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LAST October ironwoman Allie Britton had a painful decision to make, almost as painful as the foot injury she was battling.
After training for 18 weeks, the two-time Coolangatta Gold runner-up had the chance to become the first Tasmanian to claim gold in the event but she would have to do so with a minor yet debilitating plantar fascia tear.
“It was super painful to walk and run,” Britton recalled. “I did one run prior to the race and I thought I could tolerate 7km with that pain.
“I guess I contemplated it (withdrawing from the race) but I thought if I’d done the work on the bike then I should be able to get through.”
The 26-year-old was on track for a courageous finish before she stepped in a pothole on the opening run leg, further aggravating the injury she fought so hard to overcome.
“I tore it as I was running into the swim,” she said.
“I’d basically devoted my life to that race at that time and I was pretty upset.”
She bravely completed the swim leg but didn’t have the strength to stand when she reached the shoreline. “It was excruciating,” she said.
“I knew at that point I’d done something really serious.”
Britton checked into her specialist and was told she’d torn through 90 per cent of her plantar fascia tissue.
“He told me there was every possibility that I’d miss the rest of the season,” she said.
Then began a rigorous rehab schedule which included weekly platelet rich plasma injections, the last of which she completed on Christmas eve.
For one of the first times in her life Britton was forced to rest and give up her near daily runs which she has long used as a release from stress and pressures.
“I’m an anxious person and I use running as my outlet,” she said.
“It sounds stupid but I was really grateful that I got my injury because I have grown as a person and I learnt to live without running.”
Her meticulous attention meant that despite the initial prognosis, Britton recovered in time for the for the Ocean6 series, just a few weeks after the injury that derailed her summer.
“I came back for the second half and raced in Round 4 in Currumbin and didn’t make finals,” she said. “It was pretty hard and I didn’t think I’d ever be fit again.
“I really pushed myself in the break between rounds and made the finals at Surfers Paradise but it took me until Round 6 at Wanda to feel good again.”
After recently competing in the Queensland Surf Lifesaving Titles and Shannon Eckstein Classic, Britton believes she has recaptured her pre-injury form and fitness.
She will compete in all the individual events except for the swim at the Aussies, culminating in the ironwoman final on April 7.
“I feel like myself again,” she said. “Even if my results aren’t showing it, I feel stronger than I’ve ever felt and I’m racing better than I ever have.”
October feels like a world away but for Britton the last few months have shaped her and she couldn’t be more grateful for her decision to push through the pain at Coolangatta.
“Thinking back to when I was told I couldn’t race and my heart was ripped out of my chest ... it gave me a new perspective on the sport so I look at things like the Aussies as a great day with my mates,” she said.