Becky Wade: Achilles Recovery to Marathon
Greetings LEVER Runner! Thanks for making your way to the blog section of our website. Today we are highlighting a superwoman! Her name is Becky Wade. Becky is a Texas Native who now lives in the Boulder, Colorado area. We like to highlight Comeback Legends in our Athlete Series, and Becky is one of the finest.
Becky attended Rice University in Houston, Tx. While at Rice, she was a 4 time NCAA Division 1 All-American and also experienced success at the Olympic Trials. From her college days to present day, Becky has competed in 4 US Olympic trials where she has raced in both the Steeplechase (2x) and the Marathon (2x). She holds a 3k Steeplechase PR of 9:48.04, a 10k PR of 32:32.85, half-marathon PR of 1:09:40, and a marathon PR of 2:30:41. Not only is Becky extremely fast, but she's a very good author too (check out her book Run the World). We caught up with Becky this week to hear how her training has been going and what the road ahead looks like for her.
"My big focus is on the 10,000m for the 2021 Olympic Track Trials." If you've ever been stuck in a seemingly endless injury rut, you know that it's hard to continue to be optimistic while also setting very big, yet attainable, goals for the months ahead. Becky experienced one of those setback like moments earlier this summer. For months, Becky was working through an Achilles injury that she could not shake. But despite the setback, the pain, and the unknown ahead, Becky has always kept living with joy and optimism knowing that she has a big season ahead. Part of the reason she can stay so optimistic is because she has such an incredible support crew around her. This summer she brought together her coaches, physical therapists, mentors and friends and created a fine tuned plan to getting out of this injury rut. Can you guess what one of the components to her return to run plan is? You guessed right, the LEVER device!
Becky first used the LV1 device in her preparation for the Toronto Marathon in 2019. She suffered a calf injury in the weeks leading up to the marathon and relied upon the LV1 to get her to the starting line healthy. She's told us that she's been a big fan ever since! In similar fashion, Becky has been incorporating her BWS device in her return to run plan she created with her coach. She mentioned to us that "unloading even a little bit of body weight can make a huge difference when it comes to training through a hiccup or returning to running after an injury. The device helps me run smoother and more even than on land, and is also a safer way to transition to normal training."
Transitioning slowly back to land running is an integral part in returning safely from an Achilles injury (see our Injury Series blog on the Achilles tendon here). So how is Becky returning to run right now? "I’m currently alternating Lever runs with land runs, and often warming up with Lever before taking off out my door too. It’s been absolutely clutch in my comeback so far, and (it) will stay in the rotation for some easy runs and doubles even when I’m 100%." Becky is dialed in, focused, and getting ready to rip this season. On top of setting her sights on the 2021 Olympic Track Trials, she is also shooting for "a sub-69:00 half marathon this spring, if the opportunity exists."
We love working with athletes like Becky because when running and life may have her down and setback for a couple months, she remains laser focused on what she wants to achieve. Do you have a hiccup or injury currently holding you back? Don't let that slow you down, physically or emotionally! Stay laser focused on the goal, find a strong support crew, and fine tune that return to run plan so that you're stronger than ever. And as always, we are here to help!
