LATEST NEWS

Earlier this year, the Empire Kawasaki team and I headed to Wonthaggi for the opening round of the Victorian titles as a pre run for round one of the Australian ProMX Championship. Unfortunately for me, a race accident during the event left me with a broken left Femur and Pelvis.

With my season taking a turn, I figured it would be a perfect time to write about my experience when recovering from injury. 

It's no secret that injuries are a major downside to our sport. For most riders, it's not about if, but more so a matter of when, and navigating the different stages of recovery can be difficult.

Getting through the first few weeks can be the most challenging. This is where I’ve found setting goals, and keeping a positive mindset is crucial. The moment of being on the track to laying in a hospital bed can happen in an instant, so a shift in the mindset from dwelling to acceptance of what happened helps to maximise recovery. Alongside this, taking it day by day, nutrition and a great support network can have a positive impact on recovering.

Nutrition

Looking back on the challenges of the first few weeks, getting nutrition right was a big turning point for myself, which helped tremendously. As we all know, hospital food isn’t the best, so trying to get consistent with anti-inflammatory foods is massive. This helps flush the system of the negative elements from surgery, and kickstarts the reduction of swelling. A lift in morale also comes with more enjoyable food — which doesn’t hurt either! 

The importance of goal setting both is pivotal.  For example; getting more comfortable with walking on crutches was a priority. Starting on two, I progressed to just one, then managed to walk without assistance.Though small, these milestones helped me focus on moving forwards with affirmations of satisfaction. 

Monitoring progress

With recovery, there’s good and bad days, so keeping a daily journal helps with the reassurance of progress. There’s nothing like old-fashioned data to help you stay on the right direction of being back to full health!

The challenge of staying physically active in one way or another may seem impossible when not at full health. However, the quicker you can get moving the better. This helps promote blood flow and working other muscles, it can also help with healing the injured area. A suitable exercise plan should be considered. It's also a chance to help improve and strengthen weaker areas.

Keeping busy

When an injury occurs, daily life may take a complete turn, so stimulating the brain and keeping it engaged is important. This can be done through reading, writing or learning new skills. Keeping up a schedule, consistent sleeping times, eating and training will all help. Remembering that consistency is king will always help with your injury progression, and moving closer towards your goals.

Staying social

A strong social network can also provide constant reminders of your ‘why’ as well as aiding and uplifting you. For me, it's easy to go into a bubble during an injury recovery period, therefore making a conscious effort to assist and aid in any way possible with my team and trainers is important. I typically find this hard, but it helps give purpose and shows character to help others when going through a challenging time themselves.

The power of positive thinking

Lastly, reinforcing positive thinking, watching old races and reflecting on positive race moments will always help remind you of your ‘why’. 

Recovering from injuries will be different for everyone, therefore speaking with people who have been in a similar position or had similar injuries is a major help, sharing what worked and what didn’t. This will likely also help shape your recovery program. 

I am currently recovering from injury and these were some of the things that have helped me move closer towards being back on my bike while challenging myself to use this time to learn and grow.