ASK THE DON & Q&A
I broke my collarbone quite badly last month – sorry NHS! How did you come back from your injury both physically and mentally? I’m struggling to see a way past this at the moment. Steve Sanders
Multisport legend Tim Don on returning from injury. Plus, advice on absorbing run pain, treating bone-stress injuries, looking after your wetsuit and more.
Oh Steve, I’m gutted for you big time, man. A collarbone break can be a right pain in the bum, especially if it’s not diagnosed and treated 100% correctly from the start and the correct operation’s not carried out. That can lead to tendon or ligaments becoming detached and the athlete requiring a second operation. I’ve seen that with a few of the professionals, unfortunately, and it really does test the mental side even more than the physical. But hopefully it was a straightforward break (and if your bike was damaged, that your insurance allowed you to buy a sweet Specialized Shiv – they are crazy fast!).
I guess we don’t know how much we love something until it’s taken away from us, right? At this time of year, when people are (usually) looking to race, all you can see is your season running away from you, especially with people posting pics all over social media and everyone showing their training and race results on Strava. Again, this is when it can become more a mental game than a physical one. Thankfully, there are proven ways to ensure the swiftest recovery possible…
FIND A GOOD PHYSIO
Search for a good physiotherapist who can take care of the whole rehab of your collarbone. They should lead on exercises right though to getting you back in the pool or outside on a bike. It’s so hard to see yourself racing when you can’t even straddle a bike or put a wetsuit on.
SET SMALL GOALS
How I did it after my neck injury was to break everything down into small goals every day. You really need to embrace the process and the road back to recovery as a journey, kind of like ‘we will rebuild you stronger and tougher than before!’ Let this process be the springboard to your success.
TAKE PEOPLE WITH YOU
It’s very important to have people alongside you on this journey – don’t go solo, man. It’s way tougher and, to be honest, not as much fun, so lean on family, friends and training partners.
SET YOUR FOCUS ELSEWHERE
Use this time to do things you otherwise might have neglected, whether that’s triathlon specific or by just spending more time with family or doing a project around the house. But for now let’s stick to triathlon!
So, for example, you could work on lower-leg strength and mobility and do research on equipment or new techniques – e.g. the Pose Method of Running. This can be a great way to take your mind off your current situation.
SLOW IT DOWN
Really listen to your doctor and physio and get that rehab dialled in – don’t be a hero and try and do too much, as the body needs to heal. Yes, you can help speed it up but you can also overdo it and slow that recovery down – not good, not good at all. I really had to slow myself down and listen to Kelly, my wife, when I was in the gym when my head would swell up because a screw was literally coming loose!
It was not good; I had to get it tightened (with no pain meds – I don’t recommend it) so many times that they were worried the screw would go right though my scull. So you know what they did? Drilled a fifth hole, 2cm away from the old hole. What a lovely Christmas present that was. So while not that extreme in your case, rushing back is still never worth it!
REFLECT ON YOUR JOURNEY TO DATE
Also pause every so often and look back to see how far you’ve come week on week, as that really helped me. Every Sunday evening, with a glass of red, of course, it was like, ‘Wow. I couldn’t put my own socks on five days ago.’ Or ‘I could only manage 90 watts on the bike for 6mins, now I’m up to 95 watts for 12mins.’ It’s the little wins, the little gains, that gave me confidence, especially with a good lead heading up my recovery.
Sharing it all with someone was very tough at first for me – I like to do it all on my own – but in the end it was like, ‘Hell yeah, we’re kicking this broken neck’s butt!’ And before you know it, you’ll be rebuilt and stronger than before. Honestly, it’ll make you richer in so many ways, so embrace it, man! Good luck and I hope to see you racing again in 2020… well, if there are any races! If not, 2021!