MERGING MY PASSIONS: ANNIE'S ATHLETES

"Allow your passion to become your purpose, and it will one day become your profession." - Gabrielle Bernstein

I closed my Fired Fitness personal training business at the end of 2019, and temporarily stopped my running coaching, when I chose to chase my own running dreams. I packed my bags and went to train at 3000m altitude in a training camp in the mountains, located in a small township called Kipsiat. I didn't have any access to wi-fi, and was thus no longer able to continue coaching my athletes online. I always knew I would return to coaching, since it’s such a big passion of mine, and I see it as my way to give back to the sport which has given me so much.

I am back in South Africa for the foreseeable future and am able to restart my business. Over the past two years, during the global pandemic when racing opportunities were scarce and races were being cancelled, a lot of runners also didn't feel the need to seek out coaching services, since they didn’t have any specific races to prepare for. However, the race calendar is finally filling up with races again, and the running world is slowly moving back to normal after the negative effects of the pandemic.

Fired Fitness is back, but under a new name, a new look, with more services and with a new mission!

ANNIE'S ATHLETES now offer personalized coaching services for runners, and sport nutrition services for everyone, including elite athletes, weekend warriors, recreational exercisers, or anyone who wants to improve their health and life quality through fitness and nutrition.

I focus on creating a program that fits the athlete's unique needs, takes their running history into consideration, and is tailored to help them achieve their goals. I combine the knowledge I’ve gained from some of the best coaches in the world, including Erick Kimayo (coach to the current world record marathon-holder, Brigid Koskei of Kenya), Zola Budd (former South African middle-distance Olympian), Bennie Stander, Gerrie Coetzee, Johan Fourie, and other great mentors who have influenced my thinking, with the experience I’ve gained while training at a high level as an elite athlete over the years.

My passion for nutrition has evolved drastically while being an elite athlete. I realized how much better I’m able to perform if I fuel properly to support my training. ​As athletes we need to fuel for training to reach our full potential. Athletes often neglect nutrition and miss out on a key component of their training.

While growing up, I really wanted to study dietetics. My own journey with nutrition started when I became sick as a young girl. I battled with gastrointestinal symptoms and saw multiple doctors who tried to figure out the root cause to my life-debilitating symptoms. Symptoms included fatigue, weight loss, inability to handle cold, anemia (low iron), low blood pressure, and dizziness, just to name a few. At the age of 17, I was finally diagnosed with Celiac disease, and was forced, as a teenager, to suddenly navigate figuring out a gluten-free diet. Celiac disease (CD) is a genetic, autoimmune disease that mainly affects the gastrointestinal tract when gluten is ingested. Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye. When someone with CD eats gluten, the lining of the small intestine becomes damaged and is unable to absorb nutrients properly.

Battling with Celiac Disease, along with my other health problems, made me realize what a profound impact nutrition can have on your health, life-quality, and performance as an athlete.

Two years after that, I received another diagnosis by an endocrinologist. He told me that I have a rare disorder called Hypopituitarism, which causes the pituitary gland, situated at the base of the brain, to fail in its production of hormones – by producing too little or, in rare cases, none. The hormones secreted by this bean-shaped gland influence nearly every part of the human body, including growth, reproduction, and blood pressure. The absence of these critically important hormones can thus cripple the development of the human body, which was undoubtedly apparent in my case, since I am severely undersized when compared to my family, in both weight and length, and I lack some basic development usually undergone by a growing child. The explanation behind my still reasonable length lies in my genes and normal thyroid gland. As a result of my Hypopituitarism, I also have Central Diabetes Insipidus, due to damage to the pituitary gland that affects the usual production, storage, and release of ADH.

As a result of my conditions, I was very skinny and small while growing up. I was constantly being labelled and judged. People thought I had an eating disorder due to the way I look, and I still get judged often for being small-framed and underweight. However, the way I look has never been a choice or even a result of the way I eat. Rather, it was due to my medical conditions. I let with the judgement stop me from pursuing my dream of becoming a dietitian. I wanted to go study nutrition, but I didn't want to amplify the labels that were already being placed upon me. I did not want more emotional pain, neither did I need more rejection, bulling and shaming than I was already dealing with.

But it is true. Sadly, there is a stigma that people with eating disorders often go study nutrition or dietetics. In fact, according to a research paper published in the National Library of Medicine in 2018, Orthorexia nervosa and eating disorder symptoms in dietitians in the United States, researchers found that both ON and EDs are more common amongst dietitians than the general population. The results showed dietitians self-reported symptoms suggesting a prevalence of 49.5% for ON and 12.9% for EDs, and the presence of ON symptoms was associated with all the types of ED symptoms queried.

So, I didn't follow my dream and, instead, went for the second best option. I decided to go study Exercise Science in America, and became a Master Personal Trainer through the International Sports Science Association. I am also a certified coach, and have done kids coaching development courses. However, after returning from the States, I ended up becoming certified as a Sports Nutritionist; while studying exercise science, I realized nutrition is a key part of an athlete's performance, recovery, and health. It is not worth it to not go for the things that makes you excited in life, just simply because of the fear of what others may say or think. Follow your own passions and create your own path - ultimately you are the one who is going to walk it!

I always knew I wanted to be involved and give back to the sport in some way. It is a part of me and will always be! I realized I could merge my passions for running, coaching, and nutrition into one, because they are all connected, and the one cannot really function optimally without the other!

Sports Nutrition is such a new and evolving field, and one often has to seek out other avenues of study, like diplomas or postgraduate programs, to become a qualified sports nutritionist, since a lot of universities only offer dietetics and not sports nutrition. I want to be able to work with the active population as that is where my interests lean most towards. The field is constantly growing and we are learning more about the science of nutrition and its effects on the human body, as well as its practical implications for athletes. It is for this reason that I‘ve decided to continue studying: to broaden my knowledge and better assist the athletes I am working with.

I am currently busy studying to become a Performance Sports Nutritionist through the Institute Of Performance Nutrition (IOPN). The IOPN is an independent professional education institute dedicated to the training and development of sports nutritionists. The course is led by world-class lecturers and tutors who fuel elite athletes and teams. I am very excited and privileged to be a student at such a high-level institution.

My mission is to help athletes reach their full potential and enjoy their sport. I want to give back to the sport, since it is something that gave me so much, and brought so much meaning to my life! Coaching and Sport Nutrition is my way to help other athletes feel the same feeling of freedom that I experience every day when I get to exercise.

Join today, and learn how to TRAIN RIGHT & FUEL FOR THE WORK REQUIRED!

To find out more about the services I will be offering please visit:

https://www.anniesathletes.org/

https://www.anniesathletes.org/services

Alternatively you can also visit my coaching page on my blog: https://www.anniebothma.com/coaching

Lastly, if you have a dream or something you are really passionate about, I encourage you to go for it and never let anyone else decide your path or let your fears dictate your decisions. Follow your heart.

- Annie

BON COURAGE

A word that really resonated with me this year has been COURAGE.

I started reading Ryan Holiday's COURAGE IS CALLING: FORTUNE FAVORS THE BRAVE, and it felt really timely in my life. I reached a point where I really needed the courage to keep believing in myself and in my dreams, and I had to trust that my effort would finally start to pay off. It has been nearly two years of not really competing and I have nothing to show for all the miles I logged or the hours I spent in the gym.

Over the December holiday, I came across a French expression, Bon Courage, which means “Good Courage”. I like this because "Good Luck" refers to something out of our control, while having "Good Courage" is a choice we can all make daily, whatever we may be facing. We can choose to be courageous in the midst of adversities, scary situations, or during the things that challenge us and take us completely out of our comfort zone!

"Bon courage is an essential French expression for offering verbal support before or during a difficult task. It's like saying good luck, instead, it means to have good courage in French."

Turns out I was going to need a lot of courage for what lay ahead in 2022...

My year ended on a high, having had one of the best running months in a long time, after a constant health battle during 2021. I felt strong, was healthier, and was able to do consistent, high mileage, quality workouts, and solid long runs. However, in the middle of December, I took a hard fall in the gym, when the TRX trainer came loose from the hook on the gate. I was in a lot of back pain and had to take a few days off. I recovered and resumed training, but, subconsciously, I must have compensated. I recall my brother and dad, while on the bike, pointing out that I was leaning slightly more backwards on runs and my form looked a bit different.

I started my year with a good weekend, including a medium long run on the first Sunday without any pain. The next day was a recovery day with only two easy runs, before a short Tuesday workout, as I planned to open my 2022 season with a 15 km race on the 8th of January. After the workout on the grass I felt a strange pain in my left heel. I have been experiencing more tightness under my plantar than usual, but it didn't bother me when I ran or when I woke up in the morning, so I was almost certain it wasn't plantar. After doing my cooldown and gym session, I could feel something was wrong while walking around at home. The next day I woke up in pain and I didn't run. I decided to book a session with my physio instead. I kept resting, hoping I would be fine for the race on that Saturday, but the pain got no better and I was forced to take the rest of the week off.

The next Monday, I did my normal, easy morning run, but it was painful, and afterwards I was aware of it the whole day. I saw the physio again and he wasn't too concerned. He thought that it wasn’t too serious and that the inflammation probably just needed some time to settle. He suggested that it was a strain and that, if we taped it, hopefully I will be able to run the next day.

I didn't run and booked an MRI instead, it felt more than just a niggle. I haven't been injured since February 2019, never needing to take more than a day or two off, aside from my planned/scheduled rest days. But this felt different.

It happened so fast and unexpectedly. The MRI showed a stress fracture in my left calcaneus.

This was my first stress fracture; since I started competing competitively, at the age of 16, I have never had a fracture or bone stress injury before. It could have been due to a multitude of factors: the fall, the difficulty of proper periodization, due to race cancellations and postponements over the pandemic, as well as just the reality that running is a high impact sport that comes with risks. It was heartbreaking to receive the news that my 2022 was not going to look anything like I imagined.

At first I kept hopes that I would be able to maintain some of the marathon fitness I have built up over the summer and still make a comeback in time to race at the South African Marathon Championships in May and seal a qualifying time for the World Championships in Eugene, taking place in July/August. I cross trained hard and didn't even tell people about the fracture - I just thought that I will stay fit and then try my best to get ready so that, when I am able, I can hit the ground running. I wasn't ready to give in - I thought if I just stayed positive and kept working hard that I could still make it. I knew it wouldn't be easy or perfect and that I won't be able to reach the same level that I could have if I was doing proper marathon training, but I was determined to make it work, and confident I would still be able to compete if I am able to line up on the day - even if it was a very unconventional or short build-up.

But that is not the way it works, the body has its own time-line and you can't force healing. Depending on the severity of the break, and where it is located, it may also take variate time for the fracture to heal. It is a slow process that can't be rushed, and it will require a lot of patience, perseverance… and a shit load of cross training!

During this recovery process I have been using different forms of cross training - at first it was just the pool for aqua jogging, followed by the spin bike, every day, along with a lot of hours in the gym doing strength and rehab exercises throughout the whole process. I have seen huge improvements in my strength and power, as well as the amount of weight I am able to lift. I have been able to work up squatting and deadlifting 1.5 times more than my body-weight for 4 sets of 4-8 reps and more or equal to body-weight on single-versions for the same amount of sets and rep range. I am now also seeing the benefits and difference in my power output translating to speed on the road, especially uphill and against the wind (which used to be two of my biggest weaknesses!)

In February, I was fortunate enough to test out an ElliptiGo (Read more about the best cross-training for runners here) which ended up becoming my main form of cross training during the recovery months, and is still part of my routine to supplement my running. I do all my "double runs" on the ElliptiGo. I am slowly returning, and am still far from my regular mileage or workouts. I’m allowing my body to fully heal - to make sure I don't risk relapse while the bone is still fragile. It takes up to six months for a calcaneus fracture to fully heal.

It took me 9 weeks before I could start with a 3 km run, which is less than my typical warm-up distance before a workout or race. I slowly progressed and ran easy for a full month before I could attempt a simple 1:1 x 10 Fartlek. But progress isn't always linear, and, shortly after, I sprained my other foot's toes while miss-stepping on my first off-road run. I was forced to take a full week off to let the inflammation settle.

I saw an orthopaedic doctor and was advised by both him and my sports doctor that it won't be possible, safe, or realistic to run a marathon in the first six months of this year and that I will have to reframe my goals and expectations for 2022. It was mentally difficult to let go, since I have been working so hard for this goal and dreamt about it for ages, but I have accepted the reality. I also realised that I have been extremely fortunate the past few years, since I have overcome back injury related to my car accidents in the USA, which were severe.

Up to 60% of runners have or will experience an injury severe enough for them to put away their running shoes for several weeks or months. It is a reality of a high-impact sport, and unfortunately a large percentage of those injuries are bone stress injuries. I have been very fortunate in my 10 years of competing in the sport to not sustain a bone-stress injury before. I do attribute this to my consistency with strength training, pre-rehab, mobility training and, most importantly, my diet and recovery. I am especially diligent about my pre-and post run/training fueling. I make sure I start my training fueled and never train or run fasted, as it slows your recovery and can mess with your hormone levels, as it elevates cortisol in the body during, and after, training. The moment I finish training I also try to get some nutrients and hydration back into my body as soon as possible to speed up the recovery process. I am incredibly lucky to have Powerbar on my team who helps make this a little easier and digestible (and also highly convenient and tasty!).

In the meantime, I am shifting my focus to shorter distances, and working on developing my speed before I attempt the high mileage and workload that comes with training for a fast marathon. The marathon won my heart, and it is where my team believes I have the most potential in the long run, but for now it will have to wait.

During these past few months I struggled to share and be open about my experience navigating through this injury, and, as I said, I was still hopeful that somehow I could make it work and make a smooth, fast comeback. There was just so much uncertainty, and I wasn't sure of the timeline or how long I would be out for, either - to be honest, I am still not quite sure how long it will take before I can return to my normal training volume and previous fitness level. I also didn't want to make a bunch of excuses or make it look like I wanted people to feel sorry for me.

The main reason why I didn't share this publicly earlier was the financial implications involved. As a professional athlete, you are paid to race and perform. Both this injury and my health struggles were something out of my control, but it ultimately resulted in me losing my biggest sponsor and main source of income. Without this support, I am no longer able to cover the costs of my medication and it continues to place a big financial burden on me and my family.

But now that I have lost everything over the past two years - I realized I have nothing more to lose!

By choosing to share my journey I can perhaps help someone else and make a positive impact on their life in some way. I know that without my support team - my parents, family, close friends, manager, doctors and therapists - I certainly wouldn't have made it through this challenging time. They are in fact the ones who carried me, kept believing in me and allowed me to keep going. They are the reason I am still fighting!

As stated before, I am well aware that running injuries are part of the sport and that dealing with a stress fracture or even more than one bone stress injury during the span of a career is a ubiquitous occurrence. I truly am incredibly thankful that I haven't had a fracture before, although I have had many accident related injuries, or injuries caused from weaknesses/imbalances as a junior athlete. I have also definitely had my fair share of setbacks and time away from the sport, due to my struggle with chronic health conditions. That being said, I want to acknowledge, and sympathise, with any runner or athlete that is currently injured or has dealt with an injury before. Feel free to reach out if you just need someone to talk to or if you need some ideas about cross training to help maintain fitness.

Every setback makes me appreciate running even more. The last two years have been hell - the pandemic, combined with my health battles, stole a lot of opportunities from me. However, it has not been able to take away my passion for the sport, my determination, or my fight! Neither has this injury - it is simply another chapter in my story, not one I would look back on with fondness, but, as cliche as it sounds, as one that made me stronger and more resilient.

"I believe that my best athletic days are still ahead of me." - Hillary Allen

I just need the courage to keep going and not give up. The story is not done yet, the rest is still unwritten.

Thank you for making the time to read this post and being invested in my athletic journey. I appreciate your support.

- Annie

AND SO THE FIGHT CONTINUES...

"Behind mountains, there will always be more mountains to climb." - unknown

When I trained in Kenya, the 3000m above sea altitude level wasn’t the only thing that took my breath away - the magnitude of the mountain ranges and valleys that surrounded me did, too. They seemed to be everywhere… and that means plenty of hills to climb! Steep hills. Rolling hills. Long hills. Rocky hills. Sneaky-little-bastard hills...Everywhere!

Coach Erick had a little too much fun making us climb the highest peaks he could find. I remember him pointing at some random mountain in the distance, while we were driving after training runs, and saying: "Tomorrow we will finish the long run somewhere up there." I recall starting at 3000 m elevation at the camp and running up to 3500 m, on the peak of a mountain. During the last 6 km, my breathing became shallow, my legs struggled to keep moving, and even my arms started to feel heavier as the oxygen dwindled. The altitude was a big shock to my system, being used to sea level, but the marvellous view of the Kenyan rift valley served as a welcome distraction.

He also loved making us do long runs that start at a lower elevation and finish off at the camp. We would leave the camp at 2-3 a.m., and drive in the dark into the unknown. The car crawled down the steep inclines, with all the athletes holding their breaths - praying it doesn't give in under the heavy passenger load, because, otherwise, they would have to push. By around 5 a.m. we would reach our destination. The athletes would then disappear into the darkness, to find a bush and a leaf, before they started with an almost walking-pace warmup in preparation for the gruelling climb. Then, still before sunrise, the coach would give his signal. With every passing minute, the road became clearer as the sun gradually peaked over the mountain ranges, exposing the steep climbs that lay ahead.

Somehow it seems easier to face a challenge if you know how long it is going to take. But that is often not how life works. Life is uncertain. We all faced the uncertainty of the global pandemic over the past two years, and realised just how much we crave certainty in our lives and how scary and anxious its absence can be. Fear can paralyse us, and leave us restless, depressed, isolated, and lost. We want to know how we need to prepare for anything that may put us, or those we love, in danger. The reality is, however, that we rarely have that luxury.

Because life is, and will always be, uncertain.

Whether it is navigating through a pandemic, managing chronic illness, dealing with a new diagnosis, enduring a divorce, battling through financial struggles, or dealing with a serious injury...

I started off 2022 like "F#CK YEAH!” - this is going to be my year, where things finally turn around for me, the year where I am able to line up again and race from the gunshot to the finish-line - and maybe break even the tape again...? It feels like forever since I’ve had a real race experience, where I was physically healthy enough to line-up without stressing whether I will make it the whole distance without some freak accident - that is, if the global pandemic didn’t rob me of the opportunity to line-up in the first place.

During the heat of the pandemic I was in the best shape of my life without any races to run. I went from one cancellation or postponement onto the next. I kept training relentlessly with the hope that whenever my opportunity came I would be ready. I went from one marathon build onto the next without getting to run the actual race. This built fitness, but brought frustration and disappointment more than anything else. In 2021, when some races were finally back, under strict conditions, my health started to decline, and ultimately stopped me from qualifying for the Olympic Games in Tokyo. I was heartbroken, especially after being so close… My name was in the South African marathon squad.

I went full steam into another marathon build-up for the Cape Town Marathon in October, but, unlike my previous build-ups, I was just logging mileage, often being too sick to do intensity or train consistently. On the morning of the race the cold, rainy weather embodied the experience. My warmup was agonising, but I hoped that the adrenaline and the magic of being in a real race again after two years would allow me to push through the pain. I needed to showcase my fitness and prove that my training achievements were real. When I stepped up to the start line, with rain pouring down, I had to stand with confidence, but, inside, I was dying. The cold seeped into my shaking body, and the pain roared in my calf. After the gun, my body started shutting down, and dizziness enveloped me. I heard cries from the sidelines telling me to stop, and I knew they were right. I also heard my mother’s concerned voice saying that she can’t pick me up at the side of the road again, having to call an ambulance. She told me to stop before I collapsed. So that is what I did. I knew my race was over. The leaders were nowhere in sight, and just moving felt like an effort. The opportunity that I trained two years for slipped through my fingers. Another disappointing DNF finished off a terrible 2021 race record for me.

After a long, cold winter, the sun finally began to shine for me in December, when I was able to build up close to my previous marathon shape, logging solid mileage, while being able to do two high quality sessions and a steady long run weekly. I was targeting a race in early 2022, with the hopes of finally racing a real marathon again since my debut at Cape Town Marathon in 2019. On the 26th of December, I had the most special run, next to my brother on the bike. It was the best birthday ever. We decided to do a marathon (or 26 miles) for my 26th Birthday on the 26th! We started in Cape Town, just outside Camps Bay, and finished in Melkbosstrand. My parents met us there and we had a picnic and coffee on the beach. I felt strong, finishing off an exemplary week of training. The next day I took a well deserved rest day and felt confident that I was finally moving in the right direction - to a new marathon personal best. It was most likely the highlight of my year, running-wise, because it gave me hope for the coming year.

TO BE CONTINUED...