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In the world of sports, injuries, whether minor or major setbacks, are common aspects in an athlete’s journey; however, such physical impediments can disrupt an athlete’s routine and also delay their overall progress. Track athlete and dancer, Cotie Wilson discussed her journey to recovery after confronting a significant hip injury, which prevented her from participating in sport for two months!
Cotie expressed that her time apart from athletics “felt like ages” and described being back as “really fun”; however, despite her gratitude to be back doing what she loves, it is “not great” in the sense that she is unable to resume her usual training group at the moment, with her still being vulnerable to further damage if pushed too far. She shared that “it’s nice getting back into it” and described it as being “better than staying at home” as “doing something is better than nothing”.
When asked what she found most challenging during her recovery, Cotie disclosed that one challenge for her was “not doing sports…it’s so hard” as well as “watching people do sports” which she found frustrating. She conveyed the difficulty of watching others do what you love but are unable to partake in, her example being “watching people doing the dance routines when all you can do is sit there and watch”. Likewise, “not being able to work out or run” and “not being able to walk properly” were also very challenging for her.
She voiced her initial struggles to “come to terms with the fact I was injured” and how “it was hard to accept [it]” which would often discourage her; however, there were ways in which she was able to stay motivated. With sports out of reach for the time being, Cotie immersed herself in other activities, such as making brownies and other baked goods; pursuing her love for baking provided her a new outlet whilst recovering. Additionally, the excitement and “counting down the weeks” before being able to return to sports and her friends also kept her positive.
Cotie discussed the support she received during her recovery from those such as her coach who she described as “very supportive” and who reached out, offering her help. She followed on to acknowledge the support she received from her friends and family, who helped “distract me from the fact that I was unable to do athletics” and continued to motivate her.
Cotie expressed that throughout her recovery, she continued to train every day upstairs, doing exercises to build up her muscles and heal them from the overload and tearing they had undergone; she continues to do a lot of strength and conditioning following her return to sports.
When asked if there were any sportspeople she was inspired by during her recovery, Cotie shared that “I’ve always been inspired by Jessica Ennis-Hill” and that she watched her documentary discussing her injury and experience, which provided her encouragement. Moreover, she followed on to mention “the people from my athletics” and how it heartened her to know that “I can go back to training and run against them again”!
Concluding with advice for those who may be on their journey to recovery, Cotie urged others to “take your time” as “you may think you're missing more athletics and more training”, but taking your time and being fully healed is better than rushing into things just to get injured again - “take your time, do your exercises and trust your body to get you back into the swing”.