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Steph Kessell (née Davis) | Marathon Runner | Olympian
136 Plays3 days ago
Running Through It All: Pregnancy, Parenthood & Recovery from Injury with Olympian Stephanie Davis
In this episode of the UKRunChat podcast, Michelle welcomes back Olympic marathoner, coach, and new mum Stephanie Davis. Since her last appearance, Steph has navigated the highs and challenges of pregnancy, birth via C-section, postpartum recovery, and a return to running — all while continuing her coaching work with Runna.
Steph shares openly about:
Managing a bone stress injury that disrupted her Olympic hopes
Staying active during pregnancy, adapting training, and tuning into her body
Recovering from a C-section and returning to running with patience and support
The emotional and physical realities of the postpartum period
Her evolving role as a coach with Runna, and the exciting next chapter with Strava
And lots more.......
Whether you’re pregnant, postpartum, coaching others, or managing your own return from injury — Steph’s honesty, and practical tips will resonate.
Steph is a Coach at our partners Runna. You can get an extended free trial of Runna using the code UKRUNCHAT1
Follow Steph on Instagram
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Transcript
Steph's Journey and Motherhood
00:00:01
UKRunChat
Hello, welcome to the UK Run Chat podcast. I'm Michelle, and today I'm really excited to welcome back Olympic marathoner coach and new mum, Steph Davis. Now, last time, Steph spoke to Jo on the podcast and she was helping us all prepare for our spring events with some brilliant advice on training, deload weeks, and how she approaches performance with a lower mileage cross-training-based plan. So do check out that episode if you haven't listened yet.
00:00:28
UKRunChat
But a lot's changed since then. and Steph gave birth to her daughter in October. So in this episode, we'll chat a bit about what running looked like for her during pregnancy and the reality of returning to exercise after having a baby.
00:00:42
UKRunChat
So hi, Steph. Thank you so much for coming back onto the podcast with us. So quite lot's changed, hasn't it?
00:00:48
Steph
Yeah, no, lots has changed. And that's really good to chat again. And yeah, share what's been happening and what you I've been up to since I became a mom.
00:00:58
UKRunChat
Yeah, so just just briefly for those people who kind of haven't been following your career. and Can you just give us a brief introduction to yourself because you you're kind of you're relatively new to marathon running as well, aren't you?
From First Marathon to Tokyo Olympics
00:01:11
Steph
Yeah, like relatively new. I am i feel like I've been saying this for a few years and then time does pass. It doesn't feel like I'm so new. But and I came onto the scene in 2018. I did my first marathon and it did all happen quite quickly because then I qualified and went to the Olympics in what was meant to be 2020 due to COVID was 2021.
00:01:33
Steph
and So a bit of a whirlwind kind of few years into marathon running and absolutely loved it, learnt loads, never expected to go from yeah running my first marathon in 2018 in Berlin, just for fun with friends, to representing GB at the Tokyo Olympics.
00:01:52
Steph
i am So it was kind of yeah a whirlwind journey into marathon running. it went yeah really well for me. And it also led me into the path I am in now with running coaching and helping other people prepare for yeah distances from 5K to marathons, sometimes ultras.
00:02:09
Steph
So yeah, it's been a huge change in my career since 2018, but i absolutely love it. and And I feel so grateful to be able to yeah work in my passion as well.
00:02:20
Steph
So and yeah, now I'm on board with the runner team as well. From the very start, I joined them and which has given me even more access to coaching and helping hundreds and thousands of runners now with them all their goals. So it's been a really exciting journey.
00:02:34
UKRunChat
Yeah, it
RUNA and Strava Partnership
00:02:35
UKRunChat
has, hasn't it? And of course, runners just announced some very big news with Strava as well. So yeah, the the mood within the team at the moment must be just incredible.
00:02:45
Steph
Yeah, it's same very, very exciting news. We were all ah yeah absolutely buzzing when we found out and yeah looking forward to kind of the future with them yeah whole new team and learning lots and using more resources and to expand RUNA.
00:03:03
Steph
We as coaches always have so many good ideas that we want to put into the app, but tim it requires a lot of kind of brain power from the tech team and hopefully with kind of new resources through Strava, and we'll be able to kind of get to work on those at a bit of a quicker rate than we were doing initially as well.
00:03:23
Steph
So yeah, lots of exciting things on the pipeline there, which will be really great to be involved in.
00:03:25
UKRunChat
Yeah, so excited. You like to tell us what might be what might be coming up or is it all very push push at the moment?
00:03:32
Steph
and Yeah, we tend to keep it kind of hush-hush until we're at the stages where we're like about to launch launch it, and just so we don't give any kind of false impressions on timelines and stuff and get people's hopes up. But Lots of exciting things to come. That's why I can reassure people.
00:03:47
UKRunChat
Yeah, very exciting. and So yeah, so let's chat about what's happened then since you last spoke to Jo, because I think, you were you preparing for a marathon last time you spoke
Preparing for Seville and Family Planning
00:03:57
UKRunChat
to Jo? It was the beginning of 2024, wasn't it?
00:04:01
Steph
Yeah, so I was preparing to run Seville Marathon in the February. and and training had been going really really well I had moved up to Leeds like a year before that so it's kind of got into a new rhythm of training with a new coach a different atmosphere with different people different kind of little bit of different structure not nothing too wildly different to what I was doing before and and yeah things were going really really well but I picked up a shin injury a bit bone stress in my shin
00:04:34
Steph
And it just meant that like I wasn't able to get to the start line, which was really gutting because that was my attempt to kind of try and make the Paralympic team run the qualifying standard. I had a lot of work to do and it might have felt like a big ask, but it's something that I really wanted to do give it my all to try and make that team.
00:04:56
Steph
And that was kind of really my last chance. and I could have, the only other marathon I could have done after that would have been London, but I just wouldn't have been had the time to recover and then get fit again for that so yeah then my kind of plans turned to other things and I'd always said if i made the Olympics I would go if I didn't make the Olympics the plan was to start family so we just cracked on with that and um it happened a lot quicker than I expected um which was amazing I felt very lucky that um
00:05:19
UKRunChat
Thank you.
00:05:32
Steph
it was quite smooth and yet not a too stressful process falling pregnant and especially coming off the back of the bone injury where there had maybe been speculation that it was a down to like nutrition and under fueling because I had had a history of that but I'd worked so hard to to get that right and I knew deep down that like with that side of things I I was confident that it was nothing to do with with fueling or under fueling because I think often when you hear people having reoccurring bone injuries which is something I I get um your first thing is first thought is often are they eating enough are they feeling enough is their bones density okay and all those markers for me had been checked and they were well the bone scans and the bloods had all been fine and I knew deep down the nutrition side of things were fine um so it was then really nice to actually have that
00:06:30
Steph
like reassurance through falling pregnant so quickly that things my body was in a healthy state and it's just a biomechanical thing which causes me to get these shin injuries unfortunately so there's lots of work that we'd like to do there but like a lot of things is running they're not a quick overnight fix so yeah
00:06:48
UKRunChat
No, they're not are basically.
Injury Recovery Journey
00:06:51
UKRunChat
Just before we get into kind of the and pregnancy, can we just chat about kind of what recovery from an injury like that looks like for you?
00:06:52
Steph
sadly not
00:07:00
UKRunChat
Because it it must be really frustrating as an elite athlete to have to deal with that.
00:07:05
Steph
Yeah, it's really frustrating. And they often come at times where things are going so, so well. And it's really like the last few weeks before you start to taper. And that's essentially what happened to me. Like I was so close, and but it wasn't it well it wasn't not a good idea to run through it.
00:07:23
Steph
So because mine was graded at grade three, which means it wasn't a full fracture or it wasn't even a stress fracture. it was the highest level of stress response, and which is basically like the like a precursor to where the bone starts to crack I guess in like simple terms so I'd been like quite good I guess and like catching it before um it fractured but it still means that you have to treat kind of because it's almost a fracture you have to treat it kind of similar so and I knew because then I wasn't going to be in a rush to get to anything another spring marathon that was kind of over for me
00:07:59
Steph
And I just took 10 days off completely. i was on clutches just to, I wanted just to give it the best chance of healing as quick as possible. So I just completely offloaded it for 10 days. And then I was able to get in the pool. um I did that for another week or two. And then I was able to start post-training.
00:08:14
Steph
as I normally would. So things like bike, elliptical, swims, I was able to kind of do normal durations of that. and It did fluctuate a little bit on what I did because I fell pregnant and symptoms and stuff, which we can chat about, later came into play.
00:08:30
Steph
So my recovery was kind of mishmashed into falling pregnant and dealing with the symptoms from that, which I guess was a good thing because it kind of definitely slowed me down with rushing back from the and bone stress.
00:08:43
Steph
And then I started a series of kind of walk runs and before progressing into continuous runs. And they're all just like at a nice, easy pace. Starting off with literally like one, two minute reps of running, followed by a series of walking. And we just built them up like every other day.
00:09:00
Steph
and So yeah, and I was fortunate enough actually in between before starting the walk runs on the road that I could use the Alter-G, which is like the anti-gravity treadmill. So I did some walk runs on that at like 70, 80% body weight.
00:09:13
Steph
And once that felt good, I could then transition to being outside. So overall, I think it was about, can't remember exactly, but with that injury, it was about eight weeks before I was then on the alter G and then probably about 10, 11 weeks before I then started running again outside.
00:09:30
Steph
But by that point I had like zero symptoms. It was all fully healed. It was feeling good. and So yeah, I was able just to build up like like safely my mileage.
00:09:40
UKRunChat
Yeah, and and it's it's important to kind of give it that time, isn't it? I think a a lot of us who don't have perhaps the benefit of someone there to to guide them through it will perhaps kind of feel okay and think, right, I can start running again.
00:09:52
Steph
Yeah.
00:09:53
UKRunChat
and And that can, of course, cause more problems, can't it? Yeah.
00:09:57
Steph
Exactly. I think it's just like starting off slow and giving yourself a non-run day in between those walk runs so that you can allow your body to let you know within 24 hours if there are any little triggers or symptoms that are telling you we're not quite ready whereas if you rush and do another run the next day thinking that one felt great at the time then you're more likely to make it worse and then you set yourself back even further and it's not that if you do a walk run and then the next day it feels a little bit sensitive that you have to then go back right to the beginning and take so many weeks off and only cross train but it just means that you you'd go back like a step or two and just be more cautious um so it's just about yeah really respecting that giving your body the time and in the long run it's just it so it'll just be worth it and in that time where you have then more time because you're not running
00:10:49
Steph
It's then trying to work on your weaknesses. So for me, it's kind of that cast strength, ankle mobility and doing little and exercises around that to try and make it strong.
00:11:00
UKRunChat
Yeah. So what what kind of specific exercises do you do to help with that?
00:11:05
Steph
And so I do calf raises, but I have, um, Kind of a mixture of calf raises, whether it's kind of isometric holds, which I'll do sometimes on like a leg press machine or just your traditional calf raises where you're kind of standing on a step and you're just lowering your heel up and down.
00:11:22
Steph
and And then for me, actually, what I've learned with them is because I was doing them for ages and thinking I was doing them right. But actually, with a lot of these exercises, it's making sure your technique is really good. So for me, it was making sure when I was coming up, I was pushing right up onto my big toe and then slowly lowering down because it's so easy not to really use your toes properly. And so that's something that I've worked on because i basically fell into a trap of doing calf raises, being able to add some weight, but the technique wasn't right.
00:11:52
UKRunChat
Thank you.
00:11:53
Steph
So I had to strip it right back and just get the technique right. Don't add any weight to it. Don't feel like I'm loading it. Just use body weight to begin with. And then I also do things like dorsiflexion. So kind of weighted on the toes and bringing the toes towards the shin.
00:12:09
Steph
And again, like you just start off with maybe like a resistance band or something rather than putting weight on to begin with. and also doing stuff around the inside of the string so some kind of ankle inversion eversion and you can use resistance bands for that and build up from like a lighter band to a more heavier band and so yeah just getting the structures around the ankle and the calves strong but in all directions basically
00:12:35
UKRunChat
Yeah. And is that something you would kind of do anyway as as an athlete?
00:12:40
Steph
um yes but i guess when things are going well and your running volume ramps up it's quite easy then to maybe neglect even as little athletes we do it because you're still pushed for time sometimes especially like me if you are working and then you might not do as much as you know that you need to or because things are feeling good you think oh i've done i've laid the foundation the strengths there and you neglect it a little bit so that's um always a hard lesson to learn
00:13:11
UKRunChat
It is. I think we're all guilty of it, aren't we? Yeah.
00:13:14
Steph
yeah you just have because there's like so many things to keep on top of like I have some stuff around my hips that i need to keep on top of and then my calves I need to keep on top of um that it just all it does really add up and then it's about being like true to yourself and knowing that okay maybe sometimes you actually need to ditch that run or that cross train and just get that strength session in because if you want the consistency that's the most important thing and like a lot of people i'm very guilty of not doing what i would recommend to a lot of people that i coach and and i i just need to start speaking to myself like i would speak to any of my athletes because it would probably help me quite a bit
00:13:57
UKRunChat
yeah yes yeah so let's get on to kind of what what happened then so you you fell pregnant really quickly congratulations you you yeah but very lucky there um so what were the biggest adjustments you had to make um while to your training while pregnant I mean obviously you work kind of
00:14:06
Steph
thank you
00:14:15
UKRunChat
training for a ah goal specifically where you you are kind of
Training Adjustments During Pregnancy
00:14:18
UKRunChat
rehabbing.
00:14:18
Steph
No, exactly. So I was kind of rehabbing. So when I first, when I fell pregnant and I found out i was still only cross training.
00:14:27
Steph
I was out in Portugal and on holiday, but we rented some bikes and we were out on a ride and I was thinking and looking at my heart rate and I was like, I am either, like I know i'm not as fit as I was, but like this feels like bad.
00:14:41
Steph
I felt really like out of breath. My heart rate was higher. My legs didn't feel too bad, but it just felt cardiovascularly a lot more of a strain so that for me looking back was definitely like an early warning sign that I was pregnant and and it was only a few days after that that did do a pregnancy test so it was even that early I was starting to feel like changes in my body and I could feel that even my resting heart rate was a little bit higher my HRV was slightly lower so really early on I could I could feel the effects of it
00:15:18
Steph
um so for about the kind of the first month or so I was just cross training so I think that was because I've climbed back from the injury it kind of I guess slowed me down a bit I didn't really know what race was going to be happening next anyway I was just training to kind of get back into swing of things slowly build my fitness back up um so that was quite good I think in the early stages of pregnancy because it meant I just did what I felt like doing like I always had my training plan, but and there was a bit of flexibility to it anyway because there wasn't like pressure because a race coming up.
00:15:54
Steph
And then when I found out i was pregnant, I just kept up that same routine, really. I just did what felt good. I didn't feel the need to go out and do something if that day I felt really tired.
00:16:07
Steph
I was quite lucky in my first trimester that symptoms weren't too bad. I just kind of had low-level fatigue, like went off a lot of food, but wasn't sick. I just felt like I had a bit mild hangover for about six weeks.
00:16:19
UKRunChat
Yes.
00:16:21
Steph
Just felt a bit off. And but actually sometimes like just getting outside and have some fresh air was quite nice for that. So when I was able to start the walk runs, it was then it was then felt nice to kind of be outside and moving and get some fresh air. But because I wasn't really sure how I was going to feel, the walk runs were quite nice for just kind of introducing me to a little bit of running, building me up slowly.
00:16:43
Steph
and and I got to the point where I was able to run for kind of 30 to 40 minutes continuously. And for me, like during pregnancy, that actually felt like enough doing that kind of three to five times a week.
00:16:56
Steph
I didn't feel the need to to do any more. We did at the start of the second trimester, we introduced and like a weekly track session where I went and just just ran. Like my coach was there, but there was no expectation of like, this is your splits you must hit. It was just like, let's just see what see what happens. we' just make a note of them.
00:17:18
Steph
And actually felt quite good during those sessions. But then I started to get a bit of round ligament pain. And I was quite lucky that I went to a pelvic floor physio. She gave me some exercises, which within a week, they resolved it. It was just some tightness I had. And it was a really good insight into pelvic floor exercises, something that I was like hammering at home.
00:17:40
Steph
And because that's what you read about on the NHS is like, make sure you do your pelvic squeezes every day.
00:17:42
UKRunChat
Yeah.
00:17:45
Steph
And actually, for me, it was the opposite. i had to do a lot of relaxation stuff. um so I worked on that and I was able to continue running pain-free but I decided to take out the intensity because I would rather run rather than run easy and run can like regularly rather than run maybe haphazardly able to fit in a hard session here but then it would hurt a bit I didn't want to go down that routine of being inconsistent with it because we were trying to squeeze in a little bit of intensity and i actually didn't it's not like I needed to get
00:18:19
Steph
fit for anything I could actually just get in the pool or get on the bike and push my heart rate up there a little bit and um and there definitely was something in me that would like hold me back a bit the guidance out there is quite vague as to how hard you can push um yeah it's not really set up for for people who and I don't like to see elite athletes because there's lots of people who are pregnant who are very very active and might actually do even more minutes of training a week that than I do
00:18:32
UKRunChat
It's very vague, isn't it? Yeah.
00:18:49
Steph
And for just people who are really active, the guidance isn't really there. and and you you read online that keeping it or you speak to other people or physios, whatever, and they you hear about the seven out of 10 effort kind of keeping it there. But that is quite hard to know what that feels like sometimes when you're just saying like a seven out of 10. It's very subjective.
00:19:10
Steph
So I just kept any kind of intensity, ah bit more of like a steady marathon pace type effort. and I just went off field, trusted my gut.
00:19:21
Steph
I knew that my volume was nothing too crazy. So i I felt confident that I was ticking along at a nice level and just being able to do something every day, even sometimes if it was just a really short bike or or a walk or something, I just felt good for that, just being able to move.
00:19:39
UKRunChat
Yeah, i think I think it does you both good, doesn't it, to you be active.
00:19:42
Steph
Yeah.
00:19:44
UKRunChat
So did you manage to run all the way through your pregnancy then keep active at least?
00:19:48
Steph
So, yeah, I ran up to 38 weeks and was on the bike till right before she was born.
00:19:51
UKRunChat
Yeah.
00:19:55
Steph
In fact, I was also I was quite good at keeping up my regular gym sessions twice a week as well. And I would do one of them at home and I go one into the gym where I meet my coach once a week. and do the other one there.
00:20:06
Steph
And i remember towards the end, my coach being like, I don't know if I'm comfortable with you being here anymore. i don't want to have to deliver this baby.
00:20:12
UKRunChat
Yeah.
00:20:14
Steph
and But it was really nice for me to go in and just feel still connected to everyone and and just keep in touch with people in a like face to face because being pregnant, you're pregnant for a long time.
00:20:26
UKRunChat
yeah
00:20:26
Steph
So I didn't want to just like do everything in isolation. and So joining in with people and adapting what you can and And especially on the strength side of things, being able to have someone there just to kind of monitor and make sure what I was doing was safe was really helpful.
00:20:43
UKRunChat
Yeah, that that's brilliant and really helpful. and What advice would you give to pregnant runners out there then who who want to stay active but aren't sure what to do?
00:20:53
Steph
Yeah, I think just like do what you feel comfortable with and have definitely have a training plan if that is something that you're used to. but just be flexible with it. and I thought i would find it really hard to be flexible with it and also find it really hard to see my paces slowing down. But I think for me, my purpose then was growing this baby. I didn't feel the need to like excel in my training. I just enjoyed being able to move. So I think it's trying to see that as
00:21:26
Steph
you you have another role now to play your body's doing something different your body's doing something amazing and if you do find it challenging to see that you're slowing there is a really valid reason with it so it's trying to like be rational with yourself about that and and not give yourself a hard time for being slower and then in terms of like getting the balance right between easy and more intense stuff I think if you're used to doing two or three hard sessions a week, I'd probably pull it back. So you're doing kind of one less than that.
00:21:59
Steph
and And then keeping that effort to something where you you're getting a little bit out of breath, but you could still exchange a few words with someone else. You're not like totally knackered. You can't speak. and So it's okay to push up your heart rate a little bit.
00:22:15
Steph
and And don't worry about, yeah like, comparing one person to another I think everyone has their own baseline and if you run quite a lot then it's quite likely in your pregnancy then you will also be able to to run quite a lot providing there's no other complications and but it's weird to say but as for me anyway I just trusted my gut and i think that's something really powerful even as a mum now like I just trust my gut on things and I think
00:22:49
Steph
believe in yourself and making the right disce decision. And it's so easy to overthink and overcomplicate it by speaking to lots of people and reading too much. And that is helpful us to certain extent.
00:23:01
Steph
But just trust your own gut instinct as well with it.
00:23:04
UKRunChat
Yeah, you're so right there. m Yeah, so so hopefully that the birth went all well and she was born in October.
C-Section Birth and Recovery
00:23:12
UKRunChat
So yeah, congratulations.
00:23:12
Steph
Yeah, she was born in October. So I ended up with a C-section, which wasn't the plan.
00:23:17
UKRunChat
Yeah.
00:23:19
Steph
um but actually and we made the call to have it before it turned into a full-blown emergency and and it was definitely the right decision when she came out they were like it was going be a struggle to get her out the natural way so um and for me the recovery with that has been really really good actually so i would just say to people who do end up with a c-section like me like the first for a few days for me and it can be a little bit longer for some people depending on the nature of the surgery and how quick it was but once that initial bit is done the recovery after that is actually you feel you feel great and you're able to go out and do not your exercise that you might like but you're not confined to the house which I think some people think about initially when they think major surgery I'll be not be able to do anything for weeks and weeks and weeks and I went and saw pelvic floor physio
00:24:14
Steph
who specializes in everything postpartum, including C-sections. So never be put off by the title of the physio being pelvic floor and thinking, well, don't have a natural birth, so that doesn't apply to me. It absolutely does. Like you carry a baby for nine months, that was a huge weight on your pelvic floor.
00:24:28
Steph
So going to see someone, and explaining to them about your birth, explaining them what you did during pregnancy, explaining to them yeah, just how you're feeling and they can guide you you through what is appropriate. I think obviously that comes with a cost, but um I encourage you if people are asking what you need as a new mom or they wanted to buy you a gift and even like a voucher coming together with some other people to get you that initial appointment.
00:24:54
Steph
And because you'll get so much stuff with the baby that the baby doesn't need it all. And the mom needs looked after too. And working with a pelvic floor physiologist, it meant I learned a lot. I was able to get advice on things I wasn't sure about. I was able to have a clear plan on how I could return, which is nice for you to then have something to visualize, even if it's not immediate. If you can think, well, it's X amount of weeks until I can do this or that.
00:25:19
Steph
And that will, for me, felt like a really nice feeling. And by the end of week four, I was able to get back onto the turbo and do some light spinning. And by week nine, I was doing in my walk runs. So, and that honestly went so quickly. i think when you're navigating a newborn, and there's so many other distractions anyway. So I didn't feel like too much of a rush to get back.
00:25:39
Steph
Although when I did, it was really nice.
00:25:41
UKRunChat
Yeah, oh that's fantastic. And I guess that being active all the way through pregnancy helped with that recovery too.
00:25:48
Steph
Yeah, I think so.
00:25:49
UKRunChat
like
00:25:49
Steph
Like, yeah, I think obviously you can't, prove it but I think definitely um doing the pelvic floor exercises that were prescribed to me as well as doing little bit pregnancy yoga which I really enjoyed and a little bit of cardiovascular stuff that I could do I think definitely helped with yeah recovery and um getting back so um yeah
00:26:11
UKRunChat
Yeah, what was that first run back like? I remember my first run back and I thought everything was going to fall out, honestly. It just felt weird. Like, how it goes?
00:26:20
Steph
yeah Well, because I didn't really have that because of the C-section. So this is one benefit of the C-section. Like everything down there is actually like fine.
00:26:29
UKRunChat
ah
00:26:30
Steph
and But I was like definitely sensitive around my scar area because that's, even though my scar never felt like painful, it just felt like quite immobile and stuff at times. But there's techniques through massage and stuff that you can do with your physio to help with that. And that, yeah, is something I'll still do when I remember now.
00:26:46
Steph
and So it actually felt okay. I just remember it feeling a bit weird. um And you're very hypersensitive because you've just been through a lot. But it's trying to just relax and not let the mind...
00:26:59
Steph
and like take over too much and but also be aware of like how you are feeling physically and it's just I like just keep a wee note of these things if it's just like on training peaks or on your phone calendar just a little few words or emoji or something to kind of sum up how you're feeling then you could just keep a nice track of it and see it day to day
00:27:19
UKRunChat
Yeah, that's a good point because it's an emotional time as well, isn't it?
Postpartum Fitness and Body Image
00:27:21
UKRunChat
And we're often lacking in sleep as well. And small things can become big things, can't they? We're not careful.
00:27:28
Steph
yeah Yeah, they really can. and So it's about like, if you've got family or friends who can help or just not even physically, but to speak to, I think it's if you need to, like not keeping things like built up inside, just using other people around you for bit of an outlet.
00:27:46
UKRunChat
Yeah. so So getting back to it then, were there any unexpected challenges in in rebuilding kind of strength and endurance, so or even confidence really?
00:27:58
Steph
Yeah, I think I actually felt really relaxed in terms of like and numbers, I guess I was putting out. i didn't feel like, oh, these are terrible compared to like what I could do in peak fitness.
00:28:11
Steph
I actually really enjoyed the process of ticking off sessions and seeing little improvements, honestly, like every week, because when you're in the midst of a marathon training block, you're clutching at seconds and you don't often see those improvements.
00:28:25
Steph
and Whereas coming back, it was quite nice being like, oh, and i especially when i started in my faster running, which wasn't, I ran easy for about seven, eight weeks before I added any intensity.
00:28:36
Steph
um I did my first session, like I don't really know what to expect. And I was, for me, like very slow. And then four five weeks later, I went to park run and ran like 17, 20 something at the 5K. So like, i was like, actually, like this is all coming together.
00:28:54
Steph
One thing I feel like there's not enough education on, or I think emphasis on is probably the right word. Like, the I mean, maybe the education there, but I think it's really, really important. And this is something that I did do, but I wish I'd done more of it, is a lot of like stability work and strength work around the trunk and the hips.
00:29:17
Steph
and Because my core and, obviously during pregnancy your hips like expand to allow room for the baby and then they start to change again um as your pre-pregnancy body um kind of comes back um and that has led to me having some issues around my back and my glutes and I recently had a scan and it showed like a little bit of bone stress in the sacrum as well as some glute tendinopathy so unfortunately like right now I'm in a really sticky situation with
00:29:52
Steph
I know that I've got imbalances in my lateral hip strength and in my core, but we now don't actually know if the symptoms are coming from the bone or the tendon. And they're very two different injuries and how you treat them.
00:30:03
Steph
So I would recommend that, and that that makes it, I think because of the C-section, I was very tentative around my stomach and doing too much strength. and But its it's really important.
00:30:14
Steph
So that's kind of what I would encourage new mums coming. And whether that's like, going to like a postnatal pilates class or getting like a program from a physio um or doing what you can through youtube if um money because these things are are really expensive it's really hard um but doing safe core work and hip work around your pelvis to really stabilize that i think is something that i wish that i'd now done more of um because yeah i think there's
00:30:47
Steph
I underestimated how much change happened in that area
00:30:50
UKRunChat
Yeah, it's hard to know what to do though, isn't it? So I guess it's important to find somebody who specialises in kind of postpartum exercise and exercise.
00:30:58
Steph
yeah and because it will depend on your birth as well and um whether i I don't know like i'm I'm not an expert in that area but I presume it's whether you had a c-section whether you had stitches down there like there's so many factors which makes it even harder as women who have had a baby who's had a baby to to know what to do.
00:31:18
Steph
and So yeah, that has been a really big challenge in the last six weeks. and And I know the areas need to work on now, but it's, yeah, I guess something that I wish I'd paid more attention attention to earlier, but then could ah could I off because of my scar and stuff? I don't know.
00:31:38
Steph
So again, it's one of these situations where you're like, in hindsight, maybe it's, yeah, hindsight's wonderful thing, but I'm trying not to be too hard on myself.
00:31:47
UKRunChat
yeah and Yeah, I think you can't we can't see the future, can we? So we can't plan for that kind of stuff.
00:31:51
Steph
no no and i know that i'm at a good point now where i can start to strengthen them and it's do around my scars so that's just what i have to crack on with now and and just get that strong and i know from previous injuries where i've had to strengthen things that if i am very diligent with it which i am really prioritizing it now three four times a week and that it can come back quite quickly so it's yeah just being patient over those few weeks but um
00:31:53
UKRunChat
So it's just unfortunate at moment. Yeah.
00:31:57
UKRunChat
Yeah.
00:32:01
UKRunChat
yeah
00:32:20
Steph
knowing when it's something like strength, you can, you have control to fix that and and to make things stronger and we just put the work in.
00:32:25
UKRunChat
Yeah.
00:32:28
UKRunChat
Yeah. So are you kind of having a little break from running again at the moment then while you sort Yeah.
00:32:33
Steph
Yeah, so I'm having a break from running at the moment while I rehab that and then just doing cross training that's, yeah, that's pain free and that's safe to do. So ticking over with that and and hopefully it will just be another couple of weeks and I'll be back running.
00:32:47
Steph
And I'll do so like I have done before. I'll do some walk runs to ease me back in.
00:32:50
UKRunChat
Yeah. Yeah. um i mean I mean, I think mums feel a lot of pressure to kind of bounce back, don't they, like new mums, especially first time mums, to kind of get straight back into it.
00:32:58
Steph
nine
00:33:01
UKRunChat
How did you approach that then? And what what advice would you give to people who are feeling bit overwhelmed by that?
00:33:07
Steph
So initially I actually felt, don't get me wrong. Like I definitely went through phases where I didn't love the changes in my body. I didn't love the size and I was after giving birth.
00:33:22
Steph
But most of the time, i was able to kind of rationalize, you've just had a baby. You literally cannot be the same size as you were. 11 months ago whatever like it's just not it's not possible like you have to respect that and give yourself the time and i I really wanted to be patient with that and not do anything drastically with my fueling and try to lose weight too quickly given that I know from experience that that will just lead to injuries so I've been quite diligent with that and just
00:33:53
Steph
not getting too obsessed with standing on the scales or looking in the mirror and think I need to be a certain size and just giving my body the space it needs to kind of heal. And as long as I felt i could be active in some sense every day and in the beginning, like for the first week, especially like I wasn't really doing much, but once I was able to walk every day, I just started building up that slowly.
00:34:11
Steph
And that was in a nice routine with it. and And then generally, like I was saying before, with returning to the training, I was just really enjoying them the progress of it. Like it,
00:34:22
Steph
I've not had that feeling before where I've actually felt like I was getting fitter with ah each run and feeling good with it because you just don't feel like that when you're actually really fit because the improvements are so small and you often don't know what what shape you're in until you actually race.
00:34:38
Steph
So I was really, really enjoying that. and And then I would say and in terms of like seeing what other people do, I then would go through phases, I guess, of seeing other women in the same...
00:34:51
Steph
same timeline as me who are running marathons and absolutely smashing it and you think what they done that I haven't done or is it just I think sometimes it's just some people are made differently and they can just cope with that um but I do always think you've just got to do what feels right for you and okay someone else might now be smashing it running marathons ultra marathons whatever and I hope that that stays well for them and and they're okay but then I think reminding myself as well that like I hope that they've had the the advice to do that because and otherwise it can come back back to bite them. It might not because some people are just very strong, and robust and can take that.
00:35:31
Steph
But it's just knowing for me that I have these risks and injury. So I have to respect that and I have to, and that's why this sacrum thing is like a little bit, and well, it's been very upsetting because have done everything right in terms of like making sure that I was feeling and again like due to lack of research should I have been taking calcium sublet supplements when I was breastfeeding someone could have told me that like I would but um I was always told that I could get enough from my food
00:36:02
UKRunChat
Thank you.
00:36:07
Steph
My diet has been analyzed and they say that there's enough in there. But I think when you're producing milk and giving it to someone else, it's very different. So that's like an unknown thing or it's not been proved. No one said to me that like this has been proved, so you should do it.
00:36:22
Steph
So that's where I think as active people who have had babies and are coming back from it, where we need to to share, because I know some people don't share when bad things happen, but hopefully...
00:36:36
Steph
by speaking out and letting other people know that I can help them in some way. And I am not saying that everyone should take calcium because I don't know if that's right or wrong. But and it's just something that I have heard from other athletes who have had the same thing as me, that that is what they feel that they missed.
00:36:53
Steph
So um I personally started taking a calcium supplement just because I feel like there's no harm in taking it. I'm not saying I'll take it forever. But in the meantime, whilst I'm just healing, I'm going to take it. so yeah it's just again one these things i wish there was more research and um especially for breastfeeding mums i think when you've never been through it before you just underestimate how demanding that is on the body and even at the process starts in the third trimester like you are making someone else's bones inside you so when you think about it like that it's a lot
00:37:17
UKRunChat
yeah
00:37:31
UKRunChat
Yeah, we definitely need more research into women, don't we?
00:37:36
UKRunChat
Full stop. Yeah. Yeah.
00:37:36
Steph
yeah
00:37:37
Steph
Yeah.
00:37:38
UKRunChat
But yeah, you you are you've always been very open, I think, in what you share.
00:37:38
Steph
So.
00:37:42
UKRunChat
I think that's great that people do see the struggles, not just kind of the the good times, because it gives a whole picture, doesn't it?
00:37:47
Steph
Yeah.
00:37:49
UKRunChat
And it gets people thinking about different things.
00:37:52
Steph
Yeah. I think you do want to share the good times as well because you want other people to feel empowered, but um like these sacral issues postpartum are relatively common in active women.
00:37:55
UKRunChat
Yeah.
00:38:05
Steph
And I know it from speaking to other athletes, it's something that most of them fear coming back. And so I automatically reached out to some of the girls that I know who had gone through it and they were very helpful. So I would always be here if someone has any questions.
Coaching Philosophy and Motherhood
00:38:23
UKRunChat
and Has your um approach to coaching other people changed since becoming a mum?
00:38:29
Steph
I think. Maybe a little bit. I think in the last kind of few years, I have struggled with injuries. So I'd say that combined with becoming a mum has definitely changed my approach. And and
00:38:45
Steph
it's not just about the running when you're coaching someone. Like, obviously, that is a key part is getting them running because that is what they want to perform in. but it's thinking about everything around that from their lifestyle, their family commitments, work commitments, they might have another hobby, what they have to juggle, and what access they have to strength.
00:39:06
Steph
I think given the good side of the injuries that I've had and my postpartum journey and my pregnancy journey is, I feel like as a coach, I have a lot to offer in terms of like experience and what I've learned and and helping other people make sure that they have a good balance in their training to get that consistency.
00:39:26
Steph
So going through pregnancy, having a baby, going through the postpartum journey has definitely given me a new experience. I am able to help but other women going through similar things. And i have a few clients who are postpartum clients and and more respect, I think, for people who have kids and how much of a juggle it is because you don't really Before having a baby, like I always knew it was going to be full on, but you don't really know how that feels until you're in it.
00:39:55
Steph
And now I know. And like, you wouldn't change it for the world. Like it's so much fun, but recovery looks very, very different. Like I don't have those afternoons or, or hours in the week where I can just sit and chill for myself and take the time. Because if Ivy's with her dad or with grandparents or when she goes to nursery and later in the summer,
00:40:19
Steph
I'll have other things to do that she'll need for later on or just basic housework and laundry to do. and It's very, very different. And I think I will take that into my next block of training as well.
00:40:31
Steph
Like when it comes to that that next race build, I cannot look back onto what I did for, say, my Olympic marathon build and think I'll just do the same.
00:40:32
UKRunChat
and yeah
00:40:40
Steph
It's got to look different. So that for me has given me like a whole new level of understanding and respect for what it requires when you're juggling m being a parent.
00:40:50
UKRunChat
Yeah. And luckily, you've spoken before about how you don't do huge, huge miles anyway, do you? So hopefully you can you can adapt to that a bit easier.
00:40:57
Steph
No.
00:40:58
UKRunChat
What have you got planned next?
00:40:59
Steph
Yeah.
00:41:01
UKRunChat
Once you recover, of course.
00:41:01
Steph
So, yeah, so I'd still really like to get to Valencia Marathon at the end of the year. and I've really started to change my goals on what that will look like, but I really just want to get ah marathon block and a race under my belt. So hopefully then that can propel me into the spring where I can do something.
00:41:22
Steph
um I've not decided yet with Valencia if I'll and like pay someone or run in a group and do it more from a coaching perspective.
00:41:34
Steph
and I think I'll make that call kind of near the time. And once I've got more of a plan, and when I'm going back running and stuff. But I know run I'll be going out. and And I've got lots of friends and athletes going out. So, yeah, I definitely would love to go be there. And in terms of like performance for that, I am lowering my expectations and just want to I just want to run.
00:41:58
Steph
I just really want to run a marathon.
00:41:58
UKRunChat
and Yeah, I think that's the first hurdle now, isn't it?
00:42:00
Steph
Like I don't.
00:42:01
UKRunChat
Just get you back.
00:42:02
Steph
Exactly.
00:42:02
UKRunChat
Yeah.
00:42:03
Steph
i just want to be back there on a start line with my friends, with people, my colleagues, like and just have a really nice time. and because going down to London in April and watching everyone run was just it was just so much fun even in the heat I felt so bad for everyone but it was just the atmosphere was great and it's just so nice to see the community and everyone working together and I just want to be in that and actually being in the masses and having that vibe is is very different to when you're like pushing it and trying to get every last little bit out of yourself so that is the plan for just now
00:42:40
UKRunChat
Yeah.
Future Aspirations and Gratitude
00:42:40
UKRunChat
Oh, yeah. Well, all all the very best with kind of getting back to it and it just enjoying being a new mum because it's a lovely time, isn't it?
00:42:47
Steph
Yeah, yeah.
00:42:48
UKRunChat
And they do grow so quickly.
00:42:49
Steph
And I'd love Ivy to come. And yeah, she can see the running world. And I took her down to London, which was fun.
00:42:54
UKRunChat
Yeah.
00:42:55
Steph
and But she'll be a little bit older then. So yeah.
00:42:57
UKRunChat
Yeah. Have you taken a round park running the boogie yet or have you done any of that?
00:43:01
Steph
Not yet. So we've got a running buggy coming soon.
00:43:03
UKRunChat
Yeah.
00:43:03
Steph
And we haven't got one yet. So definitely we'll be doing, when I get back to my walk runs, I'll be taking her out. and i think I think she'll love it. She just loves being outside.
00:43:10
UKRunChat
Yeah. Oh, yeah.
00:43:12
Steph
And I think she'll enjoy it.
00:43:14
UKRunChat
Yeah, I miss that. We did that for about four years with our little one. And I still remember shouting, run faster, mum.
00:43:17
Steph
No. Yeah,
00:43:20
UKRunChat
once you got down Yeah, I miss those days.
00:43:22
Steph
yeah you've got a cheerleader.
00:43:23
UKRunChat
So enjoy them.
00:43:25
UKRunChat
Yeah, you've got it all to come. and
00:43:26
Steph
yeah
00:43:27
Steph
Yeah.
00:43:28
UKRunChat
Yeah, um yeah we'll we'll keep we'll keep our eyes on on what you've got planned next when you get back to it.
00:43:31
Steph
Yeah.
00:43:33
UKRunChat
So, yeah thanks so much for coming back on and chatting to us so openly about, you know, pregnancy and
00:43:33
Steph
Do.
00:43:38
Steph
No problem.
00:43:39
UKRunChat
getting back to it it's hopefully helped a lot yeah and and all the very best we'll look forward to seeing what's happening with runner and strata as well yes oh well we hope that you yeah thank you steph we hope that everybody out there listening has enjoyed this episode and you can get an extended free trial with runner with our code run chat one that's all in capitals and we hope that you've all enjoyed this episode we'll see you on the next one
00:43:41
Steph
Yeah. No worries, it's great to chat.
00:43:48
Steph
Yeah, it's all very exciting. Thanks so much.
00:44:08
Steph
Great.