Having started my running journey again, I have committed to doing things properly. Taking what I think of as my mistakes from previous training programmes, I intend to perform better in all aspects of my training, including those areas often neglected including stretching and strength training.

In an effort to improve my performances, I have incorporated yoga into my routine. Now don’t get me wrong, I am no yogi, in fact I have never done yoga in my life until approximately 3 weeks ago, but I am already understanding what the benefits can be. I am currently using the Peloton training app for guidance (completing a session twice a week), and there is a wide selection of yoga moves and routines to choose from. So far, I have only mastered one type of Sun Salutation but I am enjoying it and look forward to developing my skills over time.

Another strategy in the pursuit of improved performance is to stretch carefully and regularly. Again, there are a whole host of guided sessions on Peloton and I have been diligent in following them before and after a run. This was always an area I was quite committed to anyway, but I find I am concentrating on the movements and their desired outcomes more than previously, when I used to mindlessly move through the motions.

You can understand my frustration then, when very soon into my new programme, I suffered a calf injury. Only a week in and I was already facing the prospect of falling off the treadmill. However, in a display of rugged determination, I set about doing everything I could to repair the damage. I suppose this required a different kind of flexibility. I wasn’t able to follow my training programme in the way I had planned and although I continued with yoga and strength training to help me retain the regularity of training, I replaced running with short walks. I also used a foam roller (the back baller) twice a day to give my calves and achilles tendons a deep massage – painful but incredibly beneficial.

In previous years, this setback would have resulted in me doing no training for weeks, waiting for the calf to heal, before starting again. This time, I have been flexible in my training, flexible in my mindset and have increased the flexibility in my body. An important lesson that I hope will help me to push on and improve.