Canine companion is paw-fect training partner for Meghan
MEGHAN Beesley, Loughborough University’s 400m hurdler, has found a new training partner during the Covid-19 outbreak – in the form of a four-legged friend.
Speaking as part of Loughborough University’s #TrainatHome campaign, Beesley explained how her canine companion Coco is keeping the Olympic hopeful fit and healthy during the lockdown period.
“I’ve mostly training around the fields by my house with my little dog - a 5kg fluffy white ball. She’s been getting in my training programme with me, doing hills together and running alongside the cricket pitch,” she explained.
“She absolutely loves it and I’ve never seen her so happy. She’ll be darting to and from, and even when I’m walking back, she’s wanting to run.
“It’s been really motivating to have someone there and when she gets tired, she has a lie down too!”
Meghan also explained how her coach has helped channel her focus and preparation for what would have been an Olympic year:
“My coach has been really good about the situation and not made it stressful at all, he said, ‘what equipment do you have?’ and we’ve worked around that. I have a water tube which goes up to 10kg and I’ve got two medicine balls and some resistance bands.
“You’d think you can only train at a gym, but you can do all these things at home. I also know that being here before through injury, you can come back and enjoy next year even more as you’ve had it temporarily taken away from you.”