself.
It made me question if I was really in pain. I’ve learned that if there’s something wrong THERE’S SOMETHING WRONG and it’s okay to argue with your doctor about it until they find a solution. My surgeon (who did a great job on the operation) was asking me if I wanted to have the surgery or not, which made it seem like it couldn’t of been that bad if he’s on the fence about it.
So, I’m going to say it again, especially as young women in sports, it’s direly important to stick up for YOURSELF AND YOUR BODY.
Injuries are a mental and physical battle that can come as a shock for athletes going through them for the first time, but recovery can accelerate your performance so much more than fighting through the pain.
Hopefully this helped,
Lauren “can now bust a move” Hogg
Weekly Q&A (If you have a question, comment at the bottom or dm me)!:
Q: Do you get shin splints + what shoes do you wear??
A: I do not anymore! (shin splints not not wearing shoes) I used to get them during soccer, but I learned how to avoid them. Athletes get them by doing too much too fast, and having the wrong shoe. Which brings me to part B of the answer. I wear the HOKA Mock 5 for training. and for racing I wear the Nike VaporFly Next% 2
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